An hour after the bright red lights of the Butler University scoreboard counted down to the second consecutive State Championship by the Penn High School Girls Soccer team, the stadium lights were turned off and darkness cascaded across the field.

There will be no dimming the accomplishments of the Penn Girls Soccer Team, which carved out one of the nation’s top legacies in the sport.

Coach Jeff Hart’s Penn Kingsmen defeated Guerin Catholic, 2-0, on Friday, Oct. 27, to earn the Class 3-A high school girls soccer state crown in Indiana.

The 2017 State Championship match will rank as a clash of titans in Indiana High School Athletic Association history. Penn entered the Championship game ranked No. 1 in the Nation by the prestigious soccer publication, topdrawersoccer.com. Guerin Catholic entered the title match ranked No. 1 in the Nation by MaxPreps.

Penn finished the season 23-0-1 and boasts a 45-0-2 record over the past two seasons.

Penn and Guerin Catholic waged a fierce battle. The Kingsmen turned back two Guerin Catholic attacks thanks to a stunning diving save by Mackenzie Wood in the 21st minute, and then a leaping save by Wood in the 52nd minute.

Kingsmen lightning struck in the 54th minute when Molly McLaughlin rocketed a screamer from 25 yards away to give Penn a 1-0 record. Kristina Lynch assisted on the goal.

Maya Lacognato delivered the dagger in the 61st minute. Lynch drove baseline and dished to Lacognato when the Guerin Catholic goalie and defensive raced to cover Lynch.

“Winning state for a second consecutive season was such an incredible feeling,” said Lynch, a USA Today First-Team All-American who is a Florida State recruit. “It was very meaningful to us, because it shows that all our hard work has paid off. This is an incredibly talented and fun group of girls and the memories we have made throughout the years will last forever.

“It is fun to think that years from now we will all be able to come together and share these special memories. Winning state was the highlight of my high school career! To win the title in my last high school game was a dream come true.”

Penn entered the season as a huge target as the defending State Champions and the No. 1 ranked team in the nation in the topdrawersoccer.com pre-season poll.

“Although this team had an immense target on our back throughout the season, we dealt with the pressure incredibly, and by having that demand of being No. 1 it, forced us to work even harder and become even better,” Notre Dame recruit Brooke VanDyck said.

Lynch agreed that the Kingsmen embraced the challenge of being a target, and stepped up their game.

“Having a prominent target throughout the season was definitely a challenge, but in the end it helped us win,” Lynch said. “Every team that we played gave it everything they had, which forced us to do the same. It definitely showed our mental strength as well as our overwhelming desire to experience the championship feeling again.”

Penn pounded Guerin Catholic for 19 shots, while the Golden Eagles only managed eight shots against Penn’s defense.

“I think our ability to move the ball, switch the point of attack and control the pace of the game made us successful at the right moments,” said McLaughlin, a Xavier recruit. “We knew going in what their weaknesses were and we were able to use our knowledge of the game and our strengths to capitalize on our chances.”

Lynch said that Penn’s work ethic and drive were difference-makers.

“Each person who stepped on the field worked extremely hard and did everything they could to help the team win,” Lynch said. “There was so much energy and determination that each of us brought to the field which made us very dangerous as a team. We were poised, patient, and took advantage of our opportunities. It's a real testament to our coaches and how they prepared us as well as the type of players we have on this team.”

For Lynch, talent and team chemistry were major factors that put Penn above every other high school girls soccer team in the nation.

“We all work extremely well together and our talents complement one another,” Lynch said. “We play for more than just ourselves – we play for each other, which is very rare especially in girls high school soccer.

“We have great talent for sure, and the best coaching staff in the state. We all have a love for one another and a sincere desire to win as a team. The chemistry on this team was the biggest difference. It is what kept us going all year and what pulled us through the shootout against Noblesville and the State Championship. I'm so honored and proud to be a part of such a special team!”

Penn High School’s Spell Bowl Team will seek its 17th state championship on Saturday, Nov. 11, 2017, when the Kingsmen compete in the Indiana Academic Spell Bowl, sponsored by the Indiana Association of School Principals. The State Championship is held at Purdue University.

Penn earned a berth to the State Finals by placing first in the Class 1 Area Competition at Plymouth with a score of 76 on Monday, Oct. 30, 2017.

Ouymayma Al-Shammery, Maggie Finessey, and David Wang earned perfect scores for Penn.

Celine Wang, Karen Wang, and Manaal Arif had near-perfect scores for Penn.

“I'm so proud of this team and all of the hard work they've put in so far this year,” Penn Spell Bowl coach Kate O’Brien said. “We have quite a few new spellers to the team, and they've done such an amazing job working hard and spelling well! I'm very excited to see what our team is capable of for state!”

Make sure to come out and celebrate your back-to-back State Champions Girls Soccer and #1 Team in the nation Wed., Nov. 1, 7:00 p.m. Enter Door C at for the celebration in the CPA.

Penn won 2-0 against Guerin Catholic in the 3A Title Championship game on Saturday, Oct. 28. 

Among the game highlights senior Kristina Lynch had two assists: the first to Molly McLaughlin for the first goal and the second to Maya Lacognato for the second.

Lynch–the Florida State commit, All-American and Indiana Gatorade Player of the Year—has another honor to add to her high school career … she was named IHSAA Mental Attitude Award Winner for Class 3-A Girls Soccer after the Championship win.

This weekend is a big weekend for Penn High School with the Marching Band and four Kingsmen Athletic teams competing in top state competitions:

• Girls Soccer: 3A Title State Championship Game, Friday, Oct. 27, 8:00 p.m. vs. Guerin Catholic (@ Butler University, Indianapolis)
• Football Sectional: Friday, Oct. 27, 8:00 p.m. vs. Valparaiso (@Valparaiso)
• Boys Cross Country State Finals: Saturday, Oct. 28, 1:00 p.m. (Terre Haute)
• Girls Cross Country State Finals: Saturday, Oct. 28, 1:45 p.m. (Terre Haute)
• Marching Band Semi-State: Saturday, Oct. 28 (Ben Davis High School, Indianapolis)

Can’t make it to the athletic games to cheer on your favorite Kingsmen in person?!? Make sure to like IHSAAtv on Facebook @ihsaatv and watch their Facebook Live stream of the Girls Soccer game and Boys & Girls Cross Country races on @ihsaatv Facebook page. Coverage starts at the times noted above.

Also be sure to follow The Pennant on Twitter for up to the minute game results and results from the Marching Band’s Semi-state competition.

Go Kingsmen!!! #PHMExcellence #BlueRings 

Jostens will be here on Friday, Nov. 3 to take orders for announcements, caps and gown and other items during all lunches.  They will be located in the hallway north of the cafeteria.

Senior Info Cards in the Josten's packet must be turned in to the Main Office for ordering diplomas.

Penn Ski Club information / sign-up

Ski Club clothing apparel

Field-trip waiver form

Bus information

Medical authorization form

Line of Descent movie information

The popular annual family event is scheduled for Saturday, December 2 and is open to the entire community, not just P-H-M families. However, please note this event is for Kindergarten – 3rd grade students only and children must be accompanied by at least one adult. All tickets are $7.00.

Show times this year are scheduled for 8:00, 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. Space is limited to 100 tickets/participants per time slot.

This year, ticket sales will be ONLINE ONLY at phm.revtrak.net and will go on sale Wednesday, November 1 at 8:00 a.m. Tickets will NOT be sold at the ESC on Nov. 1 or at the door on Dec. 2. Tickets sell out fast, so please make arrangements to setup your account at phm.revtrak.net prior to Nov. 1. Once tickets are sold out for a time slot, online sales for that time slot will end.

You will be able to pay online using eCheck, Discover, VISA or MasterCard credit or debit cards and a 3.49% transaction fee will be added to your total purchase amount. Tickets will be mailed to the address provided during the online registration prior to December 2nd. No refunds or tickets will be available at the door.

If you have any questions, please contact the P-H-M Community Education office at (574) 258-9568 or email Jenny Forkner.

Penn High School’s Spell Bowl Team scored 80 points to place first in the Kouts Invitational on Monday, Oct. 23.

Abbie Hembrecht, Yewon Oh, Karen Wang and David Wang each scored perfect scores to lead the Penn effort.

Penn individual scores:  Maggie Finnessy 8/9, Yewon Oh 9/9, Abbie Hembrecht 9/9, Celine Wang: 8/9, Karl Hutslar 7/9, Ashan Siddiqui 6/9, Ouymayma Al-Shamary 8/9, Manaal Arif 7/9, Karen Wang 9/9, David Wang 9/9.
 

Penn’s Girls Cross Country team earned a return trip to the State Championships as the Kingsmen placed second in the Fort Wayne Semi-state on Saturday, Oct. 21.

Coach Michael Clements’ team finished with 131 points. Carroll of Fort Wayne won the team title with 77 points. The top six teams advance to the State Championships on Saturday, Oct. 28.

Lauren Frank led the Kingsmen on the 5K course at the IPFW Plex with a sixth-place finish in 19:01.25.

Dani Spring placed 11th overall with a time of 19:24.67.

Brooke Neal placed 25th in 19:57.05.

Riley Keppler turned in a time of 20:20.18 for 44th place.

Ellie Jankowski placed 45th in 20:25.15.

The Penn Boys Cross Country Team, coached by Tom Miller, will compete in the State Championships for the second year in a row after the Kingsmen placed fourth in the Semistate on Saturday, Oct. 21. The top six teams from the Fort Wayne Semistate advance to the State Championships.

Penn finished with 147 points. Westview won the Semi-state with 74 points.

Colton Shail placed 19th in 16:42.39 to lead the Penn pack.

Curtis Cornell finished in 22nd place, running the 5K course in 16:44.35.

Chad Piatt was 27th in 16:51.42.

Chandler Neal ran a 16:51.57 for 28th place.

Matt Long was 51st with a time of 17:16.24.