All in the family: Parkview Baptist’s Ella Kate Johnston joins sister as Louisiana Gatorade Player of Year

by William Weathers // GeauxPreps.com Contributor

For the past two years, Ella Kate Johnston of Parkview Baptist has seen her sister Faith’s Gatorade Player of the Year banner hanging in the school’s office.

Onlookers challenged the younger Johnston, further motivating the sophomore to achieve a similar status for one of the state’s top soccer programs.

“Everyone walked in and said, ‘Bet you can’t do that, ’” Ella Kate said. “It was kind of inspiring for it to be there.”

With her older sister graduating early to enroll at Kansas University, Johnston became a bigger focal point in Parkview Baptist’s ability to successfully extend its streak of Division III state championships to three straight titles.

The Lady Eagles (25-2) finished their ‘three-peat’ with a 2-0 victory over arch-rival University High in February, and almost four months later, Johnston was honored Wednesday as the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year.

“That’s amazing to be the Gatorade Player of the Year,” Johnston said of an email she opened Wednesday to learn of the news. “It was really nice.”

The selection of Johnston continued a string of Louisiana Gatorade award winners from Baton Rouge. She joins an exclusive group that includes Sarah Bonnecaze of Episcopal and her sister Faith.

Before this current run, it had been since 2016 when Audrey Viso of St. Joseph’s Academy won the award. 

“It’s really nice that we have good players coming out of Baton Rouge,” Johnston said. “You have these girls to train with.”

Ella Kate said her sister’s magical season in 2023 – the start of the team’s current stretch of state championships – provided her with the incentive to win the Gatorade honor during her career.

“Once she won it, it was kind of like my goal,” she said. “If she could do it, I knew I could do it. I was going to try my best to achieve that goal and do whatever it takes. 

“Without this team, I wouldn’t have been able to do it without them,” she said. “They helped put me on the map. I definitely couldn’t have done it without them. It means a lot and I’m very happy.”

Johnston led Parkview with 38 goals and 24 assists, which was just a part of the criteria for winning the Gatorade award. She also maintained a weighted 3.96 grade point average, along with her community service to volunteer and help adults and children with special needs learn how to swim.

She also took part in a service mission to the Dominican Republic.

Ella Kate was able to rejoin forces with Faith for their final season together after her sister missed the 2023-24 season with a torn ACL injury that summer.

They were in the starting lineup together for the first 20 matches of the season until Faith’s mid-term graduation in preparation to depart for Kansas during the team’s postseason.

“It was really nice getting to play with her throughout the high school season,” Ella Kate said. “Our chemistry on the field is unmatched. It was truly amazing and a good experience to play with her.

“I was happy with every moment we got together up until the last game,” Ella Kate said. “It was so much fun while it lasted. I tried my best to fill her shoes.”

The departure of Faith, the school’s career leader in goals scored with 117, meant a shift in the team’s offensive production, which Ella Kate was more than eager to absorb.

She scored 11 goals with 7 assists during the Lady Eagles’ five-game stretch that was capped by their two-goal victory against U-High in the state final.

“The senior class was great,” she said. “They were truly some of the most amazing girls and talented. They were like the soul of the team and held us together a lot. Without them, it would have been really hard.”

Ella Kate said she enjoyed a two-week break following the season before jumping back into competitive soccer with a Baton Rouge-based team in the Girls Academy League, which features teams from Arkansas, Missouri, and Texas.

Johnston’s team qualified for the national tournament with a successful showing in regional play over the weekend in Norco, Calif. They will take part in the national event July 10-13 in Richmond, VA. 

Johnston will also be a prime target for college coaches to land, a process that began on June 15 with the start of coaches being able to directly contact prospects in the Class of 2027.

“There’s big interest,” she said. “I look forward to finishing it up.”