Howard County girls soccer had a breakout season this fall, with River Hill winning its third straight 3A state championship and Howard surprising many with a playoff run that ended in the 4A title game.
County-champion River Hill scored twice in the opening seven minutes and held on for a 2-1 win over Linganore in the title game, earning the program’s 10th state championship.
After finishing 8-3 in the county, Howard turned it on in the playoffs to defeat its first four playoff opponents 9-1 before falling to undefeated Walt Whitman 1-0 in the championship. It was the Lion’s first regional championship in program history.
Centennial reached the 3A East regional championship game, but fell in double overtime to the Hawks for the second straight season.
Howard, Centennial and Atholton all finished 8-3 in the county in a tie for second place in the county.
Girls soccer reporter Tim Schwartz discusses those overall storylines and highlights some of the county’s top players from this fall in his season recap video.