Panthers Get Sweet Revenge, Win 1st Title
A year ago the Potomac Falls Boys Soccer team left the Radford, Virginia area feeling as low as they could possibly feel. Knowing they most likely had the best team in the state, they returned on the long 4 hour bus ride up Interstate 81 with nothing but heartache and shattered dreams. 365 days later, the story has come full circle. On Saturday, Potomac Falls claimed its first Group AA Division 5 Soccer State Championship with a win over the same team that prematurely sent them home last year, the Blacksburg Indians.
The Panthers won 2-1 in a close game against an Indians squad that has won 8 state titles in their school's history. In what should have been considered a home game for Blacksburg's powerhouse soccer program, Potomac Falls stole the show and the state championship and guaranteed themselves the best 4-hour bus ride any high school athlete could ever dream of.
Potomac Falls reached the State Championship by beating Dulles District foe Heritage for the 4th time on Friday 2-1. Blacksburg turned the tables on Jefferson Forest High School by beating them 1-0 after falling to them twice this season.
This is the 5th State Championship for Potomac Falls High School since it opened in 1996 and the first for the boys soccer program and head coach Dave Gryder.
Other Finals and Scores from the New River Valley.
Boys Group AA Soccer
Potomac Falls 2 Blacksburg 1 Final
Girls Group AA Soccer
Charlottesville 2 Hidden Valley 3 Final
Boys Group A Soccer
Clarke County 2 Stonewall Jackson 1 Final
Girls Group A Soccer
Clarke County 1 Radford 0 Final
Group AA Baseball
Tunstall 0 Turner Ashby 5 Final
Group A Baseball
Goochland 4 Grayson County 3 Final
Group AA Softball
Dan River 3 Powhatan 2 Final
Group A Softball
James River 4 Essex 3 Final in 8 innings
Group AA Boys Tennis
Hidden Valley 4 Loudon County 5 Final
Group A Boys Tennis
Radford 2 George Mason 5 Final
Group AA Girls Tennis
Hidden Valley 0 Jamestown 5 Final
Group A Girls Tennis
Gate City 5 George Mason 2 Final
