Chapin wins state title in girls lacrosse; several other sports win region titles

Chapin – It took a few years but the Chapin High girls lacrosse team finally returned to the top spot in Class AAAAA.

Chapin (18-2) defeated Fort Mill, 13-4, to win the AAAAA state championship. It was their first title since winning in 2019, though the program remained one of the top contenders every year. On their way to the championship, Chapin defeated two-time defending state champion Wando in the Lower State finals. Their win over Fort Mill was their second this season, having defeated the Upper State champs during the regular season.

“These girls have worked so hard for this, for four years, and to see it come to fruition is amazing,” Chapin coach Raven Thomas said. “We knew we were state champions as soon as the open season started. We purposely played the toughest schedule we’ve ever seen so that every game would be just as hard as the state finals.

“We’ve been cut short so many times before there was nothing that was going to get in this team’s way today, We went out to win every quarter.”

Senior Ava Grace Collins scored three goals in the championship, finishing this season with 96 goals and 25 assists. She is considered the top AAAAA player in the state.

“This feels so amazing, to be able to accomplish this with my best friends,” Collins said. “We have been working so hard for this. It feels surreal. Just so proud of every player because they work so hard too.”

Brooke Holmes also scored three times, all in the first half, to finish her season with 77 goals and 22 assists. Senior Jules Brown scored four times in the second half and finished the season with 70 goals and a team-high 40 assists.

“After we beat Wando we knew that we could win today,” Brown said. “We came into this game really confident because we had beaten them in season. Confidence came a very long way for us this year. We knew that if we played the way we played on Tuesday (vs. Wando) we were unstoppable. We finally did it.”

Chapin’s baseball and softball teams each won the region 4-AAAAA championship this season. Both, however, are coming through the loser’s bracket in the playoffs. The softball team suffered an upset loss to Cane Bay, 2-0, in their playoff opener. The baseball team lost a second-round game to West Ashley. Both teams were still alive at presstime.

The boys and girls soccer teams also won region titles.

The boys team lost in the second-round of the playoffs to J.L. Mann. Junior Wyatt Jordan led the team with 15 goals this season.

The girls team advanced to a third-round matchup with defending state champion Wando on May 4, Chapin carried a 21-2-2 record into that contest.

Senior Darcy Ahern scored 25 goals with 18 assists this season while sophomore Lila Bowers added 24 goals and 14 assists.