{"id":10591,"date":"2026-08-28T07:10:06","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T11:10:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hra.org\/?p=10591"},"modified":"2026-08-28T09:13:52","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T13:13:52","slug":"chris-mills-two-time-coach-of-the-year-fall-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hra.org\/chris-mills-two-time-coach-of-the-year-fall-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Navigator Varsity Boys Soccer Begins Fall Season Led by Two-Time Coach of the Year Chris Mills"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"HRA

HRA Assistant Director of Athletics and award-winning soccer coach Chris Mills huddles up with the varsity boys team on game day<\/p><\/div>\n

As Hampton Roads Academy\u2019s <\/span>varsity boys soccer team<\/span><\/a> launches into the fall 2026 season, these talented players could not be in better hands.<\/span><\/p>\n

During the past school year, soccer coach and Assistant Director of <\/span>Athletics<\/span><\/a> Chris Mills demonstrated the extraordinary impact that dedicated educators and coaches can have on student-athletes by earning TCIS Coach of the Year honors for both the varsity boys and varsity girls soccer teams. This remarkably rare distinction reflects not only competitive excellence, but also his commitment to developing confident, resilient<\/a><\/span>, and principled young people.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mills\u2019 twin Coach of the Year awards, for which he was selected by the other coaches in the conference, are a testament to his leadership, integrity, and character across two outstanding seasons.<\/span><\/p>\n

In fall 2025, he coached Navigator varsity boys soccer to a No. 5 state ranking in their division. Both <\/span>senior<\/span><\/a> Zachary Busch \u201926 and sophomore Bryce Wedding \u201928 were awarded All-Conference honors, with Busch going on to earn All-State recognition and <\/span>commit to play soccer at Emory University\u2019s Oxford College<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"HRA

A leader and mentor in action: Coach Chris Mills on the pitch<\/p><\/div>\n

Then, this past spring, <\/span>varsity girls soccer<\/span><\/a> posted an impressive 9-3-1 regular-season record, achieved a No. 4 state ranking, and advanced to the TCIS semifinals. Three players\u2014sophomores Madison Davis \u201928 and Cailynn Monnoyer \u201928 and freshman Ainsley Lowe \u201929\u2014earned All-Conference honors. The team ultimately advanced as far as the VISAA state semifinals, with both Davis and Lowe achieving All-State recognitions.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Director of Athletics Laura Stoner, Mills is \u201ca spectacular coach in every way, not only in his knowledge of the game and the way he prepares the athletes in terms of their skillset, but also how he prepares them strategically to put them in a position to win on game day.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe community of coaches he works with, both in the fall and in the spring, respect him for a lot of reasons,\u201d she added\u2014\u201cnot only his background and his success rate, but also the quality of character that comes with Chris Mills.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

A Remarkable Coaching Record<\/h3>\n

Prior to joining HRA, Mills coached at Virginia Wesleyan University for 16 years. His extensive background at the collegiate level made him an immediate asset to HRA when he came aboard as assistant athletic director and boys soccer coach in 2023. In his leadership role, he has proven himself to be an invaluable partner for Stoner, who described him as someone she can trust to deliver consistently exemplary work on behalf of Navigator Athletics. \u201cHe is a team player who is ready to jump in and help out with whatever needs to be done at any point in time,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Indeed, during his time at the Academy, Mills has not shied away from taking on greater responsibility. In spring 2026, after three seasons as head coach of varsity boys soccer, he gladly took the reins of the varsity girls team as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"HRA

Girls varsity star Madison Davis \u201928 takes a corner kick<\/p><\/div>\n

In addition to his duties at HRA, Mills has served as head coach of the semi-professional <\/span>Virginia Beach United<\/span><\/a> soccer club for the past three years. He has had a transformational impact on the program, recruiting talented players, helping attract the third-largest crowd in league history, and leading his team to its first-ever playoff appearance. \u201cThe opportunity to coach at all different levels and different age groups is fun and enjoyable,\u201d Mills said, and he has drawn on lessons from both his collegiate and his USL League Two coaching to cultivate winning varsity teams.<\/span><\/p>\n

HRA student-athletes have attributed his success as a coach to his strategic flexibility and his talent for motivating players. \u201c<\/span>His greatest strengths are his ability to stay calm in the moment and uplift the team,<\/span>\u201d said girls soccer standout Davis, who credits Mills with helping her secure a commitment to play for the University of Alabama as a rising junior this past summer.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing about Coach Mills that really resonates with you when you play under his leadership,\u201d said Busch, a boys soccer team captain in his senior year, \u201cis the immense belief he has in both the team and each individual player.\u201d This faith, the recent graduate said, inspired his team to give their all in their first game of the fall 2025 season against the formidable First Flight High School and fight \u201ctooth and nail\u201d to a 2-1 victory, followed by a series of wins that carried them to the state quarterfinals.<\/span><\/p>\n

Shaping Better Players and Better Leaders<\/h3>\n

For his own part, Mills hastened to give credit to his \u201chigh-level players,\u201d like Busch and Davis, who stepped up as leaders on their respective teams.<\/span><\/p>\n

The prospect of receiving two Coach of the Year awards in one school year was never on Mills\u2019 radar. Ever humble despite his accomplishments, he remarked, \u201cI just want to make sure I put the players in a good position to be successful and also have a positive experience.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

This reaction came as no surprise to Stoner. \u201cAs competitive as he is, he always makes sure to maintain a \u2018better athlete, better person\u2019 approach to what he does,\u201d the athletic director said. \u201cHe creates a positive team culture wherever he goes.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Two-time

A proud Coach Mills celebrates with senior Zachary Busch \u201926 at his May 2026 collegiate soccer commitment ceremony<\/p><\/div>\n

As Mills explained, this culture begins with meaningful connections between players and their coach. \u201cI think one of the biggest things is the relationships that you build with your athletes,\u201d he said. \u201cIf they know that you as a coach care about them as more than just an athlete, then they\u2019re willing to work harder for you to be successful.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Close connections with students, moreover, provide a model for how players ought to comport themselves and relate to their teammates.<\/span><\/p>\n

Coach Mills \u201chelped shape me into a leader,\u201d Busch said. \u201cHe emphasized the importance of rallying the team and setting the standard, especially on a team with many underclassmen looking to seniors for guidance.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Through meaningful relationships, high expectations, and unwavering encouragement, Coach Mills continues to help students discover confidence, resilience, and leadership that extend well beyond the pitch. As he begins a new season of varsity soccer coaching, his investment in young people reflects the very best of an HRA education, an experience made possible by a community that believes in providing exceptional opportunities for every Navigator.<\/span><\/p>\n

This story originally appeared in the summer 2026 edition of the <\/span><\/i>Navigator Impact Magazine<\/span><\/a>. To stay up to date on the game schedule for varsity soccer and other sports, check the <\/span><\/i>Navigator Athletics calendar<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As Hampton Roads Academy\u2019s varsity boys soccer team launches into the fall 2026 season, these talented players could not be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":10797,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,15,20,21,22,49,50,61,134,135],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10591","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-school-news","category-alumni","category-huddle-news","category-sports","category-sports-related-alumni","category-featured","category-home","category-back-to-school","category-student-achievements","category-faculty"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10591","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10591"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10591\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10799,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10591\/revisions\/10799"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10797"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10591"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10591"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10591"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}