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DULUTH — Rob Husted’s eyes lit up when he saw who the Greenbrier girls soccer team would be facing in the GHSA Class 5A State Championship. Three years ago, the Wolfpack’s head coach and his squad got blown out by Chamblee in the title game. So when he saw that they’d be facing the Bulldogs once again, he knew he'd make sure his team would be ready for the moment.
From the opening kick, Greenbrier was on the attack. Their relentlessness offensively resulted in scoring their first goal before Chamblee attempted a shot on goal. Defensively, the Wolfpack were stifling both with their ability to retain possession of the ball and in protecting the goal.
When the final buzzer sounded, it would be the Greenbrier who’d walk away with a 3-0 victory against Chamblee to be crowned state champions. Not only was the victory sweet because of the revenge factor, but it also made Husted’s team the first Columbia County girls soccer team to win a GHSA state title.
“Relief, excitement, jubilation, I mean there’s so many emotions right now that I’ve never experienced at this stage,” Husted said after the win. “That revenge is something we talked about as a staff. When we were looking at the brackets, we were going man, this is stacking up the way we want it.”
“We had a tough battle four years ago, and to get this game, yes it’s high emotion, but we knew it was coming,” Dallas Dickerson, an assistant coach for Greenbrier, added. “We knew it from day one. The grit, the grind, the process and trust that we were getting here.”
The Wolfpack’s offense was powered in large part by senior Aaliyah Silver. She’d finish the game with two goals scored on the way to earning Championship Game MVP honors. Silver had been the main offensive engine throughout the entire season for Greenbrier.
She led the team with 21 total goals, which included four in the postseason. Silver was also on the 2023 team that lost to this same Chamblee program. Coming into the match, she wanted to leave it all out on the field in her final high school game.
“It was really important [to leave an imprint] because I really wanted to end my high school career on a good note,” Silver said. “I feel like today, that’s what we did.”
While Silver and other seniors on the team will be graduating, many key contributors will be returning next season. Junior Arianna Boone, who scored a goal in the championship game, will be coming back. Freshman Murphy Larkin has been dominant as a goalie for the Wolfpack and was a key reason why they were even able to make it to the title match.
Husted and his squad were able to get their revenge and earned a shiny trophy along with it. Now that they’ve broken through and they have a squad that only promises to be better from it, it isn’t a matter of if they’ll win another championship for Husted, but when.
“We’ve got a dynasty brewing,” Husted said. “The future is really bright. At this point now, we have to look at it and say anything less than a trophy is a letdown.”
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Greenbrier girls soccer win GHSA 5A State Championship
Continue reading...
From the opening kick, Greenbrier was on the attack. Their relentlessness offensively resulted in scoring their first goal before Chamblee attempted a shot on goal. Defensively, the Wolfpack were stifling both with their ability to retain possession of the ball and in protecting the goal.
When the final buzzer sounded, it would be the Greenbrier who’d walk away with a 3-0 victory against Chamblee to be crowned state champions. Not only was the victory sweet because of the revenge factor, but it also made Husted’s team the first Columbia County girls soccer team to win a GHSA state title.
“Relief, excitement, jubilation, I mean there’s so many emotions right now that I’ve never experienced at this stage,” Husted said after the win. “That revenge is something we talked about as a staff. When we were looking at the brackets, we were going man, this is stacking up the way we want it.”
“We had a tough battle four years ago, and to get this game, yes it’s high emotion, but we knew it was coming,” Dallas Dickerson, an assistant coach for Greenbrier, added. “We knew it from day one. The grit, the grind, the process and trust that we were getting here.”
The Wolfpack’s offense was powered in large part by senior Aaliyah Silver. She’d finish the game with two goals scored on the way to earning Championship Game MVP honors. Silver had been the main offensive engine throughout the entire season for Greenbrier.
She led the team with 21 total goals, which included four in the postseason. Silver was also on the 2023 team that lost to this same Chamblee program. Coming into the match, she wanted to leave it all out on the field in her final high school game.
“It was really important [to leave an imprint] because I really wanted to end my high school career on a good note,” Silver said. “I feel like today, that’s what we did.”
While Silver and other seniors on the team will be graduating, many key contributors will be returning next season. Junior Arianna Boone, who scored a goal in the championship game, will be coming back. Freshman Murphy Larkin has been dominant as a goalie for the Wolfpack and was a key reason why they were even able to make it to the title match.
Husted and his squad were able to get their revenge and earned a shiny trophy along with it. Now that they’ve broken through and they have a squad that only promises to be better from it, it isn’t a matter of if they’ll win another championship for Husted, but when.
“We’ve got a dynasty brewing,” Husted said. “The future is really bright. At this point now, we have to look at it and say anything less than a trophy is a letdown.”
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Greenbrier girls soccer win GHSA 5A State Championship
Continue reading...
