Make it a baker’s dozen — 13 — consecutive state softball championships for the Bishop O’Connell Knights.
The top seed and undefeated girls high-school team (20-0) captured its 13th straight Division I private-school crown by nipping the second-seeded St. Catherine’s Saints of Richmond, 1-0, in the 2025 tournament final in a season-ending victory.
The 2025 title game and semifinals were played at the Dinwiddie Sports Complex near Petersburg. The state championship was O’Connell’s 29th in program history.
O’Connell topped the fourth-seeded St. Paul VI Catholic Panthers, 13-4, in the semis and blanked the eighth seed St. Gertrude Gators of Richmond, 15- 0, in the first round on its home Tuckahoe Park field in Arlington.
By winning the state crown, O’Connell extended two long winning streaks: The squad has won 75 straight games over four seasons and has won 39 straight state-tourney contests over those 13 years.
O’Connell also won last year’s state final by the same 1-0 score over the Potomac School Panthers.
“It was good for the seniors and the whole team to win this again,” first-year O’Connell head coach Tony Uccellini told ARLnow. “Over the last six games, our defense really locked in and made the plays.”
In this year’s state final, O’Connell senior right-hander Bri Lencz pitched a complete-game, 99-pitch three-hitter. She struck out nine and walked one.
Lencz worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the sixth inning.
“Bri really performed in the clutch,” Uccellini said. “She deserved to pitch a complete game in the state championship.”
O’Connell had seven hits and scored its run in the bottom of the sixth when Emma Prykanowski doubled, moved to third on Gigi Payne’s sacrifice bunt, then scored on Abby Bond’s two-out line drive single to right field.
“It was in true fashion with how she hit all season, Abby came up with another big hit,” Uccellini said. “She was clutch all season with the bat.”
Bond had three hits in the win. Other hits went to Lencz, M.J. Melvin and Ari Clark.
“I was very nervous before that at-bat, and I kept telling myself, don’t strike out, and hit the top of the ball,” Bond said. “I just wanted to help my teammates in that situation, and I’m so happy we won.”
The Knights had 12 hits against Paul VI in the semifinal. Melvin doubled with two hits and two RBI, Prykanowski homered and had three RBI, Callie Lissenden doubled with two hits and an RBI, and Clark had two hits (double) with two RBI.
Also, Payne had two hits, Ella Fletcher doubled with an RBI, Bond had a hit and two RBI and Annie Van Dyck added a hit and one RBI. Lencz and Van Dyck did the pitching.
Against St. Gertrude in the four-inning slaughter-rule first-round contest, Bond was the hitting star. She was 4 for 4 with two home runs, a double and eight RBI. Van Dyck added three hits and two RBI and Payne and Melvin each had a hit and two RBI.
Lencz threw a four-inning, 33-pitch perfect game with four strikeouts.
Bond was quite productive with the bat, leading O’Connell in hitting during the three state-tournament games. The senior first baseman was 8 for 9 with 11 RBI, walked twice, scored four runs and had a sacrifice fly. Her three extra-base hits were two home runs and a double.
For this season, Bond’s .603 batting average, 38 hits, 33 RBI, six home runs and nine doubles were all team highs.
Bond will play softball at Gettysburg College, Lencz at George Mason University, Clark at Gannon University, Prykanowski at Dickinson College and Lucy Hensler at Sewanee: The University of The South.
NOTES: Lencz, Bond and Clark were chosen first-team Division I all-state, with Lissenden making second team and Melvin chosen as the Co-Player of the Year … O’Connell had an 85-1 overall record the past four seasons … The Knights have won 20 or more games in a season for 30 straight campaigns, not including the two shortened COVID years … In losing the final, St. Catherine’s, coached by longtime former O’Connell assistant Karin Trice, had its eight-game winning streak snapped, finishing the season with a 23-3 record.
