The girls soccer team was recently awarded the Pinnacle Award, one of the most reputable awards in high school sports. Only 49 high school teams received this honor for the season in the entire country, making it even more meaningful. To be eligible for the Pinnacle Award, teams must meet certain criteria. First, the players on the team must have a collective average GPA of at least 3.25. Second, the team can’t receive a red card during the season, and they must have minimal yellow cards. Finally, the team must have a win-percentage of at least 75 percent. The Wildcats won 11 out of their 13 games last season, securing a win percentage of 84. They were the only school in the state of Virginia to qualify for the award by meeting all of the requirements.

   The girls soccer team is off to an impressive start to the 2022 season, compiling eight wins in the first 10 matches. What makes this even more impressive is that they have faced five recent state champions, giving them a great test to see how they stack up against the best teams in the area. Head Coach Steven Chapman said that with the team’s difficult competition to start the season, their main goal is to continuously improve throughout the season. 

   “Our major team goal is to play better this week than we did last week,” Chapman said. “We want every player to improve their technical and tactical skills each week, and we want the team to play better.”

   Despite the team’s impressive start, Chapman knows they still have a lot of room for improvement. 

   “We need to be more dangerous in the final-third of the field, the chance creation phase,” Chapman said. “We also need to be better at finishing the chances we have at the goal; we can’t afford to miss the simple or easy opportunities. I am confident that the team will continue to improve in this area, and that our goal-scorers will come through for the team.”

   Chapman said that he doesn’t believe being the only school in the state to win the Pinnacle Award puts a target on the team’s back. However, he realizes that other teams view our school as a threat, as they are consistently one of the top teams in the area.