Fayette

County's soccer dominance got the recognition it

deserved on Saturday as McIntosh and Starr's Mill

high schools' boys and girls soccer teams won

state soccer championships in their

classifications.

The

four teams were all ranked number one in their

classifications for most, if not all, of the

season, and now finish the season perched at the

top.

The

Starr's Mill Lady Panthers (19-2) started the day

full of soccer with a win over Marist. This was

the third consecutive trip to the state finals

for the Lady Panthers and their second

consecutive championship. Starr's Mill faced

Marist three times this year, including last

year's state championship game, and won all three

games. The 5-2 victory on Saturday was a sign of

the Lady Panthers' defensive and offensive

balance.

Starr's

Mill's boys faced Heritage after the girls game

and won by a score of 2-1. The game went into

overtime, but the Panthers were used to it,

having had to go into overtime several times on

their path to a state title. In fact, Starr's

Mill had faced Heritage earlier in the season and

had lost in overtime. The Panthers' victory

snapped a 20-game winning streak by Heritage and

secured the state title that the team had been

working toward during the past two seasons.

McIntosh's

boys faced Parkview on Saturday afternoon and won

season and did not lose all year to a AAAA

opponent. Their two losses came to the Starr's

Mill Panthers and a team from Oklahoma in a

tournament held at McIntosh.

The

Chiefs had an excellent season with Beau Balesky

cementing his place as the leading goal scorer in

school history and several players signing to

play for some top collegiate programs in the

fall. It was also the first year that the team

was coached by Samuel "Bunky" Colvin.

Colvin was an assistant to Jeff Ford, who stepped

down as head coach last year.

The

McIntosh Lady Chiefs are sharing their state

championship with Pope. The two teams were still

deadlocked at one goal each after two overtimes.

It was the second year in a row that Pope has

shared the AAAA championship.

For

the Lady Chiefs, a state championship was the

ultimate goal. They marched through the season

unbeaten and ranked number one in the state and

in the National Soccer Coaches of America

Association poll. The wins came against top

programs from all around the country, including

the Starr's Mill Lady Panthers.

Next

year, both schools will most likely be playing in

the new state classification, 4-AAAAA.

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