2026 Soccer Recap

Wando girls get revenge on Mann in girls AAAAA Division I finals

After losing to J.L. Mann in the state finals last spring, Wando girls soccer coach Shannon Champ predicted that her young team would find its way back into contention in 2026.

Those young Warriors did just that and then some. Wando met Mann for the AAAAA Division I state championship on May 23 in Columbia and found a way to win a tightly-contested contest.

The game went through two 10-minute overtime periods and two more golden goal sudden deaths sessions still tied 1-1.



On to penalty kicks, with the kicks tied at two, Wando’s Avery Setters knocked in a third goal. Madeline Sheppard followed with a stop of Caroline Ray’s shot, sending Wando into a wild celebration.

Sheppard is the unlikely hero of the championship, having been a keeper for two weeks. She replaced starter Camryn Carras two weeks ago when Carras was injured and deemed out for the season.

“Maddie stepped up and everyone rallied around her to give her the confidence that she could do it,” Champ said.

Though each team had several scoring chances, neither could score in regulation. Less than a minute into the first overtime, Wando’s Kiera Jenkins found the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.

That lead appeared to be enough to win but the Patriots’ Emilyn Kneeland tied the contest with a minute left in the overtime.

“The game went about as we expected,” Champ said. “Usually these types of games are low-scoring so you just try to not make the big mistake. Our girls were confident but we knew the other team would be ready to play.”

The championship was Wando’s 14 th in school history and Champ now has 10 titles as the head coach.

Underdog Clover upsets top-ranked Wando in boys soccer

Not many outside of the Clover High soccer community felt their Blue Eagles could upset the top-ranked team in the state, Wando, in the AAAAA Division I state championship game.

Games are not played on paper and desire and intensity cannot be measured. Clover sufferedthrough a three-hour rain delay and went to overtime before Evan Trubilio’s goal in the second overtime proved to be the gme-winner, 1-0.

The loss ended Wando’s winning streak at 23. The Warriors lost their opener and their finale.Wando played shirt-handed in the later stages if the game after red cards sent two players to the bench.

For Clover, coach Todd Sykes felt all along that his 2026 team could be a contender but realized things had to go their way. His team was not intimidated by the powerhouse.

‘They were super confident going into the finals,” said Sykes, who is in his second season as head coach but has 27 years experience coaching in Clover’s club program, ‘We had not alloweda goal through the playoffs and we had nine clean sheets during the season. We knew we couldhang with them but we just couldn’t give up an early goal. We did great scouting to help usprepare for how they play. These boys have all played a high level through club for many years so they knew what it would take.’

Clover won 16 games last year and had decent experience returning. As the team learned to play as one, there were some losses along the way. But Sykes saw his team gradually turn the corner.

“We knew we had the ability to play with anyone coming into this year; he said. ‘We were young and we just needed the time to come into our own and play our style. The goal from the beginning of the season was to make it to the finals. We were very good but we needed a little t ime to gel. We played a very tough schedule so we took sme losses. But we learned from each loss and things started to come together over the last 10 games (9 wins).’

Eastside overcomes Chapin in PK’s to win AAAAA Division 11 boys soccer title

Weather played its usual role in the 2026 SCHSL state championship games on May 21-23 at Memorial Stadium. If it wasn’t too hot or humid, it was storming and dropping tons of rain. By the time the final whistle had blown, it was 1:40 a.m. Sunday morning. That final contest, the Division II-AAAAA finals, saw Eastside beat Chapin, 1-1(3-2 on penalty kicks) after 30 minutes of overtime.

Eastside keeper Brandon Jaramillo proved to be the hero in penalty kicks, swatting away successive attempts Eastside then got goals from Frazor Kazian and Hunter Kazian to complete the win.

‘These boys have so much heart and determination and I never count them out,” Eastside coach Steven Wood. “I think the region we play in and the schedule we play prepares us for something like this.”

Eastside has won seven state titles but this is the first since 2022. Chapin ended the season with an 18-5 record and all five losses came in penalty kicks.

“I hate it for these guys because they do everything we want them to do,’ Chapin coach Bob Taylor said.

Despite the long delay in starting, both teams seemed fresh and aggressive early. In the 16th minute, Eastsides Ryder Martin headed in a pass from Asher Wilson for a 1-0 lead.

Later in the half, Chapin got the equalizer on a penalty kick by Lucas Rogers. In the penalty kick phase, Chapin led 2-1 after successful kicks from Sam Szarkawski and Cole Keys. Chapin keeper Cooper Hughes made two saves and Chapin had the momentum. But, Jaramillo rose to the occasion and stymied Chapin’s chances. His clincher was off the foot of Gabe Salisbury.

Chapin girls finally finish the job; win AAAAA Division II title

      After some near misses since winning a state title in 2016, Chapin girls soccer coach Chad Bridges had to wonder if his program would even ascend back to the top. But, the coach had faith.

      That faith in his team proved to be strong as Chapin ended their drought with a 4-0 win over Eastside. The Eagles allowed just nine goals all season and ended the season on a 14-game winning streak.

Chapin lost to Eastside in overtime last season and lost to Clover in the finals of 2024.

Faith became the mantra of the season and the team bought in.

“Our motivational word was faith,: he said. “I feel that word accommodates a lot of what we dealt with this year. It was the first time in five years that we had not win our region. I knew we had a good team but we did have to replace five starters and eight seniors. We had some girlswho didn’t play much in the past have tp step up.”

Chapin got an early goal from Sydney Stoner, on a header, in the 14th minute set the tone andChapin was clearly the more aggressive team offensively.

Two minutes later, Avery Stoner found the goal, and then added a second score five minuteslater. Comfortably in control, Chapin methodically controlled possession and thwarted any possible Eastside goals. Chapin’s last goal came from Liz Kujawa in the 56th minute.

The start of the championship was delayed by about four hours as bad weather moved in but the delay had no ill effects on Chapin.

“It’s good to get here because that shows where your program is, but to win it gets you over thevhill,” said Bridges. ‘I’m so glad these girls get to see the other side and what it means to win astate championship/ It is very satisfying and I’m so happy for the girls.’

A.C Flora repeats as AAAA girls champ

For the second straight season, the A.C. Flora girls soccer program edged Bishop England to clai the AAAA state championship.

The contest was tied 1-1 after regulation and overtimes, but the Falcons won the penally kick shootout, 5-3. Keeper Kennedy Bagley was the defensive hero in the win while Rachel Britt provided the clinching score in penalty kicks.

“It’s been a crazy season with so many ups and downs,” Flora coach Eric Navarro said. “Being able to see their efforr and focus throughout the match was special for me as their coach.

OCA wins sixth consecutive title

At some point, but not likely soon, a school will beat Oceanside Collegiate’s girls soccer team in a state championship venue.

For now, the rest of the state, whether it’s Class AA or AAA, can only sit back and marvel at the excellence on display. The latest victim was St. Joseph’s Catholic of Greenville. The teams met for the AAA state title on May 21 at Memorial Stadium in Columbia.

St. Joe’s is another highly successful program and has won state championships before so many felt this matchup could be interesting. OCA scored two goals in each half on their way to a 4-0 wiin, their 17 th victory of the season. It was the sixth consecutive state championship under coach Mark Meyer at the school.

“There’s no magic,” he said. “We have very talented players who take the game very seriously. They work hard at it. They condition themselves to be the stronger team. They are a very competitive group and it just carries over from year to year.”

The Landsharks made 1-0 with a goal from Sarah Ligon, a freshman, who scored 23 minutes into the contest. The Landsharks dominated possession and kept the flow of the match in control. In the 38 th minute, Ligon again found the back of the net off an assist from Ava Klein.

By halftime, it felt the end result was inevitable as OCA continued with their possession and

took several quality shots. Hailiey Piesner, a junior captain, made it 3-0 in the 54 th minute. Senior

captain Ella Petry put the finishing touches on her outstanding career with a goal late in the

contest

Academic Magnet sweeps AA soccer titles

When it comes to academic prowess and soccer success, few schools do it was well as its done at Academic Magnet school.

For years, the school has been recognized as one of the top academic schools in the country. Now, the soccer program is making a name for itself.

Both the boys and girls teams played in the Class AA state championship in May 21 in Columbia And, as expected, both teams defended the titles they won a year ago with relative ease.

The girls team knocked off Andrew Jackson, 5-0,, their 23 rd win of the season. The Title was the program’s seventh and coach Alstair Delong has won four as head coach.

“We’re very relaxed and focused for every game,” the coach said. “We have some veteran players who do a good job leading us. Once the game starts we were pretty loose. Today was just had a edge.

“We didn’t know a lot about them and we may have started a little slow. But we got loose and

got going.”

Sophomore Bridget Lee was certainly relaxed as she score Magnet’s first three goals, giving her 27 goals this season. Hannah Collins added a goal and sophomore Kamya Pham closed out the scoring.

Jason Hamil is a fixture on the sidelines of the boys team and led his Raptors to a seventh state

title. The boys team beat Buford 3-1. Like the girls team, the boys program has high expectations and winning championships is part of the entire school experience.

“The way I see it is a athlete doesn’t have to take a back seat academically,’ he said. “We know why these kids are here but we want to help them in every aspect. Soccer is a good teacher.’

Cesr Ramirez got the Raptors on the board first, splitting two defenders for an easy goal. The score remained 1-0 at halftime but Buford scored quickly to start the second half.

Magnet regained the lead mid-way through the half as Jaidon Daley headed in a long throw in from Blake Yarborough for a 2-1 lead.

With time running out, Ramirez tacked on a goal for the final margin.

Powdersville leaves no doubt in Class AAA boys soccer

– For most of the 2026 soccer season, defending state champion Powdersville and two-time defending Lower State champion Oceanside Collegiate were considered the heavy favorites to reach the AAA state finals. Neither team disappointed.

However, once the finals arrived it was Powdersville that proved once again to be the top dog. And it was impressive.

The Patriots scored early and oftenin posting a 6-1 win with senior Brody Pike accounting for

five goals in his final high school game.

“As a coach I never expect anything. I hope we play our best and if we do or we don’t we will ultimately get what we deserve.” coach Jeremy McCall said. “In watching film I thought that Oceanside had a strong team, obviously to be back into the state championship game. I thought if we played well we would have a chance to win. Ultimately having a player (Brody Pike) score 5 goals is something that you never expect in a match much less the state championship game.”

McCall states the obvious when he says he had a wealth of talent on this year’s team. But he also feels strongly that it takes more than talent to win the biggest games. This team, he says, had the great intangibles.

“ The strengths of this team was the bond and love that they all have for each other. You hear the term “brotherhood” used often but this group is definitely different than any other group I have ever coached. They truly love one another and I like to say that is what make us different. 

“There are countless stories of things that this group did off the field to help a teammate out that might be going through a tough situation to pick them up and pat them on the back or even just say you know what, give me that burden, you don’t worry about it. That is what makes this group special and their love for one another was the strength of this team. “

           If there is a rebuilding year coming, it could be next year. Then again, maybe not. The team had 11 seniors this season, leaving many holes to fill. However, the junior varsity team was 28-3-2 over the last two seasons.

Hardeeville nabs state soccer title

In only their second year as a school, Hardeeville High can claim the title of state champion. Hardeeville defeated defending state champion Dixie, 3-2 in the 2026. class A state finals in May. The win avenged a loss to Dixie in last yea’rs finals.

 Hardeeville ended the season on a nine game winning streak

With the score tied at two into the second overtime, freshman Caden Mitchell delivered the game-winnung goal and the defense made it stand over the final minutes 

Fabian Ramirez had the assist on Mitchell’s goal and also scored Hardeeville’s first goal on a penalty kick in the first half Dixie would.not go away and tied the contest before halftime and took a 2-1 lead early in the second half Hardeeville got the equalizer on a goal from Efrain Tinoco.

Tinoco and Ramirez were named all state as was Jayden Cruz

Hardeeville head coach Misael Garzon is in his first season at the school, coming over from May River. He was confident his team would perform in the final

'They say ‘if you come at the king, you best not miss’ and that’s what the boys did tonight. It speaks to the determination, they wanted to come back here, they wanted to win. When we found out it was Dixie, they wanted this match, they wanted revenge. They wanted to show that last year was a fluke and that this year we were going to earn it and we did.”