AHSAA soccer championships: Homewood girls repeat, Springville girls grab 5A title
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WBMA) — For the first time, each of the Alabama High School Athletic Association soccer championship games were held on a single day with games kicking off early Saturday morning at John Hunt Park in Huntsville. Before the end of the night, AHSAA handed out 10 blue maps to celebrate the state champions across the five classifications.
You can see the full list of results from the day below.
Homewood won the 6A girls final for the second straight season, scoring a late goal to secure a 1-0 win over Montgomery Academy. Mary McBride put a cross into the box in the 77th minute and Suzanna Busbee won the ball in front of the goalkeeper before poking a shot into the back of the net to give Homewood the lead. Less than four minutes later, the final buzzer sounded and the Patriots secured the win.
“You don’t know who its going to be in a championship game. We just kept going,” Homewood coach Sean McBride said. “It’s hard to describe. You’re ecstatic for your team and you’re relieved but just immense pride in these players, every single one of them.”
In Class 1A-3A, Westminster-Oak Mountain dominated the final against Saint James, registering 25 total shots including 12 on target on the way to a 3-0 victory.
Westminster opened the scoring after just 34 seconds when Vale Richie scored off an assist from Jenny Grant. Just over a minute later, the lead was doubled with a goal from L.C. Smith. Richie put the final touches on the victory with a goal in the 57th minute.
“This season has been a journey,” Westminster coach Joe Randal said after the game. “Not knowing what would happen in the end, if we would get here or not, if I could coach them the right way. Making this happen and believing in them all the way. Can’t think about nothing but them. They did it, not me.”
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Springville won the 5A girls championship, scoring six goals in the first half of a 9-4 victory over Gulf Shores. Springville trailed 2-1 after just over eight minutes of play but it erased the deficit and added three more goals in the final five minutes of the first half.
Rebecca Sierra-Burciaga finished with four goals and a pair of assists in the victory. Audrey Duckworth finished with a brace while Maggie Nalley, Annie Grant and Zoey Blaszczynski added one goal each.
"I was actually on the first Springville high school team and now as their coach, they just won state," Springville coach Meg Childress said. "It's amazing. It's a great feeling. It's good to see how far the program has grown in those eight years. This is a great group of girls and they have earned this."
John Carroll dominated the 5A boys championship. The Cavaliers scored the first three goals of the game before scoring five more in the second half to claim an 8-1 victory over Gulf Shores. Gabe Restrepo scored two goals and assisted on three others to earn the tourney MVP award. Jacob McMahon scored the first goal at 8:42 of the first half on a pass from Restrepo. Yosseph Awad, Yeri Maldonado, and Miguel Ortis scored the other three John Carroll goals. The Cavs finished with 22 shots on goal.
AHSAA Soccer Championship Results
Class 7A Boys: Daphne 3, Huntsville 1
Class 7A Girls: Sparkman 2, Auburn 1
Class 6A Boys: Fort Payne 4, Montgomery Academy 3
Class 6A Girls: Homewood 1, Montgomery Academy 0
Class 5A Boys: John Carroll Catholic 8, Gulf Shores 1
Class 5A Girls: Springville 9, Gulf Shores 4
Class 4A Boys: Bayside Academy 3, Westbrook Christian 0
Class 4A Girls: Westminster Christian 1, St. Michael 1 – Westminster Christian wins 4-2 on PKs
Class 1A-3A Boys: Tanner 2, St. Luke's 0
Class 1A-3A Girls: Westminster-Oak Mountain 3, Saint James 0