It was a day of firsts for Class A-Division I as the Model girls and Armuchee boys won program-first championships Tuesday at McEachern.
Class A Division I – Boys – Armuchee 4, Thomasville 3
It took a hat trick from senior Gabe DeHart for Armuchee to pull ahead of Thomasville, earning DeHart the Wendy’s MVP Honors.
Armuchee went ahead 1-0 on an own goal by Thomasville in the first half. The Indians trailed after back-to-back goals from Gia Ulloa at 29:33 and 17:01 in the first half. DeHart scored with 31 seconds left in the first half and with 32:51 left in the second half to put Armuchee ahead 3-2. Thomasville tied the match with a goal at 22:29, setting up DeHart’s game-winning goal with 19:51 left.
“I almost don’t have the words… our kids have just worked so hard all year long,” head coach Jason Park told Jeff Gable after the victory.
Armuchee capped a 15-5 season with playoff victories against Bleckley County 12-2, Fitzgerald 5-1, Toombs County 2-1 and Model 3-1 in the semifinals.
“From day one, this is one of the goals this team talked about, winning our county, winning a region title, and winning a state championship,” Park said. “This game was tough, I mean, Thomasville is phenomenal. It seems like every goal we scored, they had an answer. This was a total team effort tonight — we had a lot of guys step up when they were needed. And I’m so proud of all the people from our schools and our community who came out to support us… from Model, Coosa, Rome, all over. This was a big win for all of Floyd County.”
Thomasville’s path to the finals went through Social Circle 5-1, Coosa 5-2, Jeff Davis 3-1 and Fannin County 2-1 in the semifinals.
Class A Division I – Girls — Model 3, Bremen 0
Model’s Molly Allmon was named Wendy’s MVP after a two-goal performance in the Blue Devils’ inaugural state championship game.
“Our defense has been incredible all year, and it’s been our whole team — our defenders, goalkeepers and midfielders,” head coach Lauren Jones told Gable. “The way our girls all work together is amazing. To have a performance like this, in such a pressure situation, speaks volumes about them. And Jordyn (Merritt), being our only senior on the field, she is just so special and such a great leader.”
Allmon with 21:12 in the first quarter before Mary Silver expanded the lead to 2-0 with 14:08 left before half. Allmon’s second goal, with 23:05 left in the match, proved crucial and gave the Blue Devils a 3-0 lead.
“Last year’s team came up just short,” Jones said.
Model lost in the semifinals to Mount Paran last season.
“But the girls came in this year hungry to do more, and this is so satisfying,” Jones said. “And getting to do this against the team that gave us our only loss, I’m just so proud of this team.”
Merritt, the team’s lone senior, was overwhelmed by the result.
“This just seems, not real. It feels like everything I imagined and so much more,” Merritt told Gable. “It’s just overwhelming. This makes all the hard work in the offseason worth it. I count it as a blessing to be out here and be able to play, and I never wanted to take it for granted. There is just so much joy on our team right now, it feels like fireworks are going off inside me. This means so much, I almost can’t believe it.”
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