Then again, the way things are going, the Huskies' celebration may extend right on through the summer.
"To draw it out is pretty cool," said Hough coach David Smith.
The Huskies, who finished the year 26-0-1, gathered at Cornelius Town Hall Monday to celebrate the ESPNHS Powerade Fab 50 National Championship they secured with the win over Green Hope. The teams entered the state final ranked No. 1 and No. 2 nationally, with Green Hope given the slight edge, but Hough handed Green Hope its only loss in 26 matches. That put the Huskies in the national spotlight.
"When it first happened, it was just so surreal," said sophomore Sarah Moon, who scored both state final goals and was named the game's most valuable player. "I couldn't believe we won. Now that it's started to slow down, it's sinking in that we're national champions."
Monday, Hough's team members wore black championship T-shirts and were presented with individual medals, a trophy, a plaque and a banner. They posed for pictures, ate a cake that featured a team photo in its icing and savored the moments under the bright lights of television cameras.
"So many things have to fall right for stuff like this to happen," said Smith.
The championship is based strictly on rankings; there's no national tournament between state champions. But being crowned national champions, Hough players say, has added another layer — and an exclamation point — to the things they accomplished within the traditional realm of state competition. High school teams typically don't get national attention, and they don't win national championships — usually.
"It's something that I never ever would think would happen," said Allison Stearns, the team's leader in goals and assists. "I always think of things in state terms. To think our state is represented that way is great."
It's Hough High Week in Cornelius
The Cornelius Town Board of Commissioners made a proclamation declaring the week of June 17-23 as Hough High Week in Cornelius and honored Hough students and personnel during Monday's board meeting.
The proclamation reads, in part, "the Hough High School student body in the 2011-2012 school year has excelled both in and outside the classroom. ... such successes accordingly bring great notoriety to Cornelius while instilling a sense of pride that builds our sense of community. ... such titles and accomplishments earned by local students, teachers and coaches deserve our community's accolades and praise."
