CARROLLTON, GA — Carrollton High School’s girls athletic programs are not just creating a buzz by winning games — they’re setting new standards of excellence that resonate across the community and the entire state. This year, the CHS girls teams made history in the Georgia Athletic Directors Association (GADA) Directors Cup, a competition that celebrates the top athletic departments across all Georgia High School Association (GHSA) classifications.
The CHS girls programs finished third among 40 schools in the GADA Directors Cup for the 2023-2024 season, earning a total of 636 points, just 40 points shy of first place. This is the highest CHS point total ever achieved in the year-long competition. Fourteen out of the 15 programs competed in the GHSA postseason, with the girls wrestling teams and gameday cheer team earning 300 points for winning their respective state championships.
The story of CHS athletics goes far beyond a collection of shiny trophies—it’s about upholding the gold standard of excellence that helps shape character and perseverance and unites the community as a whole.
Former multi-sport Trojan athletes Kyla Harley (‘22) and Molly Lanier (‘23) were intregal parts to the successful culture built here at CHS.
Lanier said she was fortunate to be part of an athletic program that set a high standard of excellence for her in athletics as well as life.
“Some years I focused on two sports simultaneously, while in other years I took on three,” she said. “Juggling multiple sports at once taught me that discipline, leadership, hard work, and commitment were essential to success in each sport. While being very different in every aspect, these three teams all shared a common theme of a standard being upheld. This commitment to a high standard created a strong drive for success and strengthened the culture that Carrollton athletics has built on for years.”
Harley echoed Lanier with a similar sentiment.
“As a female athlete at Carrollton, I learned that it’s not just about the victories, but also about the unity, discipline, and relentless spirit that defines Trojan Nation,” she said.” Being a part of this program has helped me grow tremendously as a person and an athlete. It taught me the importance of hard work, teamwork, and perseverance. We had intense practices, but we always made sure we had fun, too. It was amazing to be part of a program that always came together to support fellow athletes.”
Behind every successful team at CHS, there is a dedicated coach who values athletic and personal growth.
Coach Shon Thomaston has led the girls’ basketball program for nearly three decades and says their success is made possible by a shared commitment between coaches and athletes.
“We have a strong group of coaches who are all very competitive and have a strong sense of what it means to wear the black and gold,” Thomaston said. “We also have some of the best female athletes, who are not only superior in their sports but also the classroom, weight room, and community. The thing that makes us the strongest we’ve ever been is the support the girls give each other across different sports. Their positive spirit is infectious and breeds success.”
For the past nine years, Coach Becky Benefield has been a key figure in the girls athletic program at CHS. As the head coach of the girls lacrosse team and currently in her third year leading the flag football team, she emphasizes the importance of developing well-rounded athletes.
“The girls athletic program at CHS is one of a kind,” Benefield said. “We are so fortunate to work with so many people who love and support female sports. We encourage the girls to play multiple sports and participate in many organizations — you rarely see athletes who play only one sport. Not only does it help us athletically, but it encourages that extra layer of support we give to each other.”
CHS Athletic Director Paul Fitz-Simons shared his joy with the current state of the girls athletic programs
“I am so proud of all of things that our athletic department has accomplished over the nine years that I have been in my role but I don’t think I have been any more proud than I am right now of our girls programs,” he said. “The culture that has been created by our female athletic programs is unmatched. We have many girls who are multi-sport athletes that sacrifice so much for the love of this school. As a girl dad, I am very thankful my daughters will be able to experience this culture that we currently have on the female side of our athletic department.”
The 2024-2025 school year is off to an impressive start with the early achievements of the girls softball and volleyball teams. Their success is a testament to the strong culture of excellence at CHS that continues to shape young women’s lives positively daily.
