50 for 50: Title 9
Women's Soccer by Brad Hallier, Special to KSHSAA
50 for 50: St. Thomas Aquinas Soccer
Celebrating 50 years of Title IX
Few American cities are more known for soccer than Kansas City.
The city is bidding to be a host city for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Kansas City was one of 10 founding members of Major League Soccer in 1996, and today, Sporting Kansas City is one of the league's model franchises.
Professional women's soccer returned this year, and the NWSL's Kansas City Current is in the early stages of building a stadium in downtown Kansas City, Mo.
There are soccer complexes scattered throughout the metropolitan area, in Overland Park, in Kansas City on both sides of the state line, Olathe and Lee's Summit, Mo.
Mega clubs churn out players who play at the highest levels of college and beyond. High schools often dominate the sport come state tournament time.
And there's one high school, and one coach, at the center of that dominance - St. Thomas Aquinas and Craig Ewing.
But there was a time when soccer at any level in Kansas City was something of an anomaly.
"Soccer in Kansas City took off. It's now one of the key cities in all of the U.S., for soccer," Ewing said. "I've been lucky to be in the midst of that evolution. You've seen the players just get better and better."
Ewing, who learned the game as a young 20-something while serving in the Peace Corps in Guatemala, started the Aquinas program from scratch. Having already been the boys coach when the school opened in 1988, Ewing was asked to launch a girls program.
"When the school opened, we didn't have enough people," Ewing said. "I was even the scholars bowl coach. Then school president Blake Mulvany asked if I would coach the girls. He said, 'Do this for three or four years, and we'll get someone else.' But I loved it and I wanted to stay with it."
Ewing had quickly built a strong boys soccer program, as by 1991 the Saints finished fourth at the Class 5-4-3-2-1A state tournament.
The girls program, however, looked like it would take some time to build.
"That first year, we won one or two games," Ewing said with a laugh.
By 1993, Aquinas won the first girls soccer state championship in Kansas history, the first of 17 state titles, 16 of them with Ewing at the helm.
The Saints won the first four state titles in girls soccer, which lumped all soccer-playing schools into one classification from 1993-1998.
Yes, it hasn't even been 25 years since girls soccer was still so new that there was just one classification for Kansas high schools.
Ewing has seen the transformation of girls soccer, not just in Johnson County, but around Kansas.
Ewing talks glowingly of some teams Maize has had through the years, especially the 2017 squad that Ewing's Saints beat 3-0 in the 5A state semifinals.
"That Maize team scored 134 goals. We scored 34," Ewing said. "That was one of the biggest upsets we had. Maize was unbelievable that year. That was a top-notch team that had a lot of top-notch players."
McPherson and Thomas More Prep in Hays have played for state titles. Teams from Wichita and Topeka have won state titles. There are now three classifications of Kansas girls soccer, just like on the boys side.
"It has grown so much statewide," Ewing said.
But the one constant through the years has been St. Thomas Aquinas in girls soccer. From early players like goalkeeper Amanda McMurry and midfielder Katie Lents to current stars forwards Grace O'Keefe and Sydney Watts, Aquinas has been at the top of Kansas girls soccer.
Ewing still coaches the Aquinas boys, which finished third at this year's 5A state tournament. His swan song as the girls coach was supposed to be 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out the season.
"I thought it was the right time to give up the girls program," Ewing said. "We had our scrimmage the day before everything was shut down. I didn't feel I had that sense of finality."
Ewing's presence is still strong with Aquinas' girls soccer team. He was a regular at many 2021 games, and after the Saints, under coach Adam Lamb, won the 2021 5A state title last spring, Ewing was invited to be a part of the team pictures.
Ewing's time as girls coach might have ended, but his impact on Aquinas girls soccer continues.
We are grateful to partner with WIN for KC, an organization with the mission to empower the lives of girls and women by advocating and promoting the lifetime value of sports through opportunities for participation and leadership development. WIN for KC and the KSHSAA believe involvement in activities and sports lay the ground work for supporting well-rounded citizens in our communities and beyond. For more on WIN for KC visit: https://www.sportkc.org/win-for-kc
The city is bidding to be a host city for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Kansas City was one of 10 founding members of Major League Soccer in 1996, and today, Sporting Kansas City is one of the league's model franchises.
Professional women's soccer returned this year, and the NWSL's Kansas City Current is in the early stages of building a stadium in downtown Kansas City, Mo.
There are soccer complexes scattered throughout the metropolitan area, in Overland Park, in Kansas City on both sides of the state line, Olathe and Lee's Summit, Mo.
Mega clubs churn out players who play at the highest levels of college and beyond. High schools often dominate the sport come state tournament time.
And there's one high school, and one coach, at the center of that dominance - St. Thomas Aquinas and Craig Ewing.
But there was a time when soccer at any level in Kansas City was something of an anomaly.
"Soccer in Kansas City took off. It's now one of the key cities in all of the U.S., for soccer," Ewing said. "I've been lucky to be in the midst of that evolution. You've seen the players just get better and better."
Ewing, who learned the game as a young 20-something while serving in the Peace Corps in Guatemala, started the Aquinas program from scratch. Having already been the boys coach when the school opened in 1988, Ewing was asked to launch a girls program.
"When the school opened, we didn't have enough people," Ewing said. "I was even the scholars bowl coach. Then school president Blake Mulvany asked if I would coach the girls. He said, 'Do this for three or four years, and we'll get someone else.' But I loved it and I wanted to stay with it."
Ewing had quickly built a strong boys soccer program, as by 1991 the Saints finished fourth at the Class 5-4-3-2-1A state tournament.
The girls program, however, looked like it would take some time to build.
"That first year, we won one or two games," Ewing said with a laugh.
By 1993, Aquinas won the first girls soccer state championship in Kansas history, the first of 17 state titles, 16 of them with Ewing at the helm.
The Saints won the first four state titles in girls soccer, which lumped all soccer-playing schools into one classification from 1993-1998.
Yes, it hasn't even been 25 years since girls soccer was still so new that there was just one classification for Kansas high schools.
Ewing has seen the transformation of girls soccer, not just in Johnson County, but around Kansas.
Ewing talks glowingly of some teams Maize has had through the years, especially the 2017 squad that Ewing's Saints beat 3-0 in the 5A state semifinals.
"That Maize team scored 134 goals. We scored 34," Ewing said. "That was one of the biggest upsets we had. Maize was unbelievable that year. That was a top-notch team that had a lot of top-notch players."
McPherson and Thomas More Prep in Hays have played for state titles. Teams from Wichita and Topeka have won state titles. There are now three classifications of Kansas girls soccer, just like on the boys side.
"It has grown so much statewide," Ewing said.
But the one constant through the years has been St. Thomas Aquinas in girls soccer. From early players like goalkeeper Amanda McMurry and midfielder Katie Lents to current stars forwards Grace O'Keefe and Sydney Watts, Aquinas has been at the top of Kansas girls soccer.
Ewing still coaches the Aquinas boys, which finished third at this year's 5A state tournament. His swan song as the girls coach was supposed to be 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out the season.
"I thought it was the right time to give up the girls program," Ewing said. "We had our scrimmage the day before everything was shut down. I didn't feel I had that sense of finality."
Ewing's presence is still strong with Aquinas' girls soccer team. He was a regular at many 2021 games, and after the Saints, under coach Adam Lamb, won the 2021 5A state title last spring, Ewing was invited to be a part of the team pictures.
Ewing's time as girls coach might have ended, but his impact on Aquinas girls soccer continues.
We are grateful to partner with WIN for KC, an organization with the mission to empower the lives of girls and women by advocating and promoting the lifetime value of sports through opportunities for participation and leadership development. WIN for KC and the KSHSAA believe involvement in activities and sports lay the ground work for supporting well-rounded citizens in our communities and beyond. For more on WIN for KC visit: https://www.sportkc.org/win-for-kc
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