ROANOKE, Va. – Region playoff action continued Friday night with champions being crowned on the lacrosse fields.
The Patrick Henry girls program has been knocking on the door of success in Region 5C since winning it all in 2021. In their region final match up with Douglas S. Freeman High School, their fiery start went a long way in setting the tone.
The Patriots jumped to an early 4-1 advantage thanks in part to Kate Cumins, Addison Gibson and Claire McCahill’s early goals. While they held a comfortable lead deep into the fourth quarter, the Mavericks fought hard. They found themselves down just one goal after Hanna Kantanen scored a goal with six seconds remaining. Patrick Henry dominated draw control in the opening quarter and it did just enough on the final draw of the game to seal the Region 5C Championship win, 12-11. It’s the first region championship win since 2021 for the girls program.
“We were doing fantastic then there was a switch up, they came back with a lot of energy in the second half as we expected,” said Patrick Henry head coach Kate Spyhalski. “Then that last one, we were looking at that clock like ‘oh man we have to get that last one.’ So it was fantastic.”
“It was a tough game, tough team, great coach and great players. I play with a few of them on my club team. Just good people all around, it was a good one,” said senior Kathryn Cumins. She was a freshman on the 2021 team that won regional hardware. “It was hot out here, it was a battle for sure but we pulled through.”
With the win, Patrick Henry will get to host a Class 5 state quarterfinal match up next week.
The Patrick Henry boys program was hoping to carry momentum from the girls’ win into their match up with Midlothian. But the Trojans had other plans. They were aggressive from start to finish, scoring early and often, leading to a dominant 15-0 victory.
In Region 4D boys action, Salem was able to remain undefeated after a 9-6 victory over E.C. Glass. The Spartans had great play from a stout group of senior players including Andrew Crumpacker and Kaidan Garst.
On the girls side of Region 4D, Rockbridge County claimed the 24-6 championship win over Blacksburg.
In girls soccer, Region 2C quarterfinal play pitted James River against the top-seeded Glenvar Highlanders. They had no problems after going to work early. Giuliana Stanley netted home the first goal in the 25th minute for the 1-0 lead. Davin Tate added a goal off the inside of her foot for the second goal of the game. Glenvar would go on to a 3-1 victory and a semifinals match up next Tuesday against Appomattox County at Smith River Complex in Axton.
The Glenvar boys also opened regional play with a quarterfinals win over Patrick County, 5-0.