Savannah Arts Academy soccer team wins school’s first boys state title in any sport
Savannah Arts Academy got first-half goals from Caden Powell and Sebastian Nunez and made them hold up for a 2-0 victory over Pierce County in the Georgia High School Association Class 2A boys soccer championship game Wednesday at St. Pius X High School in Atlanta and in the process brought home the first state title in any boys sport in school history.
The fourth-seeded Panthers completed a 17-6 season, winning 13 of their final 14 games after a 4-5 start. Savannah Arts beat region rival Pierce County twice during the regular season, 1-0 on Feb. 10 and April 3. The Panthers also defeated defending state champion Drew Charter in the quarterfinals and No. 1 seed Columbus in the semifinals.
According to the school website, Savannah Arts Academy opened in 1998 and is part of the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System. The school had won four previous state championships, three by the girls cross country team (including the past two seasons) and one in girls tennis.
No. 7 seed Pierce County, which also was seeking its first title in the sport, finished the year 14-6.
“The whole city got behind us,” Savannah Arts coach Ben Parker said. “I’ve gotten text messages from all sorts of coaches and players. The support was amazing, and we really appreciate them.”
Savannah Arts got the scoring underway with 13:27 remaining in the first half when Powell dribbled down the right side of the field, fighting off two defenders, and let loose with a left-footed, curving shot that went beyond the reach of Pierce County goalkeeper Lucas Sapp and into the top left corner of the net.
About six minutes later, Nunez added to the Panthers’ lead when he worked his way toward the right side of the goal near the end line and fired a low shot in for a goal.
Although both teams had scoring opportunities in a fast-paced second half, Savannah Arts was able to preserve its lead.
“That’s the way we play - gutty, gritty, we compete, we don’t give up, we play as a team,” Parker said. “All those cliche things, they’re real. There’s a reason that they work. That’s the way you win games. We were opportunistic going forward on the counterattacks, and we were able to get a couple of goals. That’s all we needed.”
About the Author
Chip Saye rejoined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2025, at the launch of AJC Varsity. In 2009 he helped start Georgia High School Football Daily. He previously worked for the AJC, Athens Banner-Herald, Anderson (S.C.) Independent-Mail and Gwinnett Daily News.
