Providence Day stops ‘the school down the street,’ beats Christian for NCISAA title
When Chad Grier took over at Providence Day six years ago, the standard he imagined creating for his Chargers team looked a lot like what Charlotte Christian had already established just a mile down the road. For so long it was the Knights dealing blowouts to Providence Day, and Grier vowed to put an end to it.
Fast-forward a half-dozen years later, and Grier has delivered on his promise.
Providence Day scored 28 unanswered points in the second half to turn a 14-6 halftime lead into a 42-6 drubbing of Charlotte Christian in Friday’s NCISAA Division I state championship game at Overcash Stadium.
The win capped a perfect 13-0 season (the first undefeated season in school history) and marked the Chargers’ fourth title in the last five years, their second time defeating the Knights — or, as Providence Day likes to call them, “the school down the street” — in the big game.
“We don’t hate those guys. I mean, that’s our rival, but we respect the heck out of them,” Grier said after the win. “That’s a great program. And they, for a long time, were who we wanted to be.
“But we don’t play for angst or anger toward anybody else, we play for the love of each other. And our kids love each other. We have an incredible vibe and culture here. We do it because we love each other, and we’re going to keep working and keep it going for that reason.”
The two sides traded fumbles on their opening possessions before settling in. With under a minute to go in the first quarter, Providence Day tailback Aidan Gallos opened the scoring.
Gallos took a handoff, took off up the middle and ran over a Charlotte Christian defender. He bounced the run outside after breaking another tackle and rumbled down the sideline for an electrifying 50-yard touchdown run. Jacob Baggett booted through the extra point as the hosts jumped in front 7-0.
The Chargers’ defense forced a turnover on downs and set its offense right back up in Knights territory. Quarterback Zaid Lott took advantage of the good field position and tossed his first of three scores on the night, this one a 3-yard pass to Brendan Ravin.
Charlotte Christian quarterback Elliot Newcomb answered with a 5-yard scoring run on a fourth- down play just before intermission to give the visitors some momentum heading to the locker room.
It was all Providence Day the rest of the way.
Providence Day also won in Division II in 2019, plus it won state championships in 2011, 1991 and 1986.
“We really just went back to our standards and our values,” Gallos said. “We’ve got our seven core values, our three goals and our mission statement, and we just held to that standard.”
Lott powered in from a yard out on the Chargers’ first possession of the third quarter, then he uncorked a bomb down the sideline that hit Ethan Dempsey in stride for a 48-yard touchdown. In the blink of an eye, Providence Day was in front 28-6.
The beat rolled on in the fourth quarter, with Lott adding his fourth total TD of the night. He hit Steele Fletcher on a swing pass to the outside, and Fletcher did the rest — sprinting for an 18-yard score.
Gallos capped off the scoring with another highlight-reel run, bursting up the middle for 38 yards immediately following an interception from Chargers linebacker Quintin McCray.
Gallos finished with 154 total yards on 17 touches on the two rushing TDs.
“We just have so many great stories of that kid,” Grier said of Gallos. “He’s a lacrosse kid, played as a freshman, and then was hurt for two years. He hasn’t played since his freshman year, and he had a terrific season.
“[He’s] a heck of a player, incredible kid and incredible student — everything that we want our program to be about, he’s that kid.”
Coming into Friday, the Charlotte Christian offense averaged 34.5 points per game. Providence Day held it to six, and got the best of Knights star running back and Nebraska commit Jamal Rule (87 rushing yards on 18 attempts).
Providence Day forced three turnovers, four punts and turned Charlotte Christian over on downs three times.
“Our run defense is pretty good,” Grier said. “We’ve done good against that all year. That wasn’t a flaw for us. We were excited [for the challenge]. We were hoping they would run the ball.
“Jamal is a great talent and player, but our team defense has been amazing all year, so I wasn’t surprised what [our defensive coordinator Dave] Serepca and our guys did on defense.”
They said it
When Grier was asked to describe the Chargers’ 13-0 season — one that included 12 consecutive wins of 20 points or more — as best he could, he delivered a candid response about the culture he’s built during his six seasons at Providence Day.
It hasn’t always been easy, but winning a fourth NCISAA title in five years gives plenty of purpose to those moments of adversity.
“We put so much into it,” Grier said. “We never design anything to be easy, we design it to be worth it. And some of those days you wonder, ‘Is it really worth it?’ Now it feels worth it. Just the smiles on these kids’ faces and the joy that they, their families and the whole community is feeling is just really cool.”
He went on to say that this year’s Providence Day team “is the most complete team I’ve ever coached. We didn’t really have a weakness.”
Three who made a difference
Zaid Lott, Providence Day — The senior quarterback used his arms and legs to lead the Chargers’ offensive attack, as he accounted for four of Providence Day’s six touchdowns. Lott finished 14 for 21 with 166 yards, 3 TDs and an interception through the air while adding 75 yards and a score on 15 carries on the ground. He ends 2025 with 48 total touchdowns, wrapping up a stellar season.
The Chargers’ receiver room — Seven Providence Day receivers caught a pass from Lott on Friday. Bauer Sodoma, Aidan Gallos, Gordon Sellars, Max Cassell, Brendan Ravin, Steele Fletcher and Ethan Dempsey all hauled in passes, with Ravin, Dempsey and Fletcher tallying touchdowns. The balanced attack made it difficult for Charlotte Christian’s secondary to defend.
Jacob Baggett, Providence Day — Baggett went 6 for 6 on his half-dozen extra-point attempts and booted each ensuing kickoff through the back of the end zone — including one that went through the uprights.
His second touchback of the night set a new NCISAA record for most touchbacks in a season (90). He then added four more. The big-legged senior did miss a 51-yard attempt in the first quarter, but it had plenty of distance if it hadn’t been wide left.
SCORING SUMMARY
CHARLOTTE CHRISTIAN 0 6 0 0 — 6
PROVIDENCE DAY 7 7 14 14 — 42
First Quarter
PD—Aidan Gallos 50 run (Jacob Baggett kick), 0:29
Second Quarter
PD—Brendan Ravin 3 pass from Zaid Lott (Baggett kick), 9:09
CC—Elliot Newcomb 6 run (2-point conversion failed), 0:10
Third Quarter
PD—Lott 1 run (Baggett kick), 6:59
PD—Ethan Dempsey 48 pass from Lott (Baggett kick), 5:10
Fourth Quarter
PD—Steele Fletcher 18 pass from Lott (Baggett kick), 11:16
PD—Gallos 38 run (Baggett kick), 8:29
This story was originally published November 21, 2025 at 9:35 PM.