How St. James girls soccer 'reset the bar again' in first ever AHSAA runner-up season
St. James girls soccer fell short of accomplishing its biggest goal. It reached its most meaningful target, though.
The Trojans lost the AHSAA 1A-3A state championship 3-0 to the Westminster School at Oak Mountain in the first title game appearance of program history Saturday.
Westminster was the much sharper team early, scoring two goals in the first two minutes. St. James (15-2-2) then held Westminster scoreless until late in the second half, but its offense never broke into the goal.
The Trojans' most important objective each season under 15-year coach Charlie Brightwell is to set the bar higher for future teams. Those goals have been reached lately, clearer and clearer by the year.
St. James one-upped its 2022 team by making the first championship in school history. It came one year after the program made its first semifinals, where it lost in overtime in Class 4A-5A.
It has made a proud coach.
"I told the girls, I wish I could take the pain away," Brightwell said. "But each year we talk about raising the bar one step higher and leaving a legacy that the girls coming along are working to achieve. This group reset the bar again."
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St. James began the season ranked No. 10 in the AHSAA coaches' poll but rose all the way into the top three by the postseason. Like the championship, the season was not smooth sailing early.
St. James kept itself in the championship after it began moving the ball better and having longer possessions. After the nerves wore off, it took several shots on goals.
"We returned a good core of our team from last year," Brightwell said. "We (also) added a lot of new pieces, and to watch these two groups become one team has been what made this team special — their heart, their character, their drive. When they were down yesterday (in the 2-1 semifinal win over Cottage Hill), that’s what got them through the game. That’s what kept them in this game."
St. James' biggest turning point was a 5-0 loss to Auburn on April 5, its last loss before the championship. Brightwell said his team played hard, but it wasn't St. James's day.
St. James could've gone backward after the "character check" defeat but doubled down on its togetherness. The Auburn loss challenged St. James to be a better team, and it then went undefeated for the next month and one week.
"This year has just been an amazing year for this group," Brightwell said. "Every question we ever asked them, they met it and exceeded it. I only expect them to get bigger and better. Looking forward to where they go from here."
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: St. James girls soccer 'reset the bar again' in AHSAA runner-up season
