Wando Girls Get Payback In AAAAA Division I State Title Game

By David Shelton

Senior Writer -

Columbia — After losing to J.L. Mann in last spring’s state final, Wando girls soccer coach Shannon Champ said her young team would be back in 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 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. “That’s a lot of pressure and rose up big time.”

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. You know when you get to this point, the other team is going to be good. 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.

“Everyone is special and this team worked so hard to get this,” Champ said. “We graduate five seniors and we had 11 juniors. We feel like we are set to do it again if all goes well.”