Norkus Gave Dad Problems...As A Player
By Michael Kaylor

When Caleb Norkus was a prep soccer star at Raleigh’s Sanderson High School, he gave his father plenty of headaches, and not because he was a problem child.

Charlie Norkus was the boys’ soccer coach at Cary High School, which is one of Sanderson’s chief rivals.

"Unfortunately, we had to play them every year," Charlie Norkus said with a laugh. "Sanderson has an excellent team, and Caleb was a great scorer for them. It was sometimes a little confusing, because I wanted Caleb to do well, but I hated to see our team lose.

"So when we played them, I hoped that Caleb would get hat-trick, and we would beat them 4-3."

Well, Charlie Norkus’ Cary squad never defeated Sanderson during his son’s high school career, and Caleb Norkus has gone on to enjoy a successful soccer career at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The younger Norkus is having an impressive senior season as the Tar Heels are enjoying one of the program’s’ finest seasons ever. When the regular season concluded, Coach Elmar Bolowich’s squad was 17-2 (5-1 ACC) and were ranked #1 in the nation by soccertimes.com.

Norkus, an All-ACC second team selection, was the team’s second-leading scorer with 13 goals and 12 assists (38 points). The Tar Heels entered the ACC Tournament in Winston-Salem, NC, as the top seed.

Caleb Norkus arrived in Chapel Hill four years ago as one of the most heralded young players in the nation. He’s a member of the U.S. Under-20 National Team and was named a consensus All-America and North Carolina High School Player-of-the-Year at Sanderson.

Charlie Norkus believes his son handles adversity and pressure with great strength.

"I know Caleb has felt stressed, because as a striker you are expected to score," his father said. "At first, I think he was a little intimidated."

Collegiate soccer is very similar to the kind of competition he faced as a member of the U.S. U-20 National Team, Caleb Norkus said.

"College soccer and the U-20 game are very similar.," he said. "They are both very intense. And on the national level, you are playing against great defenders who have a lot of experience."

Charlie Norkus coached in an instructional league for young players when Caleb was a boy, and the father saw very quickly that his young son had the talent to play the game.

"He was just a natural," Charlie Norkus said. "He just stood out. He was a great scorer and handled the ball beautifully."

He also remembers when young Caleb played in a YMCA program in Asheboro, NC.

"He would run up and down the field with the ball," Charlie Norkus remembered. "No one could stop him, and he would score again and again."

Caleb Norkus said that when it came time to choose a collegiate program, the choice was very easy for him.

"When I was a kid, I’d come to watch Carolina play, and I was a fan," he said. "The ACC is very competitive, and I wanted to play at that level."

He also believes that Bolowich is one of the finest coaches in the country.

"Elmar is an excellent coach because he really knows the game and he’s very straight-forward," Caleb Norkus said. "He just tells you what you need to work on. He’ll tell you how to improve on a run and how to make a certain run."

When Caleb returns home to Raleigh, he knows that he has another coach there who can also give him some pointers.

"My dad is a great coach because he knows me so well," he said. "He’s seen me play for years. He tells me things after every game. He talks to me about my attitude and how I can improve to make my game better."

And Charlie Norkus is pleased that he no longer has to try and stop his son on the soccer field.

"I think it’s more fun to see Caleb play at Carolina then to see him beat us with Sanderson," Charlie Norkus said with a laugh.

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Carolina high school soccer playoffs are underway with championship matches scheduled for Friday, May 12, and Saturday, May 13, at Memorial Stadium in Columbia. This will be the first year that a Class 2A/1A Girls State Championship will be held. Previously these two classifications were combined with 3A schools.

The girls championships will be played on May 12 with the 3A championship set for 6:00 pm. The 4A championship follows at 8:00 pm. The girls 2A/1A will be held Saturday morning, May 13, at 11:00 am.

The boys finals will be played on Saturday afternoon with the 2A/1A championship set for 1:00 pm, followed by the 3A final at 4:00 pm and the 4A championship at 7:00 in the evening.

The South Carolina High School Soccer Coaches Association boys and girls All-State teams are as follows:

CLASS 4A Boys All-State Team Goalkeeper -- Christopher Moore (Hartsville), Senior Defender -- Joey Bowers (Summerville, Senior Defender -- Bo Collins (Spring Valley), Senior Defender -- Seth Stoner (Irmo), Senior Defender -- Jonathon Tootel (P.M. Dorman), Senior Midfielder -- Brandon Cockrell (Mauldin), Junior Midfielder -- Jeff Haigler (Dutch Fork), Junior Midfielder -- Kellie Herndon (Irmo), Senior Midfielder -- Rainey Rabern (Spring Valley), Senior Midfielder -- Wes Wells (Dutch Fork), Senior Midfielder -- T.J. Walsh (Spartanburg), Senior Forward -- Jhon Arango (Hillcrest), Junior Forward -- Matt Pryor (Summerville), Senior Forward -- Zach Stewart (P.M. Dorman), Senior Forward -- Sean Whelan (Hillcrest), Senior

CLASS 4A Girls All-State Team Goalkeeper -- Leigh Ann Harrison (Mauldin), Senior Defender -- Rachel Beckler (T.L. Hanna), Junior Defender -- Dara Cothran (Mauldin), Senior Defender -- Meredith Orland (Ridge View), Senior Defender -- Mariah York (Spring Valley), Junior Midfielder -- Sarah Lentz (South Florence), Senior Midfielder -- Tarah Mullinax (Hillcrest), Senior Midfielder -- Stacy Simpson (Richland Northeast), Sophomore Midfielder -- Delisa Smith (T.L. Hanna), Senior Midfielder -- Jamie Stewart (Mauldin), Senior Forward -- Rachel Freeman (Lexington), Senior Forward -- Bryn Post (Richland Northeast), Sophomore Forward -- Kelly Schneider (Mauldin), Freshman Forward -- Dawn Soule (Dutch Fork), Senior Forward -- Claire Wigfall (Wando), Junior

CLASS 3A Boys All-State Team Goalkeeper -- Andrew Jamison (Fort Mill), Junior Defender -- Justin Floyd (Myrtle Beach), Junior Defender -- Danni Lupisella (Wren), Senior Defender -- Alex McIntyre (Dreher), Senior Defender -- J.P. Mattern (Middleton), Senior Defender -- Phillip Gooding (D.W. Daniel), Senior Midfielder -- Eric Carter (Riverside), Senior Midfielder -- Eric Forbes (Seneca), Sophomore Midfielder -- Brian Harmon (Dreher), Senior Midfielder -- Robert Logan (Brookland-Cayce), Senior Midfielder -- Anthony McKenzie (Myrtle Beach), Sophomore Forward -- Chris Bullock (Middleton), Senior Forward -- Steven Busch (Myrtle Beach), Senior Forward -- Troy Lesesne (Brookland-Cayce), Junior Forward -- Landon Pruitt (Seneca), Senior

CLASS 3A Girls All-State Team Goalkeeper -- Emily Hazel (Brookland-Cayce), Senior Defender -- Nikki Jones (Middleton), Junior Defender -- Kim Nesmith (Middleton), Senior Defender -- Michael Lindsey Sonefeld (Brookland-Cayce), Sophomore Defender -- Sarah Turner (Eastside), Junior Midfielder -- Sara Hamrick (St. Andrews), Senior Midfielder -- Brandi McCrae (Middleton), Senior Midfielder -- Jocelyn Meyer (Greenville), Junior Midfielder -- Kathryn Vignone (Riverside), Senior Midfielder -- Allison Johnstone (Riverside), Senior Forward -- Gloria Brown (Middleton), Sophomore Forward -- Elise Fairey (A.C. Flora), Junior Forward -- Jennifer Merritt (Wren), Senior Forward -- Alexis Sutton (Brookland-Cayce), Junior Forward -- Meghan Smith (Travelers Rest), Sophomore

CLASS 2A/1A Boys All-State Team Goalkeeper -- Kevin Donlan (Chapin), Senior Defender -- Troy Bennage (Academic Magnet), Senior Defender -- Brett Huffstetler (Chapin), Senior Defender -- Alan O'Rourke (Christ Church), Senior Defender -- Nick Roll (Pendleton), Senior Defender -- Clint Wilson (Emerald), Senior Midfielder -- Burr Farrar (Christ Church), Senior Midfielder -- Matthew Marlowe (Hanahan), Senior Midfielder -- Jeremy Oswald (Bishop England), Senior Midfielder -- Brian Pinson (Pendleton), Senior Midfielder -- Kit Vitagliano (Chapin), Sophomore Forward -- Brandon Hammond (Andrew Jackson), Senior Forward -- Glenn Jackson (Chapin), Senior Forward -- Jeremy Jetton (Walhalla), Senior Forward -- Andre Talley (Pendleton), Senior

CLASS 2A/1A Girls All-State Team Goalkeeper -- Melissa Acuff (Bishop England), Junior Defender -- Megan Epting (Chapin), Junior Defender -- Rebecca Garr (Academic Magnet), Senior Defender -- Meredith McPartland (Bishop England), Senior Defender -- Gretchen Weinspach (Chapin), Senior Midfielder -- Britten Meyer (Christ Church), Freshman Midfielder -- Jessie Port (Chapin), Junior Midfielder -- Ashleigh Vollard (Academic Magnet), Junior Midfielder -- Ashley Williams (Hanahan), Junior Forward -- Becca Epstein (Bishop England), Senior Forward -- Talya Fisher (Academic Magnet), Senior Forward -- Tara Learn (Hanahan), Freshman Heather Pillman (Emerald), Junior Amy Shuler (Christ Church), Sophomore Priscilla Terzo (Indian Land), Senior

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Jesuit Seeking Perfection
By Jeremy Rasmussen

Tampa — After winning three consecutive state titles, what is left for Jesuit to accomplish? According to coach Bob Bauman, a perfect season would be nice.

"I don’t want to jinx it, but I think we could (go undefeated)," Bauman said. "If we play up to our potential, I think we could run the table. Of course, that’s just bulletin board material for everyone else, but these guys know we have a bull’s eye on our backs. Three time state champs, everyone gunning for you, it just comes with playing for our program."

Bauman is hesitant to say that this year’s team is his best ever, but after achieving an 18-0 mark by Christmas break, winning two tournaments, and defeating three champions from other states, he said the team compares favorably with his "best" squad from two years ago. That team went 29-1-3 and garnered a state title and #7 national ranking behind the leadership of state player of the year Shea Helmle.

"The team two years ago was extremely disciplined and focused," Bauman said. "This year’s team has surprised me how cohesive it is on the field, considering we graduated 11 seniors, and nine of those were starters."

Bauman credits the seasoned appearance of this year’s squad with the fact that many of his underclassmen saw playing time in blowout wins over the past couple seasons. In fact, the same thing has happened in several matches this year, which will probably keep senior forward Rob Daly out of the record books.

Daly already has 34 goals this season, but he usually sits down in the second half when Jesuit is winning in a rout.

In a season-opening tournament at Sarasota, Daly scored all four Jesuit goals in a 4-1 win against Bradenton Southeast and two goals in the tournament final against Bradenton Manatee. In an 11-0 win against Tampa Robinson on Dec. 3, Daly played 12 minutes, took five shots and scored five goals.

Daly said he would like to challenge Sebastian Janikowski’s state record of 69 goals, which the Florida State placekicker set as a senior at Daytona Beach Seabreeze, but his limited playing time could hinder that.

"It would be great - but as long as the team is winning, then I am happy,’’ Daly said.

Another fearsome player is Bryce Wegerle, son of former Tampa Bay Rowdies star Steve Wegerle. According to Bauman, Wegerle has the raw talent but is still realizing his potential.

"Bryce is starting to show how good a player he can be," Bauman said. "He still needs to add other parts to his game, but offensively, there is very little to find wrong."

After spending two years as a reserve forward, Erol Belli has taken over as sweeper for the Tigers and has delivered in a big way.

"(Belli) showed a lot of leadership for being willing to help out the team where we needed him," Bauman said. "He’s a good forward, but now he’s showing college coaches his versatility."

Belli was named the defensive MVP of the Elite bracket of the recent Puma Invitational Tournament, and Daly was named offensive MVP.

The Tigers aren’t taking the easy road to an unbeaten record. They recently faced two brother schools - Strake Jesuit of Houston and Loyola Jesuit of Los Angeles, before heading into the Puma tourney. Both schools were state champions in their own right, and the Tigers beat them 6-0 and 2-1, respectively.

In the second half of the season, Jesuit faces Clearwater Central Catholic in a rematch of the Puma tourney final, as well as state-ranked Melbourne Central Catholic, Satellite Beach-Satellite, and River Ridge, not to mention the state playoffs.

"The second half of the season will be even a bigger test than the first half," Bauman said. "But I think playing against these well-skilled, disciplined teams so far has been a great leap forward for us."

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Georgia June Notes

State Championship Night ‘99 was a big evening for high school soccer in Georgia. Nearly 12,000 fans turned out at six different sites to see six teams win state titles. As it turned out, seven teams came away with championship trophies.

Pope and Parkview could not settle the Class AAAA girls championship and both were awarded a share of the championship. After an exciting 3-3 draw in regulation, neither team could score in either of the two 10-minute overtime periods.

Georgia prep rules do not provide for shootouts in championship games.

Starr’s Mill, in only its second season, won the Class AAA title with a 1-0 win over Marist, and the AA/A girls championship was won by Providence Christian in a 1-0 upset over top-seeded Westminster.

In the boys finals Clarke Central slipped past Fayette County 2-1 for the AAAA championship, while Woodward Academy won its first-ever state soccer championship with a last-second goal to edge Greenbrier 1-0 in the AAA final.

The AA/A boys championship went to St. Pius for the fourth time in five years, with a 2-1 win over Athens Academy.

A crowd of 2,500 saw a classic match as Pope (15-4-1) took the lead time after time, only to see Coach Todd Yelton’s Parkview (17-3-1) Lady Panthers come back to tie the game. A 30-yarder by Parkview’s freshman forward Mallory Bramlett with 1:54 left sent the game to overtime.

Pope, coached by Jim Haskin, took a 1-0 lead just 2:33 into the game on a Emily Wilpers goal. Jenny Rynder and Chrissy Culver also scored for the Lady Greyhounds.

The other two Parkview goals were scored by Faith Stewart.

Clarke Central had never advanced past the first round of the state playoffs before this season, but once the wins started coming they carried the top-seeded Gladiators to the state title with a 2-1 win over six-seeded Fayette County.

Joe Bates’ four-yard tap-in gave Clarke Central a 1-0 lead 10-minutes into the game. Seven minutes later Andrew Doggendorf headed in the equalizer for Fayette County.

Bruce Holt curved a free kick from right outside the penalty box, around the defensive wall and over the outstretched arm of keeper J.B. Wood for the game-winner for Coach Ted Colburn’s Clarke team.

Last year Starr’s Mill lost in the championship game to St. Pius in their first year, and this time Coach Jaime Brotenmarkle’s Panthers won one game more. A 1-0 victory over Marist gave the Panthers the AAA title, and with no seniors on the team the squad will look for a three-peat in 2000.

Alice Martin got Starr’s Mill only goal less than two minutes into the game. Only a sophomore, Martin took a pass from junior Amanda Thurber and slotted home the championship goal.

Starr’s Mill finished the season 18-2, while Marist, which came on strong at the end of the season, was also 18-2. One of those earlier losses was a 4-0 decision to the Panthers.

It doesn’t get much closer than this. When everyone was looking towards overtime, Senior Chris Herron fired home the winning goal with 14.4 seconds left in regulation to give Woodward its first championship with a 1-0 win over Greenbrier.

Greenbrier fans held their breath as a Stuart Carter shot clanked off the crossbar one minute before Herron connected. A midfielder, Herron sprinted down the middle for an open shot and his 23rd goal of the season.

Woodward, coached by Stephen Reed, finished 17-3-1, while Greenbrier ended the year at 17-3.

Sarah Steinmann scored two goals on her 16th birthday as Providence Christian upset #1 Westminster. PC’s goalkeeper Jessi Csehy made six saves in the last 10 minutes to preserve the win for the Stars (18-3).

The defending champion Wildcats (18-2) were playing without two of their top players for disciplinary reasons, including Jessica Winton, the leading scorer (46 goals).

Steinman, who had 43 goals, got both goals in the second half with the game-winner coming at the 12:43 mark. Westminster’s goal, by Molly Plyler, came midway through the half.

Providence, coached by John Spracklin, had also beaten last year’s runnerup, Pace Academy 2-1, to reach the championship game.

Winning state championships has become a tradition at St. Pius, and Matt Patria’s two goals, including the game-winner with 2:54 to play, added another trophy to a crowded trophy case.

Billy Bennett gave second-ranked Athens Academy a 1-0 lead in the first half, but Patria answered with his first goal 10 minutes later. His game-winner came from 23 yards out.

Coach Joe Cropper’s Golden Lions finished the year 19-1-1, while Athens Academy was 12-5-1, the best record in coach Scott Hardister’s four years as head coach.

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North Carolina June Notes

Three teams that are familiar with victory circle captured the 1999 NCHSAA women’s soccer championships at Method Road on the N.C. State campus.

Raleigh Broughton shutout Greensboro Grimsley (3-0) for the 4-A state title, while Ragsdale slipped past Fuquay-Varina (2-1) for the 3-A championship. High Point Central captured its second straight 1-A/2-A state title with a 2-1 victory over Swansboro.

Broughton, which also won its second straight championship, has won three state championships in the ‘90s, while Grimsley was going for its fifth in the decade. Broughton and Grimsley have met in the championship four times, each winning twice.

Freshman forward Brynn Hardman scored a pair of goals to lead the Caps to the title and a 30-1 season. Senior Mary Ward Younger got the other Broughton goal.

Broughton, ranked #7 nationally, outshot the Whirlies (19-5), 18-3, and dominated much of the match. However, the Caps only held a 1-0 lead with 20 minutes to go before Younger took a pass from Hardman, the game’s MVP, for the clinching goal.

Hardman’s first goal came in the 24th minute and her second closed out the scoring in the last 16 minutes of the match.

Coach Izzy Hernandez’ Caps downed Hoggard 2-1 (OT) in the semifinals, while Grimsley shutdown North Mecklenberg’s high octane offense for a 2-1 semifinal victory.

Grimsley made the state playoffs this year as the #1 team in the Metro Conference, and eliminated conference champion and rival Greensboro Page 4-0 in the playoffs.

After a scoreless first half Ragsdale rolled up a 2-0 lead over Fuquay-Varina in the 3-A championship game. Goals by Jordan Allison, the game’s MVP, and Erin Beeson seemed to give the Tigers a clear path to the title, but things got tight at the end.

Sheri Robbins converted a penalty kick with just over two minutes to go and in the last 120 seconds the Bengal Tigers made a number of challenges to tie the game.

The victory gave Coach Brien Braswell’s Tigers their second state title in four years and left them 21-2-4. They have not lost since the sixth game of the season against West Forsyth.

Fuquay-Varina, making its first trip to the girls title game, finished 22-2-2. They defeated defending champion East Chapel Hill in a shootout in one 3-A semifinal, while Ragsdale was beating T.C. Roberson (3-0) in the other.

Swansboro is a fixture in boys state championship play, but the girls had never been to the title game before. Had it been anyone else but High Point Central, the outcome might have been different.

Central got a first-half goal by Lee Culp‘s goal in the seventh minute and made it hold up for the championship. They are the only team to win the title since the class was separated two years ago from the 3-A teams.

Central, coached by David Upchurch, finished the season 18-3-3 and swept through the playoffs by outscoring opponents 23-0. Defender Jenny Tinsley was named the championship game’s MVP.

The Bison defense shutout the Pirates’ 48-goal scorer, Jill Hayes. As a team Swansboro averaged 5.22 goals a game during their 22-3-2 season. Since losing a pair of games in Georgia last March the Bison allowed only two goals through the next 15 games.

Central downed Charlotte Catholic (16-4-1) in one semifinal, while Swansboro handed Western Alamance (17-1-3) its first loss of the season in the other.

When Dana Murphy was in the third grade Greensboro Day School won the first of its five consecutive girls NCISAA 2-A state titles. Murphy, and eighth grader, scored the first of GDS’ three goals to down Cardinal Gibbons 3-1 to give the Bengals five-in-a-row.

For four seniors - Kelli Robinson, Gabi Lieb, Mary Katheriine Davis and Brook Marshall - it was the culmination of a high school career that ended each season with a state championship.

Murphy got the Bengals on the scoreboard in the 11th minute of play as she took a pass from Lieb in front of the goal and shot into a crowd. The ball hit off a Gibbons defender and then through the hands of the goalkeeper into the right corner of the goal.

Gibbons tied the game 10 minutes later when Emily Turgeon, who had scored both goals in her team’s 2-0 semifinal victory, lofted a 20-yard shot ovfer the head of GDS goalkeeper Suzanne Cole. Turgeon, a junior, finished the year with 27 goals.

Robinson got the game-winner in the 23rd minute on a header off a Kendra Kasik cross to the far post. Just over a minute later Kasik took a pass from Robinson and finished a 15-yarder for the final 3-1 margin.

In the first half the Bengals outshot Gibbons 14-3, and while the second half was fairly even, all GDS had to do was maintain a solid defense and cruise through the last half of the championship game.

A year ago GDS finished unbeaten and ranked #2 nationally. This year the Bengals lost three matches and tied two others to finish 16-3-2.

Gibbons, which also lost in the championship game to GDS a year ago (2-0), enjoyed another outstanding season to finish as the state runnerup. Late in the year a 2-0 win over previous #1 ranked St. Mary’s had given Cardinal Gibbons the top ranking in the 1A/2A/Private high school poll.

Gibbons finished the season 14-4-1 and beat Charlotte Country Day 2-0 in the state semifinals. Greensboro Day School reached the championship game with a 1-0 victory over Durham Academy.

"Our losses didn’ty really hurt us," said GDS coach Kim Burroughs after the championshp game. "In fact, they kind of convinced the girls that they would have to work hard to win another title."

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South Carolina June Notes

Summerville ended Irmo’s quest for its’ fifth-straight 4A state championship with a dominating 3-0 victory at Memorial Stadium in Columbia.

The state title is the Green Wave’s second and avenges a 2-1 loss to the Yellow Jackets in the ‘97 state final.

Summerville (24-2-2), coached by Ron Brady, scored all three goals in the first 26 minutes of play. Senior Eddie Naugle got the first seven goal and a half minutes into the game, and 10 minutes later senior Matt Kascak drilled a volley off a Naugle cross for a 2-0 lead.

At the 26:01 mark junior Matt Pryor got the final Summerville goal. The Green Wave outshot the Jackets 20-7, including 13-1 in the first half. Irmo (18-4), coached by Phil Savitz, entered the game with 12 state titles since 1978 and has won nine of the last 12.

Hillcrest made the most of its first appearance in a state finals as the Rams posted a 2-1 victory over Spring Valley, which was playing in its second-straight championship match.

It could easily have been a case that Hillcrest had "Moore" than Spring Valley as the combination of sisters Nardia (senior) and Natasha (freshman) Moore each scored. All three goals were scored in the first half, as Claudia Jenson struck home for the Lady Vikings.

Hillcrest held a 16-7 shots advantage in the game and Vikings’ junior goalkeeper Tracy Pinnock was called upon for eight saves.

Hillcrest, coached by Butch Clark, finished 21-3, while Stephen Lea’s Spring Valley squad posted an outstanding 20-2 mark this spring.

Sophomore Cole Stamm knocked in the game’s only goal with 23 minutes left in the championship game to give J.L. Mann a 1-0 win over Dreher for the AAA state title. Stamm settled a cross from junior Michael Burns and slotted home the goal that gave Mann its first state title in its first trip to the finals since 1985.

Dreher, making its second championship appearance in a decade, outshot Mann 7-4 and held a 5-1 advantage on corner kicks. However, the Patriots’ defense turned away the Blue Devils time-after-time - except for Stamm’s goal. Dreher’s all-state keeper Clarence Alston made three saves in the game.

J.L. Mann, coached by Bill Linn, finished 20-3, while Coach Todd Wilkinson’s Patriots finished 20-5.

Riverside (21-3) won their eighth state title since the SCHSL sanctioned girls soccer as a prep sport in 1991 with a 4-2 victory over Bishop England (17-5-2).

Sophomore Cayce Wampole was the star of the match as she came off the bench to record three goals to lead the Warriors. Freshman midfielder Kacie Deon added the other Riverside goal.

Allison English and Becca Epstein got the goals for the Lady Bishops, who are coached by Jim Hinchey. Terry Archenhold coaches Riverside.

Bishop England capped off an incredible season with a 2-1 victory over Chapin in a game decided by penalty kicks. The victory, in a very physical game in which 50 fouls were whistled, gave Coach Ed Khouri’s Bishops a 24-1 finish and its sixth state title - five in the past seven years.

Chapin, coached by Bob Taylor, finished 16-3, coming in second in the playoffs for the third time since 1993.

After a scoreless first half, senior Ben Wilson cracked a free kick from 20 yards to give Chapin a 1-0 lead at the 74:45 mark. Bishop England, playing a man down because of a red card ejection, got the equalizer with 25 seconds left as senior Josh Hollingsworth connected on a penalty kick.

After the overtime periods, the Battling Bishops won the shootout 4-2.

Cardinal Newman rallied from a 2-0 deficit with 13 minutes remaining to dethrone eight-time defending state champion Porter-Gaud 3-2.

Porter-Gaud seemed destined for another state title, but a Cyclone defender inadvertently handled the ball in the penalty area, giving the Cardinals a PK and a huge boost of momentum. Thirty second later Graham Wilson, who has scored the PK, got the equalizer as he headed in a cross from Wyn Kittredge.

Sophomore T.J. McConnel got the game-winner with six minutes left in the game. Cardinal Newman is coached by Kevin Graves, while Arturo Suarez coaches Porter-Gaud.

Cardinal Newman captured its first girls state title on the strength of Laura Bliss’ two second-half goals that propelled the Lady Cardinals to a 3-1 victory over Hilton Head Prep.

CN (17-2-2), coached by Steve Berzins, also received a goal from Jessica Schweitzer, while Hadly Punterriri scored Hilton Head’s only goal. Hilton Head Academy, coached by Larry Tavino, finished the year 13-3.

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Houston, McCallie, Christ Presbyterian Win

Houston, McCallie and Christ Presbyterian came away with TSSAA state soccer championships to conclude the annual Spring Fling. The championship games, originally scheduled for Chattanooga’s Findley Stadium, were moved to Red Bank High School.

Houston, coached by Mike Irby, ripped Science Hill 4-0 in the Class AAA final, getting a pair of goals in each half. Kyle Roberts had three of those, scoring in the 8th, 55th and 69th minute. That earned him MVP honors for the game.

Houston, ranked #2 nationally in the NSCAA spring prep poll, edged Hendersonville 2-1 in the semifinal with second half goals by David Ridenhour and Austin Oyler.

Science Hill scored second half goals by Lucas Coelho and Kpudeh Muingbeth to top Red Bank in the other semifinal match.

Christ Presbyerian completed and 18-1-2 Cinderella season with a 1-0 victory over Ridgeway for its first state title. Daniel Collins got the game-winner in the 46th minute.

Christ Presbyterian, coached by Brett Armstrong, reached the championship game with a 1-0 shootout win over Lenoir City, a former state champion. Ridgeway beat Chattanooga Christian 4-1 in the other semifinal game.

McCallie downed arch rival Baylor 1-0 for the Division II state title on a 46th minute goal by Render Thomas.

McCallie edged Father Ryan 3-2 in one semifinal game, while Baylor shutout MUS 2-0 in the other.

McCallie, coached by Kevin Sims, had lost 1-0 to Baylor in the East Region final, and had tied the Red Raiders 3-3 during the regular season.

Adam Pierce (Red Bank), Matt Swank (Hendersonville), Joe Carmack, (Hend-ersonville), Kpodah Muinbeh (Science Hill), Sabat Nikacaj (Science Hill), Kyle Rogberts (Houston), Andrew Rhodes (Houston), Austin Oyler (Houston), Nick Chantara (Houston), Daryl Sattler (Houston), Grant Paule (Houston).

Luke Neder (Chattanooga Christian), Kurt Morris (Chattanooga Christian), Cody Muncy (Lenoir City), Justin Robbins (Lenoir City), Marc Bryant (Ridgeway), Phillip LaPuente (Ridgeway), Matt Bryant (Ridgeway), Tom Nelms (Christ Presbyterian Academy), Brian Phillips (Christ Presbyterian Academy), Daniel Collins (Christ Presbyterian Academy), Daniel Platt (Christ Presbyterian Academy).

Luke Peteveok (Father Ryan), Scott Hickerson (MUS), Joe Paden (Baylor), Kury Smith (Baylot), Timmy Brown (Baylor), Thomas Mills (McCallie), Brandon Waters (McCallie), Doug Belknap (McCallie), Paul Love (McCallie).

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The 1998-99 Florida high school soccer season had all the drama, tragedy, and vindication of an Aaron Spelling production, and the title of "Dynasty" certainly fits. The St. Thomas Aquinas girls team won its seventh consecutive state title, cruising to a 5-0 win over Sarasota in the Class 5A final.

While the Raiders weren’t perfect, they were good enough to win their 29th consecutive state tournament game since a 2-1 loss to St. Petersburg Lakewood in the 1992 Class 3A state semifinals. They are 44-7 in state tourney play since 1982. The Raiders’ win streak was named one of the top five sports stories of the year by the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel.

The Tampa Jesuit boys were also mighty good, putting away rival Seminole Osceola 5-2 for their third straight Class 4A state crown. Jesuit has won 15 straight district titles. With all the winning, Tiger coach Bob Bauman is taking a lot of water cooler baths. "They started the (water) tradition and it just never stopped," Bauman said. "It's a good omen I suppose, but all I get is wet clothes and a cold."

Last year’s Class 4A Player of the Year, Shea Helmle, was as clever a scorer and playmaker as ever for the Tigers, and is headed to a scholarship at Furman. This year’s Player of the Year, sweeper Jeremy Poklemba, was a dominating figure in the backfield. The Tigers will reload next year with the likes of the high-scoring Rob Daly and Bryce Wegerle, who is the son of former Tampa Bay Rowdies star Steve Wegerle (and nephew of former U.S. national team member Roy Wegerle).

Bradenton Academy defeated Orangewood Christian 4-1 for the fall state invitational title. The small private school picked up some players from the adidas Soccer Academy (part of the Nick Bollittieri Sports Academy) and defeated state champ Lakeland Christian en route to a 12-8 record and the state title.

St. Thomas Aquinas girls, winners of six straight state titles and owners of a 145-game unbeaten streak, fell to Gulf Breeze 2-0 on Dec. 19 at a tournament in the Florida Panhandle. The streak had been the longest in the nation.

The Tampa Gaither boys became the first Hillsborough County team to defeat Valrico Bloomingdale since 1994. They handed the top-ranked Class 6A Bulls a 2-0 loss and also defeated Tampa Jesuit (ranked No. 1 in Class 4A) to win the season-opening King Invitational. Before their 12-game win streak ended, Gaither achieved a No. 1 ranking and defeated state champ St. Thomas Aquinas at the Puma Invitational. Jesuit got revenge with a penalty kick victory over the Cowboys in the Puma quarterfinals.

Miami American and Jacksonville Fletcher established themselves as the boys teams to beat in Class 6A and 5A, respectively, with impressive wins at Tampa’s elite Puma Invitational Tournament. With two 16-team brackets featuring most of the state’s top-ranked teams in each classification, the Puma tourney has become one the premier events in the state, if not the nation.

The Bradenton Manatee girls gave up just one goal in their first 16 games and went on to win the Holiday Invitational 3-1 over Tampa Gaither.

In a rematch of last yearís Class 3A state final, Melbourne Central Catholic crushed Clearwater Central Catholic 8-0. CCC coach Jim Harte said he was "experimenting"with his lineup.

Lakeland’s Cindy Schofield broke the state scoring mark (see story that follows) on Jan. 25.

The Miami Beach boys' soccer team handed American its first defeat, 3-2, to win the Greater Miami Athletic Conference championship. That capped a week in which the Hi-Tides also knocked off Lake Mary and previously undefeated Miami Southridge. Miami Beach's Michael Rodriguez had seven goals in four games during the week.

In what has to be the toughest girls district in the state, defending Class 6A champion Lake Mary went to 10 rounds of penalty kicks to win its District 3 semifinal over Oviedo, 2-1. But then the Rams lost the district final to another Seminole County power, Lake Howell. Lake Howell went on to achieve a No. 1 ranking in the NSCAA/adidas national poll before falling in the regional finals.

It was a heartbreaking February for both the Fletcher boys and girls teams, which had aspirations of returning to the Class 5A state tourney together. Gainesville knocked off the top-ranked boys in the Class 5A regional quarterfinals 1-0, while St. Augustine Nease upset the No. 2 Fletcher girls 3-2.

Boca Raton player junior Vinicius Atab died suddenly of heart failure.

The No. 1 ranked Bradenton Manatee girls, who scored the tying goal with eight seconds left in regulation against Lake Mary, ultimately lost 4-3 on penalty kicks in the Class 6A, North II regional final. "That was the greatest soccer game I ever saw," said Manatee coach Paul Palmateer. Lake Mary's four goals on the penalty kicks equaled the total number of goals that Manatee had allowed during its entire 27-2-1 season.

Undefeated Oviedo, ranked No. 1 nationally in the NSCAA/adidas boys poll, was handed its first loss 4-3 by Tampa Gaither in the Class 6A state semifinals on Feb. 19. "This win shows the character of this team," Cowboys Coach Adrian Bush said. "To come back the way we did on the road is amazing. Oviedo is the best team we've faced all season."

Pace High School, from a tiny town in the Florida Panhandle, saw its season-long 23-game unbeaten streak end with a 4-2 loss to the Bishop Moore boys in the Class 4A regional final.

One Cinderella eliminated another as St. Petersburg Catholic defeated Taylor High School 5-1 in the Class 3A state semifinals. It was the first trip to the final four for either team. St. Petersburg Catholic’s Bryan Mullinix notched four goals in the rout.

Gulliver Prep sent both its boys and girls to the Class 3A state tournament. The boys topped upstart St. Petersburg Catholic in the final on goals from Alex Casabelle and Percy Avetrani. It’s the second state title for the Raiders (24-3-4). The Gulliver girls fell 2-0 to Clearwater Central Catholic. Katie Calvin and Amanda Green each scored for Marauders (32-1-1), who won their third state title.

In only its third year in existence, Palm Harbor University School has a state title. The Lady Hurricanes topped Daytona Beach Seabreeze 1-0 in the Class 4A state final at Lake City.

Fort Myers upset three-time champion St. Thomas Aquinas, then went on the road to beat fifth-ranked Lakeland George Jenkins and reach the final four. The Green Wave topped Tallahassee Leon in its own backyard at the state tournament, and finally beat Land O’ Lakes 3-1 on Damien Vincent’s hat trick to win an improbable first state title. Dr. Eugene Carbona, the Ft. Myers coach, proved to be a brilliant tactician, changing strategies against each team his boys played.

Rob Daly had two goals to lead Jesuit (25-2-6) to its third straight state title 5-2 over Seminole Osceola in a rematch of last year’s final. The heated rivalry turned a little nasty with seven yellow cards and an ejection in the final, no doubt fueled by a little pre-game trash-talking.

In the Class 6A girls final, neither Spanish River nor Lake Mary, each with two championships, had ever lost in the state title game. The Spanish River Sharks came out on top 2-1, as Maren Jaffee scored the game-winner.

St. Thomas exacted revenge on Gulf Breeze with a state semifinal victory, then followed that up with its seventh consecutive state title 5-0 over Sarasota. To be fair, Sarasota was without its leading scorer, Sarah Toale, who went down with a knee injury in the semifinal. Vanessa Illanes scored a hat trick as the Raiders won their 29th consecutive state tournament game.

Perhaps the most satisfied winner in the state championships was Miami American (see story to follow). The Patriots came back from a 1-0 deficit to defeat Valrico Bloomingdale 3-1 for their first state title.

Just before his teamís playoff match with Hallandale on Feb. 12, 17-year-old Boca Raton junior Vinicius "Vinnie" Atab collapsed during warm-ups. A doctor’s autopsy later revealed that Atab had an irregular heartbeat.

Instead of falling apart, the team rallied together, beating Hallandale, Jupiter, and St. Petersburg Lakewood to reach the state semifinals in Tallahassee before falling to 2-0 Land O’ Lakes.

"When you consider where we were two weeks ago, it was a heck of a run for them," Boca Raton coach Ron Matella said.

"I think emotion got us here," Boca midfielder Enrique Brao said after the loss to Land O'Lakes. "I think we were playing solely on emotion. I'm very proud of this team. The guys really rallied together and fought through the adversity."

A heart scan that might have saved Atab’s life could eventually be part of school athletic physicals across the state. House and Senate leaders want the state to allocate funding for a pilot program that would use echo cardiograms to search for signs that young athletes are at risk of sudden heart failure.

Last year, Miami American came in undefeated and ranked first nationally in the NSCAA/adidas poll. It lost to Bloomingdale in the state final 1-0 on a lone goal by Class 6A Player of the Year Chris Gatlyn.

This year, after American defeated Bloomingdale 2-1 in penalty kicks at December’s Puma Tournament, everyone suspected that the two would eventually square off again for the state title. But it wasn’t easy.

Justin Ratcliffe converted American High's fifth penalty kick and goalkeeper Kyle Wood blocked Southridge High's fifth attempt as the Patriots prevailed, 4-3, in penalty kicks to edge Southridge, 3-2, in the regional semifinal. Bloomingdale had to go to four overtimes against Sarasota Riverview before Chaz Richard deflected in a hard free kick by Casey Stump to win 2-1 in the Class 6A, District 6 final.

In the state final, the Bulls grabbed a 1-0 lead on Bobby Richardson’s first-half header. In the second half, American sweeper Alex Sanchez took things into his own hands, er, feet. He dribbled out of the back, went up the right sideline, and launched a 35-yard bomb that sailed over the head of Bulls keeper Chris Kennedy into the net. John Pulido and Johnathan Perez also scored as the Pats won pulling away.

"This wasn’t about revenge. This was just about doing what we knew we could do," Pats coach Jim Willenborg said.

There’ no doubt that Bloomingdale would have benefited from having all-state sweeper Casey Stump in the lineup, but he received a red card in the regional final against Lake Mary. Nevertheless, Stump earned Class 6A Player of the Year honors, prompting a South Florida outcry against the FACA state selection procedures.

Cindy Schofield, co-captain of the Tampa Bay Heather Under-19 squad (reigning Florida State Youth Soccer Association state champions) shattered the Florida High School Athletic Association career goals scored record with her 231st goal for Lakeland George Jenkins in a soccer game against rival Lake Gibson High on Jan. 25.

Schofield’s Heather coach is none other than NCAA career scoring leader Danielle Fotopoulos. The previous state record of 228 goals was set in 1994 by Robin Confer, a member of the Heather’s 1994 and 1995 national championship teams. Conferís record was broken in 1997 by Andi Sellers of Satellite Beach with 230 goals. Sellers is one of Schofield’s teammates on the Heather.

Schofield is considering college offers from the University of Connecticut, Auburn, Florida State and Loyola Baltimore. She completed her high school career with an FHSAA mark of 238 goals. That total places her second on the national list. Erin Martin of Temple City, Calif. scored 286 in 1991 to top the list.

 Jeremy Rasmussen is a correspondent for the St. Petersburg Times, covering high school and college soccer in the Tampa Bay area.

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