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John Champe, Brentsville District, takes home Virginia girls soccer titles

John Champe, Brentsville District, takes home Virginia girls soccer titles

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Mya Townes rarely saw the field for John Champe’s girls soccer team this spring as she battled injuries and balanced U.S. youth national team call-ups. But the Georgia commit returned in late May for the Knights’ district championship game to boost an already strong roster.

That continued Saturday, when Townes opened the scoring late in the first half in the Virginia Class 4 championship game against James Wood with a header and converted a penalty just before halftime. Lailah Miran’s second-half goal capped Champe’s 3-0 victory over Western Albemarle High in Crozet, securing the first state title in program history.

“She scored in every game (since her return) and she had a huge impact in scoring, but our team did so well,” coach Jazmin Cardoso said. “Mya was like an extra addition.”

The Knights’ strong defense put on a typically dominant performance as they shut out the Colonels (17-2-3). Powered by Georgia commit Ayda Pannell and supported by freshman goalkeeper Carilta Wilson, Champe (19-2-2) posted 17 clean sheets in 23 games while conceding just seven goals.

Champe thrived in his first year at the Class 4 level (previously in Class 6) and achieved his goal of winning district and region championships. After that, the Knights had one final goal – a state title – and they checked that box in convincing fashion on Saturday.

“My motto was ‘make history one step at a time,’ and we went through that all season and we did it,” Cardoso said.

McGovern leads Brentsville District to back-to-back titles

Brentsville District senior Peyton McGovern stepped to the penalty spot with five minutes remaining and her Tigers trailed Western Albemarle by one. With the Class 3 title on the line Saturday at Monticello High in Charlottesville, she converted to send the game to overtime.

That’s where the Florida State signee struck again. McGovern unleashed a shot from 30 yards out three minutes into extra time that skimmed the underside of the crossbar and found the back of the net. A late burst from its star player had given Brentsville District a 2-1 victory and its second straight state title.

“Going into overtime, we knew we had a chance,” McGovern said. “Once I was able to shoot from distance, it was just an amazing feeling.”

McGovern finished with 32 goals and 26 assists. She finished her career atop the Tigers’ career scoring charts, scoring all three goals in the Tigers’ consecutive state championship victories.

The Tigers (19-2-1) fell 1-0 to the Warriors (19-2-1) in April, but the lessons learned from that game helped cement this team’s place in program history.

“After that game I said, ‘This game could be the turning point of our season,’” coach Scott Kerns said. “It was invaluable for those kids who went out with confidence and knew we could take on that team and potentially make something great happen.”