By Jeff Halpern | Photos by Tommy Land 

Brad Bolding, Little Rock Parkview and the Little Rock School District were finally able end several long droughts Saturday afternoon at War Memorial Stadium. 

Bolding, the Patriots head coach won his first state title as a head coach when his Patriots (12-2) defeated Shiloh Christian (12-2) 31-21 for the Class 5A state title before an announced crowd of 7,864.

Bolding, who previously was the head coach at North Little Rock, was the defensive coordinator for Greenwood in 2000 when the Bulldogs won the Class 4A state championship with a 30-2 victory over Hope. Since that championship, he had reached the state semifinals nine times.

The championship was the Patriots’ first since 1978 when they shared the 5A title with Little Rock Central. [Prior to 1983, Class 5A which was the largest class in the state, did not have a playoff and crowned a conference champion. The title was the first for the LRSD since 2004 when LR Central defeated West Memphis 41-7 for the Class 5A title.