File photo – The St. Bernard’s girls are champions of the Little 4 in soccer.

The Crusaders are champions of the Little 4 in girls soccer after holding Ferndale to a 0-0 tie at St. Bernard’s on Thursday afternoon.

Ferndale needed to win to share the league title and closes out league play tied with Del Norte for second.

The seniors all played well for the home team in what was an exciting and well-played showdown between two teams that have not disappointed in recent matchups between them.

“Our seniors all stepped up and kept the pressure on the Ferndale defense,” said St. Bernard’s head coach Brian Finck, who added “it was a great team performance.”

Senior goalie Mataya Sherman continued to impress between the posts for the league champs, as she has all season.

It was the third straight clean sheet for Sherman and the SB defense and their fourth in five games.

Both teams will now turn their attention toward the North Coast Section playoffs, which kick off next week.

The seedings and playoff brackets will be released on Sunday.

As sole league champions, St. Bernard’s is guaranteed a home playoff game.

The Crusaders are currently ranked No. 2 among Division-III teams in the NCS, according to MaxPreps, behind only Upper Lake, while Ferndale is No. 4.