The Virginia High School League announces its 2026 Class 1 all-state boys soccer team. Northampton senior forward Luke Jones is the Class 1 Player of the Year, and Northampton head coach Chase Baxa is the Class 1 Coach of the Year.
Jones capped off a stellar senior season with 27 goals and 13 assists in 17 games while leading the team with a 1.6 goals per game average. He added three goals in the state finals to lead Northamption to a 6-0 win. His dynamic scoring and playmaking ability earned him back-to-back first team All-District, All-Region, and All-State honors, as well as the prestigious Player of the Year award at all three levels—District, Region, and State. Jones officially signed with the University of Delaware, where he will join the Blue Hens men’s soccer program in the fall. Jones finished his Yellowjacket career with 78 goals and 35 assists.
Baxa led Northampton to a 13-8 record and its second straight championship, and third state title over the past three seasons, with a 6-0 win over Galax in the Class 1 finals. The Yellowjacket completed their dominating three-game run-in to the state championship by outscoring their opponents 20-1.
Since taking over as head coach in 2022, Baxa has built a championship program with three state titles and a runner-up finish, compiling an impressive 72-24-1 record. His teams have played in four of the past five Class 1 state championship games and have three straight Region A titles. Baxa earned VHSL State Coach of the Year honors in 2023, after leading his team to a 16-4 record and the program’s first-ever state championship, along with state COY honors in 2025 and 2026. Baxa played four years of collegiate soccer at Geneva College (Pa.) and captained the team as a junior and senior.
