»RELATED: Beavercreek girls ready to defend D-I state title
Since then Beavercreek’s program – both boys and girls – has dominated area soccer. Last season the girls were pitch perfect, winning their first Division I state championship with a 24-0 record. That followed the boys first D-I state title in 2017 when they went 22-0-2.
So, what’s next for a program with consecutive state championships? How about doing it in the same season? Beavercreek’s girls (8-0-0 overall) are ranked No. 1 in the state poll. The boys (5-0-2) are ranked No. 6.
While that would be celebrated, that’s not exactly the end game Popp and boys coach Jason Guiliano are focused on for their teams.
“At the end of the day it’s high school athletics,” Guiliano said. “You hope high school athletics give kids a good experience and personal experience. You hope it teaches them lessons in life about how to work as a team, how to deal with adversity, how to find the willingness to work to achieve a goal. I get more satisfaction seeing the guys come back and seeing guys share those experiences. … That does mean a lot more to me than wins and losses.”
»RELATED: Photos from Beavers’ championship season
There have been plenty of both. Beavercreek’s girls are 301-62-41 in Popp’s 21 seasons. Popp is 405-118-64 overall.
“That’s not why you coach,” said Popp, adding he didn’t realize until two days later he had won his 300th game with Beavercreek. “But when you look at something like that, I look at the number of players and coaches who represent those wins. Without them it wouldn’t happen. They are just as much a part of it.”
Guiliano switched coaching roles with his father, John, this season. John, now an assistant, went 427-110-85 in 30 seasons as head coach at Beavercreek. The boys program’s last losing season came in the mid-1990s.
This year’s teams are loaded, too. The girls return five starters from last year’s team, including University of Dayton commit and leading scorer Diana Benigno. The boys are highlighted by captains Pete Schneider and Jack Towers.
Guiliano sets three goals for the boys team every season: win the Greater Western Ohio Conference, win the district title and win the regional title. Winning state is obviously an objective, but it’s not stressed as a top priority. The challenge of being one of the top teams in the state is pressure enough.
“When you set that expectation the pressure is there just because the kids want to meet that expectation,” Guiliano said. “We expect to do this and we understand what the sacrifice and commitment levels are (for the three goals). … Younger kids see that success in the program and they want that when they are there.”
The players can change from season to season – one reason neither coach likes to compare a current team to a past one. But one of the keys for Beavercreek has been consistency. Sarah McKitrick has been a varsity assistant the past nine seasons and has been with the program 11 seasons overall. Junior varsity A coach Micki Sumner has been involved about 12 years and junior varsity B coach Harold DeLotelle about 20.
This is Jason Guiliano’s 20th season with Beavercreek, too.
“The program in general, I’ve always looked at it as it’s bigger than a game,” said Popp, adding he’s equally as proud of Beavercreek’s national awards from the United Soccer Coaches for team grade-point average (3.25 or better) as he is the state title. “It’s bigger than a sport. Our kids go on to accomplish amazing things once they get out of school.
“I think we’ve been lucky enough to have a group of kids who really work hard, are very goal and team oriented. We have a system with our training and the way we approach games that seem to work in our favor more than not. … It’s so difficult to win a state title. You have to have so many things go your way along with having a talented group of kids.”
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