From team championships to individual milestones and achievements, the Class of 2026 had plenty of monumental sports moments in the fall, winter and spring seasons.
The Catholic Star Herald looks back on remarkable high school athletic moments from the 2025-2026 academic year.
Bishop Eustace Preparatory School
Although several teams at Bishop Eustace Preparatory School enjoyed a wealth of success, a few individual accomplishments grabbed the major headlines.
The Crusaders’ track and field program produced a pair of state champions as Noah Glenn followed up his indoor high jump state championship with an outdoor state title in the 110-meter high hurdles at the Non-Public B state championships. His teammate Delano Mann became the first Eustace sprinter to win a state championship in the 100-meter dash in 31 years.
In swimming, Stanford University commit Alyce Lehman finished her high school career in incredible fashion by breaking the meet record in the 200-yard freestyle at the Meet of Champions to capture her first individual state championship and the Crusaders’ first state title since 2010.
Bishop Eustace’s baseball team hit the 20-win mark for the ninth consecutive season during a 25-5 season, which ended in the South Jersey Non-Public B championship.
The boys basketball team also made a championship run, winning 22 games en route to an appearance in the South Jersey Non-Public B title game. Senior Dillon Adomanis finished his stellar high school career with 1,553 points.
The girls basketball team took another step by compiling a 17-12 record. The boys lacrosse program manufactured an 8-7 season, while the girls lacrosse team finished up 9-8 including a first-round playoff win.
The fall season produced plenty of highlights as the football team went 6-2 and the girls soccer team fought their way to a pair of playoff wins to reach the sectional semifinal. Field hockey also reached the sectional semifinal after a terrific 14-3-1 season, led by 19 goals from Alexandra Braem and 18 from Scarlet McDermott. The girls volleyball team set a new mark by winning a school record 17 matches.
Camden Catholic
The Non-Public B wrestling state championship remained in Cherry Hill this year as Camden Catholic successfully defended its state title and pieced together its second straight undefeated season.
The Irish (17-0) won their 20th state title in school history and their third in the last four years by taking down Pope John XXIII by a dominant 53-19 score. Camden Catholic will carry a 34-match winning streak into the 2026-27 season.
In other sports, Camden Catholic’s field hockey and boys bowling teams both played for championships. Led by Rutgers University commit Sophia Stazi’s 31 goals, the field hockey team (17-7) made its sixth straight appearance in the Non-Public state championship after winning its sixth straight South Jersey title. The boys bowling team (10-4-2) made its second straight appearance in the South Jersey Group 1 championship, where it lost to Salem, 2-1.
Indoors, the girls volleyball team worked its way back to .500 with an 11-11 campaign that started with a four-game winning streak and ended with a tight 3-2 loss to Trinity Hall in the first round of the South Jersey Non-Public A tournament.
The boys basketball team overcame long odds during a rebuilding year to post a 16-11 record, fueled by Seamus Bieg who scored 600 points in his senior season to end up with 1,317 for his career.
The girls basketball team took a major step forward with a 21-9 season. The Irish were led by sophomore Edore Pela, who scored 460 points, while sisters Caroline and Maddie Brennan combined for 503 points.
Wins were plentiful in the spring as the girls lacrosse team embarked on its best season since 2019 with a 16-5 showing, led by Mount Saint Mary commit Kat Gillern’s 73 goals and 60 assists.
Camden Catholic’s flag football team went 9-5 while the golf team ended up 7-5.
Gloucester Catholic
A state championship 43 years in the making finally came to fruition as the Gloucester Catholic girls basketball program won its first title since 1983 with a 62-39 victory over Gill Saint Bernard at Rutgers University on March 12.
Gloucester Catholic’s 10th state title came full circle for coach Lisa Gedaka who won three as a player for the Rams in the 1980s. The Rams finished their monumental season with a 26-4 record.
But that wasn’t the only state championship that Gloucester Catholic celebrated in the winter. Swimmer Riley Fitzpatrick, a junior, won the 100 breaststroke at the Meet of Champions to win her first individual state title with a time of 1:02.91.
For the baseball team, it was business as usual as the Rams won the South Jersey Non-Public B championship for the fifth straight year by defeating Bishop Eustace, 8-1, in the Non-Public B final. The Rams were scheduled to play Saint Mary (Rutherford) for the Non-Public B championship on June 10.
Gloucester Catholic enjoyed success for several other programs as the girls soccer team recorded its most wins (11-5-1 record) since 2019. The Rams had a number of teams right around the .500 mark as boys soccer (8-9-1), field hockey (9-8), softball (10-11) and golf (5-5) all enjoyed productive seasons.
Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit High School’s boys basketball team went on a phenomenal run, securing its first 20-win season in more than 15 years as the Spartans went 20-7 and made it to the semifinal round of the South Jersey Non-Public B playoffs.
The guard pairing of Kevin Brewster (329 points) and Jordan Gonzalez (338) guided Holy Spirit through a terrific season that included a pair of seven-game winning streaks and victories in the Cape-Atlantic League and state tournaments.
Holy Spirit’s football team’s season included a 7-5 record and playoff wins over Saint Mary (Rutherford) and Donovan Catholic and continued its streak of reaching the semifinal round of the state tournament every year it was held since 2017. Quarterback Ty Costabile (Rowan University commit) ended his career with 5,628 passing yards and 67 touchdowns.
Individual accolades go to track and field star Zaki Marcus, who won the Non-Public B long jump state championship while also medaling in the 200-meter dash (second place) and 100-meter dash (third place).
Three-sport athlete Lauren Cella achieved her 1,000th career point as the girls basketball team went 11-15. With Cella on the sidelines due to injury, her field hockey team went 8-9-2 and she recovered to help the lacrosse team go 10-10.
Holy Spirit’s baseball team turned in a successful 14-12 season while the softball team went 9-15 and made an appearance in the South Jersey Non-Public B championship. The Spartans’ girls tennis team went 9-7, led by first singles sophomore Sydney Hullings, who went 15-1 in dual meets.
Our Lady of Mercy Academy
OLMA’s crowning achievement this season was perhaps the volleyball team which made history, winning 18 games and reaching the Cape-Atlantic Tournament Championship for the first time in school history. And they did it all without a senior in the starting lineup. Juniors Natalie D’Ottavio, Khalia Lewis and Kaitlyn Rambo each contributed more than 100 kills this season while sophomore setter Juliet Felicetti dished out 403 assists.
Outside on the fields, the sisters Savanna and Vienna Fries combined for 18 goals to lead the soccer team to seven wins. Lauren King’s nine goals helped fuel the field hockey team to six wins. The tennis team recorded its first .500 season (10-10 record) since 2021, led by first singles player Evangeline Catanese, who won 10 matches.
Khalia Lewis put her name at the top of the school’s basketball record books, not only becoming the fifth player from OLMA to hit 1,000 career points, but she broke the school scoring record during her junior season. Lewis surpassed 2024 grad Madelynn Bernhardt’s 1,254 points and will enter her senior season with 1,352.
In the pool, it was excellence as always for the Villagers, who reached the South Jersey Non-Public championships for the fourth straight year to cap off a 7-1 record.
Paul VI
The Paul VI High School girls soccer team set out to defend its first state championship in school history in the fall, and not only did the Eagles accomplish their mission, they went undefeated in the process.
A perfect 24-0 record, which included a 1-0 victory over Immaculate Heart Academy in the Non-Public A state championship, was completed on a late second-half goal by junior Eleanor Lawyer. Goaltender Chloe Krupa allowed zero goals in the Eagles’ four playoff games.
Paul VI’s fall was filled with excitement, including winning seasons by the football team, which went 6-5 and won a first-round playoff game over Saint Joseph Academy (Hammonton). PVI’s girls tennis team went 8-7 and the Eagles’ volleyball team won 25 straight games before falling in the South Jersey Non-Public A championship.
In the winter, the hardwood was ablaze as the boys and girls basketball team combined for 51 wins and a pair of Olympic Conference championships. The boys went 25-5 and won the Camden County Tournament while the girls were 26-2 and South Jersey Invitational Tournament Champs. Both teams made appearances in the semifinal round of the South Jersey Non-Public A playoffs.
Paul VI’s ice hockey team had its most successful season in school history (17-5) while Gianna Cianfrani won an individual Non-Public A state championship in the pole vault during the indoor track season, clearing a school record 11 feet.
Springtime featured plenty of victories in Haddonfield with the girls lacrosse team finishing 12-7 as Emma McCarthy ended her incredible career as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 310 goals and 145 assists.
Winning seasons during the spring also included boys lacrosse (15-4), softball (16-9), boys tennis (8-7) and boys golf (10-9).
Saint Augustine Prep
The trophy case at Saint Augustine Preparatory School got a little more crowded thanks to a wonderful 2025-26 school year.
The school’s swimming and rugby programs extended impressive streaks that have never before been accomplished at the Richland school. The swimming team ran its undefeated streak to 40 victories during a 9-0 season that included the program’s fourth straight Non-Public state championship with a dominant 100-70 win over Delbarton. It was the 10th swimming state title in school history.
The Spring rugby 15s program won its school record fifth straight state championship as the Hermits defeated Christian Brothers Academy, 57-30. It was the eighth state championship for the rugby 15s.
The baseball team blanked Christian Brothers Academy to win the South Jersey Non-Public A title for the eighth time in the last 10 seasons. The Hermits (22-7) were scheduled to face Delbarton in the state championship on June 10 at Rutgers University.
Ranked as the state’s top team for parts of the season, the lacrosse team went 16-3 with its only loss to a New Jersey team coming from Seton Hall Prep in the semifinal round of the Non-Public A state tournament.
The fall featured another incredible run by the soccer team, which went 18-3-1 as well as a successful 6-4 football season.
The Hermits pounded out 17 wins on the wrestling mats while the ice hockey team closed out a 12-9 season. Boys basketball chimed in with a 15-13 campaign. Spring sports of tennis (10-8) and golf (7-7) both carried on the Hermits’ winning tradition.
Wildwood Catholic Academy
Despite not having the services of outstanding junior point guard Lola McGonigle due to a preseason ACL injury, Wildwood Catholic Academy’s girls basketball program produced another incredibly successful season with a 20-9 campaign.
The Crusaders reached the championship game of the Cape-Atlantic Tournament and competed in the semifinal round of the South Jersey Non-Public B playoffs. Early in the season, head coach Steve DiPatri recorded his 600th career victory.
The boys basketball team ended up with seven wins but that included a first-round upset victory over Gloucester Catholic.
Wildwood Catholic’s tennis teams both found success as the girls team went a respectable 4-5 while the boys team turned in an impressive 9-5 record.
On the soccer pitch, sophomore Dani Daley went on another scoring spree with 38 goals to reach a total of 70 halfway through her high school career. Daley led the Crusaders to a 12-3 record, which included an 11-game winning streak to start the season.
On the baseball diamond, it was the Nick Antonicello show as the junior batted .682 while throwing 784 pitches as the Crusaders’ ace. Antonicello won three of Wildwood Catholic’s nine games this year while logging more than 50 innings on the mound.
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