Chapin Eagles earn The State’s athletics Program of the Year honor

It was a day Chapin soccer and its athletics program won’t soon forget.

In a span of four hours on May 14, the Chapin girls soccer team defeated Hilton Head 7-3 for the Class 3A state championship. The Chapin boys followed with a 3-2 win against Myrtle Beach to complete the 3A championship sweep for the Eagles.

Those championships pushed Chapin over the top and gave the Eagles the title as The State Newspaper’s Midlands athletics program of the year. Chapin narrowly edged two-time defending champion A.C. Flora and Lexington, which each won a pair of state titles.

“It is really special thinking back. It has been a long time coming for Chapin soccer,” said boys soccer coach Ben Bosco. “We had been knocking on door and it came to a climax. Then one game after another, to have the opportunity in a matter of four hours, it has unique and special as you could get.”

The girls championship was the first in school history, while the boys won for the first time since 2003.

In addition to soccer, Chapin won its eighth competitive cheer state title in the past 10 seasons, and made it to the Upper State finals in softball and boys tennis. Swimmer Catherine Bendziewicz also won a pair of individual state championships.

Even the Chapin students got an award for their efforts as Varsity Brands honored the school with the Outstanding Student Section award. The Eagles had a large contingent of students, many of whom were painted up, during the soccer state championships at Irmo High.

“The students just kept coming out and were great,” girls soccer coach Bob Taylor said. “Even at school, they would come up and say you are a state champion now, you don’t have to be carrying this. It’s a good environment.”

Taylor, who won two state titles as wrestling coach in the 1990s, said it’s been a whirlwind since winning the title with stops at the South Carolina State House and being honored before a Columbia Fireflies game.

Chapin’s girls team had been close the previous two years, losing in the state championship in 2014, and in the Upper State title game against eventual champion Dreher in 2015.

“I knew we had the team to do it,” Taylor said. “This was their goal. Anything short of what we did would have been a disappointment. Many of the girls were used to winning championships on their club teams, but there is nothing like winning a high school state championship in soccer.”

Taylor said it’s been fun sharing the spotlight with the boys team and Bosco, a former Chapin player who Taylor knew from his high school days. The Eagles made it to the Upper State championship in Bosco’s first season in 2015.

Bosco said that postseason run helped lay the foundation for this year’s championship season.

“Last year was a wake up call and discipline for the guys,” Bosco said. “They knew what was expected. The coaching staff led the expectations from the first day to the last day.

“The most unique thing is the consistency from the preseason to the championship. Normally, there are ups and downs during the season, but this was a steady ride.”