Now 27 years later, she gets to watch her three daughters suit up for the Lancers. When Flanagan – known as Peggy Condon back in her high school days – was a senior at St. Pius in 1991, the girls soccer program was scheduled to start the next spring.
Father Donald Dalton was the president of the school at the time and Flanagan said he told her if she wanted to play soccer, she needed to enlist 20 other girls at the school to sign up.
Flanagan started asking the girls she knew from CYC leagues if they wanted to make history a year early.
“The next day I handed him the list with 24 girls and away we went,” Flanagan said after watching her daughters Molly, 17, Kacey, 16, and Colleen, 14, help St. Pius beat Festus 2-0 to take fifth place in the Fox Tournament on March 21. “I really appreciated Father Dalton starting the team my senior year because he knew it meant a lot to me.”
Flanagan said she’s not certain if she scored the first goal for the new team, although she is certain she did score a goal against Pacific that day.
“Their goalie played for my club team. I knew where to shoot it and beat her,” Flanagan said.
A center midfielder, Flanagan said she was known for her tenaciousness.
Molly plays sweeper and Colleen and Kacey play the same position as their mom. Flanagan, who also has a son, Patrick, 13, and daughter, Bridget, 11, has coached all of her daughters at some point, but whether they played soccer at all, she said, was up to them.
“They wanted to play. They’ve played their whole lives in the CYC,” she said.
Flanagan said she loves coaching as a way to stay connected to soccer.
“I love taking my passion to the sport and my motto is, ‘We will never be outhustled,’” she said. “You might miskick when you play defense or miss a shot, but you should never be outhustled. That’s the way I played.”
Flanagan sat high in the stands at Fox quietly watching her daughters. Given her pedigree, some might find it curious that she isn’t more vocal or seemingly involved.
“Sometimes I kick with them,” she said with a laugh. “I try not to yell too much because that’s the coach’s job. I want them to come to me for advice. I’m sure their coaches have told them what to work on, so there’s no need for me to.”
Dan Bokern started the boys soccer program at St. Pius in 1985 and six years later became the first head coach for the girls. Bokern never won a state title with the boys, but by 2012, he’d built the girls into a consistent participant in deep playoff runs. The Lancers won their only state title in 2012, were second in 2013, and came in third place in 2014.
St. Pius lost to its namesake in Kansas City in the Class 2 semifinals in 2015 and Bokern retired. Bokern had a combined record with the boys and girls of 803-395-83, which ranks in the top 10 in Missouri. Kevin Halley replaced Bokern in 2016. Aaron Portell is currently the Lancers’ head coach.
Since Bokern left, St. Pius has lost three straight seasons to Cape Girardeau Notre Dame in the district playoffs. The Lancers’ 5-14 record last season was their worst since they were 8-10-2 in 2009.
After losing its first two games of the season to Windsor and St. Louis Notre Dame, St. Pius beat Festus.
“Every game I’ve seen improvement,” Flanagan said. “They’re a fast team. If we can figure out how to utilize our speed, we could be a force to be reckoned with.”
Molly is older than Kacey by 11 months and both are juniors. Colleen is a freshman.
“My sister and I are in the same grade and we work together very well,” Molly said. “I do try and be a good example for them and be a leader on the field.”
Molly said she’s aggressive on the pitch, like her mom was.
“I think I got that trait from her,” Molly said. “I’m pretty tenacious out there. She helps me getting my footing right and the layout of the game. I know she’s proud of me as long as I play hard. It’s all legacy going on right now.”
Molly said she loves being on the field with her two younger sisters.
“I get to play with Kacey, but Colleen and I are a lot alike so it’s fun to have her out there with me,” Molly said. “Last year, I looked for Kacey first all of the time because my eyes were drawn to her.”
I’ve covered enough high school sports to have seen plenty of siblings together on the same field. In 2016, sisters Jena and Caly Otec were part of the Lancers’ state championship volleyball squad.
But rarely are three not only on the team, but starters. Two years ago, the Grandview girls basketball team had Karleigh, Meagan and Sarra Faust. The great thing is, the Flanagans will all be together for one more year in high school.
“You don’t see three too often,” Portell said. “It’s a blessing to have all three of them out there because they’re athletic as can be. We’re grateful to have them.”
Dalton (2010) and Bokern (2014) are both members of the St. Pius Hall of Fame. I don’t know what the criteria is for being selected, but being the pioneer of one of the school’s athletic programs and providing three (for now) children for its teams might be worthy of some consideration for Peggy Flanagan.