CARY — Sophomore midfielder Stephanie Arias scored the only goal of the game to lift Monroe Central Academy of Technology and Arts to a 1-0 victory over defending state champion Southwest Onslow 1-0 on Saturday morning in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association state 1-A women’s soccer championship game at WakeMed Soccer Park.

Arias broke the scoreless tie when she found the back of the net with 31:38 remaining in the contest to give Central Academy the lead and the Cougars held on.

   CATA junior goalkeeper Lindsey Kurtz was credited with the shutout and earned  the championship Most Valuable Player award.

CATA made its first appearance in any NCHSAA team championship and set a school record with its 20 victories, posting a mark of 20-4-1 and winning its last three playoff games each by a single goal. The Cougars recorded 15 shutouts in their 25 games, and two of the CATA regular-season losses came to 2-A champion Waxhaw Cuthbertson, which beat Carrboro on Friday night.

Southwest Onslow won its initial NCHSAA women’s soccer championship last year by blanking Avery 2-0 and then returned eight starters from that squad. The Stallions started slowly this season against a brutal schedule, going 0-7-3 in their first 10 matches, but got hot at the right time to finish with a record of 11-9-3. 

The Raleigh Sports Consortium serves as the primary host city partner for the women’s soccer championship, along with the Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau. Wendy’s is the presenting sponsor for the NCHSAA sports program.

NORTH CAROLINA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION

STATE 1-A WOMEN’S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP

WakeMed Soccer Park, Cary

Southwest Onslow 0 0 –0

Central Academy 0 1 –0

SCORING

48:22 CATA–Stephanie Arias