Islands High boys soccer coach Justin Brantley and Savannah Arts Academy boys soccer coach Ben Parker were frequent callers and texters this season. The day after Islands won the Class 3A state title on May 11 with a 6-0 defeat of East Hall, Parker was driving up to Atlanta for his team’s 2A title game with Pierce County when he called Brantley.
“I wanted to pick his brain,” Parker said. “I asked him, ‘What did you do in terms of, like, managing your guys to keep them from getting nervous but also keep them focused on the importance of the game?’ He basically said, ‘Hey, we went and watched the girls play.’ So, we got a bunch of subs from Jersey Mike’s, sat in the shade and watched the girls as Pike County played Coahulla Creek” in the state 2A title game. “Then we were able to do our full 45-minute warmup and went out and played.”
Savannah Arts defeated Pierce County 2-0 for its first state title. No Savannah public high school had won a state soccer title until this year; now the city has two state champion teams. It was the first boys state title for Savannah Arts in any sport since the school opened in 1998. It wasIslands’ first state title in any sport since the school opened in 2010.
“It’s my first state championship, so it still feels like a dream,” said Brantley, who played soccer at McDonough High and was a place-kicker for a season on Georgia Southern’s football team. “A lot of this year’s senior class played JV for me their freshman year, and they all really bought into what I was selling.”
Neither title came out of nowhere.
Islands reached the state semifinals in 2021 and the quarterfinals last year. It finished 22-2 this year, including a 3-1 defeat of Savannah Arts on April 14. Islands had one lull, losing back-to-back games in late March and early April, falling to Benedictine in penalty kicks and 7-1 to eventual South Carolina 4A quarterfinalist May River of Bluffton.
“Our wake-up call was probably against (Benedictine) because that was our first loss and it was to our biggest rival, so it didn’t feel great,” Islands junior goalkeeper Isaac Schultz said. “Both of our losses came over spring break when we weren’t consistently training together.”
Savannah Arts steadily improved since winning just three games two seasons ago, finishing 17-6 this season.
“I only had three seniors that year and a bunch of young guys,” Parker said. “Last year, we won nine games and lost nearly every close game. Well, those young guys won the championship for me a couple of nights ago.”
Savannah high schools have won state soccer titles, but until now, the area’s soccer talent has been concentrated in its private schools.
Benedictine Academy won 2A titles in 2017 and 2018, and Savannah Country Day won the boys and girls AA/A titles in 2002 and the boys AA/A title in 2003.
But Islands and Savannah Arts have consistently been among the city’s top-performing academic schools, making it easier for them to compete with private schools for elite players.
One other factor — club soccer — has also changed the dynamic.
Savannah United and South Georgia Tormenta FC have helped develop players and deepen the city’s talent pool. The leading scorer for Islands, JJ Stein, and the top two leading scorers for Savannah Arts, Caden Powell and Sebastian Nanez, were listed on the Tormenta FC USL Academy roster before that team folded this year.
Many of the Islands and Savannah Arts players knew each other from playing club soccer and cheered for each other at games on occasion.
“All of the guys have played together before, and it’s not a very big city, so we all know each other and have been friends for a while,” Schultz said.
Brantley said the small size of Savannah’s soccer community is evident in the camaraderie between teams.
“These guys are friends for 365 days a year except for the two hours they play,” he said. “After the game, they hang out. We played Savannah Country Day, and right after we beat them in penalty kicks, you would think they might be upset, but the two teams joined each other at Buffalo Wild Wings and had a blast. It’s a family-type atmosphere that Savannah has right now.”
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