The 14th Annual MaxPreps Tour of Champions presented by the Army National Guard passed through Kentucky on Friday, February 1 to recognize
Sacred Heart (Louisville, Ky.) High School and its girls soccer team for winning a state championship and earning a high national ranking.
MaxPreps and the Kentucky Army National Guard were on hand to celebrate Sacred Heart girls soccer, and crown the Valkyries national champions less than a week after fulfilling the same gesture for the Assumption girls volleyball program, also located in Louisville.
As the Sacred Heart student body gathered for lunch, the Kentucky Army National Guard displayed the Army National Guard national ranking trophy and handed out commemorative Tour of Champions t-shirts, generating great interest and curiosity into the day's events. MaxPreps, meanwhile, was busy preparing for the trophy presentation.
Following lunch, Sacred Heart's all-female student body eagerly made its way to the gymnasium for the spirited assembly. Then, after the Valkyries and the coaching staff took their seats on a makeshift stage, highlights of Sacred Heart's championship season rolled on the big screen.
Sacred Heart athletic director Donna Bender Moir greeted the 900 members of the student body, their parents and members of the community before introducing MaxPreps representative Todd Townsend and Sergeant Breanna Hopkins and Sergeant Jennifer Ewanchew, both of the Kentucky Army National Guard.
Townsend talked about the Tour of Champions and explained how MaxPreps' National Rankings were used in determining the 10 girls soccer programs honored on the TOC. Then, as Townsend informed those in attendance that the Valkyries had just claimed the national championship, the boisterous crowd cheered wholeheartedly. SGT Hopkins congratulated Sacred Heart on its accomplishment and talked about loyalty, dedication and hard work, shared character traits of the Army National Guard and a national champion girls soccer team before handing first-year head coach Libbey Smith the Army National Guard national ranking trophy. SGT Ewanchew then presented the Valkyrie team captains with a nationally ranked rafter banner.
"This was a great team, not because we had great individual players, but because we had great players who were willing to do whatever was needed for the team," Smith said of the champions. "The players on this team worked really hard, and to be honored in this way is exciting."
Congratulations to Coach Smith and the Sacred Heart Valkyries on a great season and national ranking!
Click
here to view the Sacred Heart TOC photo gallery and for more information about the Soccer TOC, please visit the
MaxPreps Tour of Champions site.