NCISAA Update: Providence Day field hockey, Latin tennis crowned state champs
Miki Osherow turned toward the stands and gave Providence Day fans the No. 1 signal.
There were still 10 seconds left in the Chargers’ state championship field hockey game Saturday against visiting Charlotte Country Day, but the outcome was obvious.
After more than two decades of near-misses, the Chargers had finally broken through. They were N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association champions.
Behind a solid defensive effort and a pair of first-half goals, Providence Day blanked Charlotte Country Day 2-0, earning the school’s first-ever field hockey state crown and capping an undefeated season.
“It feels so, so good to see us win this championship,” said Osherow, who has coached Chargers’ field hockey for 21 years, the last 13 as head coach. “These girls worked so hard for this.”
The CISAA has owned the state field hockey championship during the past decade, winning nine of those 10 years. Charlotte Latin had five titles and Charlotte Country Day three more.
Providence Day came close, losing the championship game in overtime last year to Charlotte Country Day and finishing second in 2016 and 2017.
The Chargers (12-0) left little doubt this time.
They dominated play, controlling the ball for about two-thirds of the 60 minutes. When the Bucs (7-5) threatened, the Chargers made big plays on defense. Sophomore goalkeeper Elizabeth Tegeler got the shutout, making two big saves midway through the second quarter, when her team was clinging to a 1-0 lead.
Leading the offense was senior Grace Stokes, with a goal and an assist.
Her pass to Emily Ritchie resulted in the Chargers’ first goal, just four minutes into the game. Then, with about 3:30 remaining in the second quarter, Stokes stole the ball and raced downfield on a breakaway, beating Buccaneers’ goalkeeper Zella Thomas.
Stokes and Ritchie led the offense all season. Stokes finished with 12 goals and eight assists, and Ritchie scored 11 goals.
“Our offense played very well in the first half, but not so much in the second half,” Osherow said. “I’m not sure … perhaps they were being too careful, wanting to hold on to the lead. But the defense really did the job all game long.”
THREEE WHO MATTERED
Grace Stokes, Providence Day: Stokes, a junior, had a goal and an assist.
Leah Horwitz, Providence Day: Another junior forward, Horwitz was near the Charlotte Country Day goal throughout the game, setting up several shots for Stokes and Emily Ritchie.
Zella Thomas, Charlotte Country Day: Thomas had a strong game in goal. She is a sophomore and leads a large group of returning players for the Buccaneers.
WORTH MENTIONING
▪ Miki Osherow grew emotional after the game, talking about the sadness she felt that her father, Bill Bingham, wasn’t there to see it. Bingham died suddenly in September, and Osherow said he was among the Chargers’ biggest fans. “He would have loved to see this,” Osherow said.
▪ Four of Charlotte Country Day’s five losses this season were to Providence Day.
▪ The Buccaneers became the first team this year to shut out Providence Day in the second half.
▪ Don’t look for either team to falter next season. Providence Day has 21 of 25 players returning. And Charlotte Country Day returns 16 of its 24 players.
THEY SAID IT
“We started working on this in April. There were a lot of practices, a lot of effort. --
Providence Day senior Grace Stokes..
Charlotte Latin repeats in tennis
The Charlotte Latin Hawks won a repeat N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association girls tennis championship, beating rival Providence Day 5-2 at home Saturday.
Charlotte Latin won three of the four singles matches and two of three in doubles to secure the title.
Doubles Results
Chloe Floyd/Nina Lavelle (CL) d Michelle Yang/Natasha Singh (PD) 8-2
Kate Coppage/Moné Cary (CL) d Molly Kerrigan/Brandon Ackerman (PD) 8-3
Kelsey Caldwell/Christine Schumer (PD) d Annabel Chen/Mayes Fisher (CL) 9-8 (7-5)
Singles Results
Michelle Yang (PD) d Kate Coppage 6-1, 6-1
Nina Lavelle (CL) d Molly Kerrigan, 6-1, 6-1
Chloe Floyd (CL) d Kelsey Caldwell 6-1, 6-2
Mayes Fisher (CL) d McKenzie Rose Eason 6-2, 1-6, 1-0 (5)
Volleyball: Gaston Day falls in final
Gaston Day’s volleyball team met Caldwell Academy in the 2A state finals Saturday. Both teams came in unbeaten.
Caldwell Academy won the title 3-0, winning games 25-20, 25-17 and 25-20. Caldwell Academy finished the season 20-0. Gaston Day ended at 11-1.
Cross-Country: multiple area champions named
▪ Charlotte Latin’s girls won the 4A state championship with 66 points total, just ahead of Country Day (70). Providence Day (79) was third.
Charlotte Country Day’s Kasey Cone ran a time of 18:46.1 to win the individual state championship.
▪ Providence Day’s Christian Landis won the boys 4A championship, running 15:26, well ahead of Cary Academy’s Kenny Eheman (15:34.5).
▪ Raleigh Trinity Academy won the 2A girls state final with a total score of 79, well ahead of Westchester Country Day (100) and Thales Academy Apex (118).
▪ Davidson Day’s boys won the 2A boys state final with a total score of 90. Trinity School of Durham (130) was second an Thales Academy Apex (133) was third.
Meet Results from NCISAA finals
Girls Golf NCISAA finals recap
Cannon School’s Amanda Sambach won her third straight N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association state golf championship Monday at the Bryan Park Golf Course in Greensboro.
Sambach, a senior committed to Virginia, shot a 5-under 67 to win by four strokes over Wesleyan Christian’s Gabriela Cruz. North Raleigh Christian’s Kiera Bartholomew (73) was third.
North Raleigh Christian won the team championship with a total score of 228. Durham Academy (236) was second and Wesleyan Christian (242) was third. Cannon, the three-time reigning state champion, finished fourth (243).
▪ Sambach has been named to the American Junior Golf Association Scholastic All-American team. The award for is players who have a minimum test score of 1,450 (SAT), 33 (ACT) and a minimum weighted GPA of 3.75 on a 4.0 scale or a minimum weighted GPA of 4.5 on a 4.0 scale.
▪ In Division II, Alexsandra Lapple of the O’Neal School shot an even-par 72 to win the state title. She finished ahead of Pungo Christian’s Grayson Warren and Wayne Country Day’s Karsyn Roberts, who tied for second at 73. St. David’s Kinsley Smith (76) was fourth.
Wayne Country Day (231) won the team title, ahead of The O’Neal School (242) and Forsyth Country Day (266).
NCISAA Fall Sports Scores/Schedules
BOYS SOCCER
CLASS 4A
Quarterfinal round
West (Saturday)
Carmel Christian 1, Charlotte Latin 0
Rabun Gap 4, Providence Day 0
East (Friday)
Ravenscroft 1, Cary Academy 0
Wesleyan Christian 1, Durham Academy 0
Tuesday’s semifinals
Wesleyan Christian (4-7) at Carmel Christian (12-1)
Rabun Gap (12-2) at Ravenscroft (7-1)
CLASS 3A
Saturday’s state final
Calvary Day 1, Concord Academy 0
CLASS 2A
Saturday’s state final
Westchester Country Day 3, Fayetteville Academy 2
CLASS 1A
Saturday’s state final
Greenfield School 7, Sanford Grace Christian 0
Field hockey
Saturday’s state final
Providence Day 2, Charlotte Country Day 0
Girls’ tennis
Saturday’s state finals
CLASS 4A
Charlotte Latin 5, Providence Day 2
CLASS 3A
Asheville School 5, Cape Fear Academy 2
CLASS 2A
Trinity Academy (6-1) at Trinity School of Durham-Chapel Hill (9-1)
CLASS 1A
Oakwood School 5, Lawrence Academy 3
Volleyball
CLASS 4A
Quarterfinals
West (Saturday)
Cannon School def. Covenant Day 3-0
Charlotte Country Day def. Providence Day 3-0
East (Friday)
North Raleigh Christian def. Wesleyan Christian 3-0
Durham Academy def. Wake Christian 3-1
Tuesday’s semifinals
Durham Academy (8-1) at Cannon School (9-1)
Charlotte Country Day (10-2) at North Raleigh Christian (15-1)
CLASS 3A
Saturday’s state final
Asheville Christian def. Cary Christian 3-2
CLASS 2A
Saturday’s state final
Caldwell Academy def. Gaston Day 3-0
CLASS 1A
Saturday’s state final
Lee Christian def. Kerr-Vance Academy 3-0
This story was originally published October 18, 2020 at 8:17 PM.
