RALEIGH — Four North Carolina High School Athletic Association women's state soccer championships will be decided Saturday in the 29th annual NCHSAA finals, set for Dail Soccer Field at North Carolina State University.
All four finals will be played on Saturday, with game times 11:05 am, 2:05 pm, 5:05 pm and 8:05 pm. This will be the eighth year for a separate 1-A championship since the number of schools playing the sport increased to the threshold for having a separate championship.
All four of the games will be televised by Time Warner Cable on TWC special events channel 323 and the stream is available on line at www.news14.com. Then they will be available on Carolina on Demand on Time Warner systems across the state, within a couple of days after the championships.
The first game Saturday with an 11:05 a.m. start is for the 2-A championship, with a couple of newcomers to the championship match as Washington (22-2) takes on West Stokes (24-2-1).
Washington senior Christian Heggie has had a remarkable season, leading her team with 55 goals to go with 15 assists. The Pam Pack has had very few close games in the last month and half, but have won their last two playoff contests by 1-0 scores, beating Newport Croatan by that count in the regional final. West Stokes will counter with all-state player and Western Piedmont Athletic Conference Player of the Year Morgan Snow, who has 23 goals and 22 assists.
The Saturday 2:05 p.m. game is for the 3-A title, with Chapel Hill (22-1), led by veteran head coach Ron Benson, taking on Weddington (20-2-1).
Chapel Hill beat Wilson Fike in the regional final to advance to the championship, while Weddington downed Cuthbertson 4-1 on Wednesday night. Senior Alex Kimball, who has committed to play at national soccer power North Carolina, leads Chapel Hill with 23 goals and 17 assists. Maggie Wadsworth had two goals for Weddington in the regional win and has over 30 for the season.
The 1-A game will kick off at 5:05 pm and sends the Mariners of East Carteret (12-5) against unbeaten Community School of Davidson (18-0). East makes its first trip to the finals in what is by far the best season in school history—the Mariners had won only three NCHSAA playoff games in history prior to making this run. The balanced East attack has seen 15 different players score this season, led by Meghan Nyberg with 14 goals.
Unbeaten Community School of Davidson has a young team led by sophomore Julie Grainda, who has scored 23 goals but was injured in the regional final win over Gray Stone Day. Lissi Gordon has scored 20 goals.
The final game at 8:05 p.m. will be for the 4-A title, with Cornelius W.A. Hough making its third straight trip to the championship in just the school’s fourth year. The Huskies (24-0-2), state runners-up a year ago, will play Cary Panther Creek, also unbeaten at 22-0-1.
High-scoring Hough is averaging right at five goals a game and has shut out 20 opponents this year. Ole Miss commit Courtney Carroll leads the Huskies with 28 goals and 21 assists. Hough has an amazing soccer record of 93-7-4 in school history.
Panther Creek beat Wilmington Hoggard to advance to the final, and Justine James leads the Catamounts in goals with 15. The Catamounts went more than a month without yielding a goal before Hoggard scored in the regional final.
The Raleigh Sports Consortium serves as the primary host city partner for the women's soccer championship, along with the Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau.
NORTH CAROLINA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION
29th ANNUAL WOMEN'S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIPS
DAIL SOCCER FIELD, NORTH CAROLINA STATE
SATURDAY, MAY 31, 2014
Class AA: Washington (22-2) vs. West Stokes (24-2-1), 11:05 am
Class AAA: Chapel Hill (22-1) vs. Weddington (20-2-1),2:05 pm
Class A: East Carteret (12-5) vs. Community School of Davidson (18-0), 5:05 pm
Class AAAA: Cary Panther Creek (22-0-1) vs. Cornelius W.A. Hough (24-0-2), 8:05 pm
NCHSAA FastFacts
Event: NCHSAA Women's Soccer Championships
Date: May 31, 2014
Site: Dail Soccer Field, North Carolina State University
Game Times: 11:05 am, 2:05 pm, 5:05 pm and 8:05 pm on Saturday
Admission: $8 at gate
First Held: 1986
Qualifiers: Eastern and Western champions meet for state titles; 64 schools qualified for playoffs in 2-A, 3-A and 4-A classifications, and 32 in 1-A
Last year’s champions: 1-A: Lake Norman Charter; 2:A: Swansboro; 3-A: Raleigh Cardinal Gibbons; 4-A: Cary Green Hope
Host City Sponsors: Raleigh Sports Consortium, Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau
Of Interest: Raleigh Broughton with 13 and Greensboro Grimsley with 12 have the most appearances in the NCHSAA women’s soccer championships.
