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Highland routs Virginia Episcopal, 18-9, to win state lacrosse championship,
The Highland School Hawks were the six-time Virginia Independent Schools Division II boys lacrosse state runners-up.
They truncated that title Saturday.
Now, they’re simply State Champions.
Second-seeded Highland upset No. 1 Virginia Episcopal School, 18-9, in Saturday’s state final at Grover Jones Field in Richmond, ending a streak of six consecutive losses in the championship game.
“It’s a big monkey off our back,” junior attackman Brendon McCann said. “We’re not the team that lost six-straight anymore. We’re the team that won the last one.
“We knew it was lucky No. 7.”
McCann first celebrated with five seconds left in the game by launching the ball in the air. Later, the Hawks doused coach Kevin Helmick with ice water.
That wasn’t a shock to Helmick’s nervous system, though. He said he spent most of the day numb, anyway.
“I don’t think I felt anything until about the fourth quarter. I was a little nervous,” Helmick said. “Just apprehension. You play in seven state championships in a row, you lose six of them, you start to wonder if you’re cursed.”
While Helmick was anxious, the game’s outcome wasn’t in question after the first quarter. VES (14-4) narrowed its deficit to 4-2 after falling behind 3-0, but it never got closer to Highland (16-4).
Emery Hanback set up Josh Nichols for a goal with 1 minute, 40 seconds left in the first quarter. Then, Sam Cook made one of many one-on-one saves, which sparked a quick transition goal by McCann.
Hanback capped the quarter with a goal 2.6 seconds before the buzzer, scoring on a long pass to the goal face by Nichols. That gave Highland a 7-3 lead, sealing the championship for all intents and purposes.
“This is sort of the cherry on top,” Helmick said. “We do good things at Highland. We’ve got a very competitive team, we’ve got great kids, we’ve got everything we can ask for. Now we’ve got a championship to kind of crown off all our hard work.”
Hanback was the unlikely MVP of the final with five goals and one assist. The sophomore midfielder had been overshadowed by Highland’s attackmen most of the season.
“He certainly saved his best for the biggest day,” Helmick said. “I’m glad that his coming out party was today because it should be a big confidence builder for him.”
McCann, meanwhile, added five goals and two assists, while Nichols had three goals and three assists and Will Garrett had two goals and two assists.
“I don’t know who I would have picked as a MVP. Just too many guys,” Helmick said.
Goalie Sam Cook (21 saves) and plenty of Highland defenders were deserving, too...
See the Wednesday print edition of the Fauquier Times-Democrat for the complete story.
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