Chapin boys, girls shoot for rare feat:‘Incredible’ back-to-back soccer titles

The Chapin soccer program made school history last season by winning boys’ and girls’ state titles in the same season.

This year, the Eagle programs can join a select few in South Carolina High School League history by winning back-to-back titles Friday at Irmo High School. The Chapin girls face South Aiken, while the boys take on Eastside.

Chapin won in Class 3A this past season and is playing in Class 4A this season after realignment.

If both teams win, Chapin will join Riverside and Bishop England as the only programs to win consecutive titles in both boys and girls soccer. The Bishop England boys and girls won five straight titles from 2005-09.

“Having the chance to go back-to-back with the girls is incredible and tough to describe,” Chapin boys coach Ben Bosco said. “Any experience is more enjoyable when you have more people to share it with. And both programs have that.”

Bosco and Chapin girls coach Bob Taylor said the teams have a great relationship. The girls team helped with the boys pregame meal before the lower state title game.

And both teams get great support from the student section, which made last year’s championships feel like Chapin home games.

“We’ve got a great student body and hope to drum up some more support (Friday),” Taylor said. “We get a big boost when we have big support from Eagle nation.”

With both teams returning several key players from last year’s championship squads, getting back to this spot isn’t a big surprise. They each won Region 5-4A titles and have been dominant in the postseason.

The Chapin girls have outscored their opponents 19-0 in four playoff games, while the boys have a 23-1 margin.

“There is an expectation for both teams they were supposed to be here and that we are both supposed to win,” Bosco said. “We both want the best for each other.”

The game will be the last for Bosco, who is leaving coaching to take a job in the insurance field in Tennessee. He told his team midway through the season of his decision and said the players have responded well.

On the girls team, Taylor said the team chemistry might be the best he’s had since he started coaching. The team stayed together when it lost all-Midlands selection Mackenzie Hooker, who missed several games because of injuries sustained in a car accident.

But the team got a boost when she returned, bouncing back from a pair of late-season losses to Lexington and River Bluff.

“Not where we want to be late in the season, but we are getting there,” Taylor said. “You always want to be known as the best, and getting back here was an attainable goal. Now, we just have to finish.”

This story was originally published May 11, 2017 at 9:46 PM with the headline "Chapin boys, girls shoot for rare feat:‘Incredible’ back-to-back soccer titles."