Greenbrier teams win region

Greenbrier celebrated a region soccer championship Tuesday night - twice.

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The Lady Wolfpack claimed its third region title in five years with a 1-0 win over Lakeside. Greenbrier's boys took their third straight region crown with a 6-1 victory over the Academy of Richmond County. Both wins came in the Region 3-AAAA Tournament Finals.

"It wasn't easy," Lady Wolfpack senior goalkeeper Tiffany Nichols said. "Anytime we play Lakeside we always have to fight."

Greenbrier's Alex Cohen made the difference in the girls' game. The freshman scored the only goal of the contest with 11 minutes left. The Lady Wolfpack, ranked No. 5 in Class AAAA, beat Lakeside for the third time this year.

Greenbrier's boys won a much less dramatic contest. The scoreboard didn't get through the first 40 seconds of play before Wolfpack junior Pieter James found the back of the net. James scored two more times in the win. His final goal, a score on a pass from Dallas Dickerson with 18:16 remaining, gave him 23 goals on the season.

Though the two teams celebrated Tuesday night, their job won't get any easier. Greenbrier girls soccer coach Alex Heider said the Class AAAA state tournament bracket isn't set up for an easy trip to the state finals.

"Our region is matched up with Region 2 in the first round," he said. "All four of the Region 2 teams are ranked."

Starr's Mill, who finished fourth in Region 2-AAAA, is ranked sixth in the state. It's a tough first-round draw for No. 5 Greenbrier. Lakeside will face the same situation. The Lady Panthers earned a No. 2 seed in the state tournament brackets and will face Whitewater. The team is ranked third in Region 2-AAAA but fourth in the state.

"We know it's going to be pretty tough," Lakeside girls soccer coach Chris Newman said. "At least we're at home."

Both girls teams from Lakeside and Greenbrier will play at home in the first round of the Class AAAA state tournament. Greenbrier's boys, the No. 1 seed from Region 3-AAAA, also earned a first-round home game. The Wolfpack will face unranked Fayette County at home and are looking at a path to the state finals much smoother than they're female counterparts.

"This win tonight gives us the possibility of having four out of five games at home in the playoffs," Geenbrier boys soccer coach Chip Warren said. "That was our goal from the beginning - to take the easiest road to the finals."

Greenbrier, ranked No. 7 in the nation by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America and No. 2 in Class AAAA, boasts a record of 17-1-0 and a 12-game winning streak.