Girls' High School Open champion soccer coach leaves for nearby school
· Yahoo Sports
The high school girls soccer scene in Arizona just experienced a major shakeup, with a title-winning coach changing schools within the same town.
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Jason Hammonds is now the head coach at Queen Creek High, departing from nearby Casteel after an 11-year tenure. At Casteel — where Hammonds was the first and only coach in school history — the Colts won four state championships and finished runner-up three times.
Hammonds, The Arizona Republic’s 2026 coach of the year, is coming off the Open Division state championship, which ended Phoenix Xavier Prep’s run of five consecutive titles.
“Coach Hammonds combines a wealth of soccer expertise with a remarkable ability to build and sustain a championship culture,” Queen Creek athletic director Matt Harris said in a press release on July 8. "We are thrilled for our student-athletes to compete, grow and excel under his leadership."
Both schools are located in the town of Queen Creek, but in different public school districts. Queen Creek is part of Queen Creek Unified School District, while Casteel is part of the Chandler Unified School District.
Hammonds turned Casteel into one of the state’s most competitive teams after taking over following the program’s inception in 2016. Casteel has been involved in five state championship games since 2020. During his time with Casteel, Hammonds compiled a 160-24-7 record.
Casteel produced its first-ever Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year for girls soccer this past season, with goalkeeper Kendall Pechacek winning.
Hammonds has played a role in the youth soccer system in the Valley. He has worked with the Arizona Arsenal Soccer Club, coaching multiple youth tiers and serving as an assistant coach for their Women's Premier Soccer League team.
“I’m honored to lead the Queen Creek High School women’s soccer program," Hammonds said. "My goal is to build a culture of excellence, accountability, and growth, one that develops outstanding student-athletes on and off the field. I’m excited to work alongside our players, families, and community as we strive to compete at the highest level and create a program everyone can be proud of."
Queen Creek finished last season 6-8-2 overall and was the No. 16 seed in the 6A playoffs, falling in the opening round to No. 1-seed Pinnacle, which finished runner-up to No. 2 Perry in the conference title game.
Logan Stanley is a sports reporter with The Arizona Republic who primarily focuses on high school, college and Olympic sports. To suggest ideas for human-interest stories and other news, reach out to Stanley at [email protected] or 707-293-7650. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter: @LSscribe.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Girls' High School Open champion soccer coach leaves for nearby school