In 2020, the Pilgrim girls soccer team made the jump up to Division I and would immediately become a contender while reaching the state championship against La Salle Academy.

In 2021, all eyes were on the Pats as the state wondered if they would once again be able to hang with the best teams in the state, and they did just that, finishing with a 14-1-1 record and clinching the top seed in the playoffs.

Although the eventual champion North Kingstown Skippers would shock the league and knock Pilgrim out in the semifinals, the Pats enjoyed another big-time run in the tough Division I group. The program's consistency and dominance is much thanks to longtime coach Tom Flanders, who is the Warwick Beacon’s girls coach of the year.

Flanders has been regarded as one of the state’s elite coaches for the better part of the last decade, and was named the United Soccer Coaches Large School RI Coach of the Year following this past fall. He also saw four of his players receive All-State honors.

Flanders has also been an important part of the team’s regular community service efforts during his time on the sideline. Most recently, he and his players organized a fundraiser on Senior Night for Rowan Shaw, a 2-year-old boy who is fighting cancer.

His impact both on and off the field has been impressive during his tenure at Pilgrim, and the team is poised once again to be a force in 2022.