Atlee boys finish undefeated season with state title win

ROB WITHAM Special correspondent

SPOTSYLVANIA – Connor to Bade, whose work in the center severely limited Dominion’s ability to put together consecutive possessions needed to launch a comeback.

Bade dreamed of this day.

While recovering from a major knee injury that ended his 2022 season early, the faceo specialist tackled rehab with as much tenacity as he approaches his midfield responsibility.

By winning 82% of the faceo s in the Class 4 boys lacrosse championship game Saturday, Bade’s dream, and the Atlee Raiders’ dream of a perfect season, came true, as they dominated the Dominion Titans in a 14-2 victory at Massaponax High School to win their second straight state title.

“It was awesome watching us win last year, but I still had a little bit of a chip on my shoulder coming into this game,” Bade admitted. “I wanted to try to do my best to help us win.” when it was between Atlee senior Travis Albon and Blacksburg senior Eli Sterling. In the final leg of the race, Atlee’s star closer Patrick Allen and Blacksburg senior Conner Rutherford were right next to each other down the stretch, but Rutherford finished just ahead of him to steal the win in a wild finish.

By winning 14 of 17 faceo s, several while in a dead sprint towards the Dominion goal, the Raiders set the game’s tone and never relented. Kevin Miller, who will next play at Christopher Newport, saluted his defense.

The next day, Allen, Chavez and Echard all competed hard in the 1600 race, which saw Allen place fourth (4:31.74), Chavez seventh (4:32.70) and Echard 13th (4:39.16).

Hanover’s first state champion was a surprise to no one, with star talent Alli Crytser winning her sixth state title in an illustrious running career that will continue at Georgetown next year. The senior runner added another medal to her trophy case when she competed in the 3200, where her time of 10:41.15 was unmatched by a field of 14 runners. The next closest time was 10:54.33 by second place finisher Michaela Workman from Tuscarora High School. Crytser also placed second in the 1600, earning a nine-second di erence between her and third place runner Kayla Fields from Grafton High. Crytser’s 5:03.39 time in that event was beaten only by Fauquier junior Cassidy Scott (4:53.74).

Hanover also saw senior sprinter

Deonte Harris finish his final season as a Hawk with a state title to his name. Harris’ most recent states appearance in March saw him earn a second place medal in the 55 hurdles, but this time, he went one step further to claim the gold in the 110 hurdles with a time of 14.78 seconds.

Hanover’s third champion came in the pole vault, where junior Todd Benhase won with a 15-02 vault. It was far and away the best performance, with Benhase being the only athlete out of 15 to vault his way over 15 feet. His brother Luke placed third with a 13-06 finish.

For Patrick Henry, it was a marvelous season-ending punctuation for senior Andrew Senfield, who won the 1600 race with a time of 4:21.72 and finished in sixth in the 800 (1:59.20).

Joining Senfield on the podium was Montrell James, a sophomore who placed third in the 400 dash with a time of 49.67 seconds. His run was two seconds shy of first place winner Chanan Mathis from Courtland.

Senior Shamar Williams also had a strong sprint in the 100 dash, placing seventh in the finals with a time of 11.29 seconds, 0.19 seconds behind his preliminary run that placed him in fourth on Friday.

With the triumph, Atlee completed a 20-0 campaign, and extended its winning streak to 28.

That happens to be the jersey number of senior Kevin Miller, who had four goals and three assists for the Raiders. His younger brother Ryan also scored four times and added two assists.

“We were locked in and focused on the game,” Ryan Miller noted. “It’s a di erent mindset once we step on the field.”

The sophomore had two of Atlee’s first three goals, with a Kevin Miller goal sandwiched in between for a 3-0 lead just over midway through the first period.

After goalkeeper Eric Allen made one of his seven saves, a quick transition goal by Garrett Bralley with 6.5 seconds left made it 4-0, capping a first quarter that saw the Raiders outshoot the Titans 11-2.

Atlee kept the pressure on the Dominion defense and, when a Thomas Lask goal upped the advantage to 6-0 early in the second, the Titans called timeout. Their defensive adjustment of tight man-to-man was shortlived, as Atlee responded with a Kevin Miller unassisted goal. The Titans scored late to make the halftime margin 7-1.

Momentum never shifted to the Titans. Credit for that goes first

“The defense was crazy. All year (in practice) we battled back and forth,” Miller explained. “Then they come out and give up two goals in a state championship game. That’s just wild.”

Reed Taylor, Luke Apostolides and Atlee fan favorite Brenton Buchanan each found the back of the net in the second half. Jack Miller and Diego Gutierrez scored the Dominion goals.

Atlee’s championship experience was the foundation of its repeat journey. A rugged regularseason schedule included eventual Class 5 state champion Riverside, Class 5 runner-up Douglas Freeman, and private power St. Christopher’s. The Saints came closest to handing the Raiders a defeat, falling 11-10 in late April.

Now, the Raiders can begin a new journey, trying to become just the third boys lacrosse team in VHSL history to win at least three straight state titles. But first, for head coach Fielding Crawford, who got married during the postseason run over Memorial Day Weekend, maybe a pause.

“I know he loves lacrosse,” Kevin Miller noted with a smile. “But he needs a little break. He needs a honeymoon.”

A honeymoon with a trophy and a perfect season. What could be better than that?

Evangelicalfriends Independent

HanoverEvangelicalFriends

6420MechTrnpk.804-730-9512, friendlychurch.org

Worship:Sun.10:30AM

SundaySchool@9:15AM

INDEPENDENTCHRISTIAN

FairmountChristianChurch, 559-8070 6502CreightonRd. SundayAMWorshipTraditional 8:00&10:15,Contemporary9:00, Modern11:15,BibleSchoolat 9:00,10:15,&11:15.

RickRaines,SeniorMinister; ChrisSantasiere,AssociateMinister;SethWortman,Associate Minister;TracyThomas,Worship &MusicMinister;BillNicol,AssociateWorshipMinister;Davis Ellenberger,YouthMinister; AshleySears,Children’sDirector fairmountcc.org

GethsemaneChurchofChrist

5146MechanicsvilleTurnpike

SundayAMWorshipServices (Checkwebsitefortimes) 804-779-2044

BillWines,SeniorMinister www.gethsemanechristians.org

AdvertisewithMechanicsville-AshandLocal Call804-746-1235formoredetails!