WELLSBURG — The local soccer community once again came together to honor one of their own.

Six local boys’ and girls’ soccer teams took part in the 2025 Janice Pepe Classic Saturday on the campus of Brooke High School. The tournament featured teams from across the Ohio Valley as well as team from the state of West Virginia.

The tournament ran for around 11 hours with four fields being used. The first games got underway at 8:30 a.m. with the last ones starting at 6:15 p.m.

The Brooke, Weir, Big Red, Catholic Central, Oak Glen and Edison boy’s and girls’ teams took part in the annual event. The event is named after Janice Pepe – the wife of Brooke boys’ head coach Joe Pepe – who died May 29, 2022.

Janice Pepe was at Coach Pepe’s side for 39 years as he coached soccer, including 33 years at the high school level – first at Weir and now at Brooke.

“We have had this here since 2012, and I had it two years at Weir,” Coach Pepe said. “I really want to thank the school board and the administration for letting me do this to honor Janice. She died in May of 2022. It has been named after her for three years now. I appreciate everyone who has helped make this all possible.”

Locally, the Big Red, Catholic Central, Weir, Edison and Oak Glen boys’ and girls’ soccer teams joined Brooke at the event. Other schools taking part included Wheeling Park, Wheeling Central and Parkersburg with several others also taking the field.

Previously, the baseball field at Brooke was also used for the event, however, it was not used Saturday. The new turf baseball field was completed in the spring.

“We had 45 or 48 teams when we could still use the baseball field,” Pepe said. “The Washington boys are here. Buckhannon-Upshur is here. Philip Barbour is here. Then, you got Steubenville Central, Big Red, Weir, Oak Glen us and Wheeling Park. We have an abundance of teams.”

The event serves as good preparation for the regular season.

“We’re just trying to get out there and play,” Weir boys’ head coach Adam Welsh said. “We want to play together. We have some kids playing some new positions. Today is a good test for us. We get to see some good competition. It is a process. We want to get better every day.”

The Big Red boys are getting ready to start the season Saturday at home against Cambridge.

“We are trying to get our rotations down,” Big Red boys’ head coach Greg Bowers said. “We are moving guys in and out. We are trying to develop some depth. We want to get everybody in.”

The Big Red girls’ team opened the season with a 9-0 victory against Shenandoah Friday. It was the Zeps first varsity game.

“We have never been a part of this before,” Big Red girls’ head coach Annie Cutri said. “It is good to be here. They boys have been here before. Today was a nice introduction for us. We get to play teams we don’t normally see. There is good competition here. The girls get to have some fun.”

The Weir girls will have a bit of smaller roster this season.

“Today is all about survival,” Weir girls’ head coach Jeremy Angelo said. “It is 90 degrees plus today. We only 15 girls this season. We have 14 here. One girl is waiting on an MRI. We have some new girls who have never played. It is about survival.”

The Brooke boys are working hard as the Bruins get prepared to open their season Wednesday at home.

“The kids are working hard,” Coach Pepe said. “They are doing great. I am proud of them all. We have got 17 kids. They have stuck with me the whole time. They have stuck with me through the flex days. Things are going well.”

The Weir boys took part in the event last season in Welsh’s first season as head coach of the Red Riders.

“It’s a real nice event,” Welsh said. “We look forward to coming here. Coach Pepe does a great job putting this together. We look forward to coming here. It gives us a chance to work on some things. It is a beautiful day. Kudos to my friend Coach Pepe.”

The Big Red boys have taken part in the event many times.

“This is a nice event,” Bowers said. “Janice was a great lady. She was someone special. Everyone knew her throughout the valley. She was always on the sideline with Joe. We miss her.”

It was a new experience for the Big Red girls.

“We get the chance to play some different teams,” Cutri said. “We get a chance to play teams we don’t normally see. We are playing Fairmont Senior and Grafton. They are teams we never see. It is nice to get some exposure.”

The Weir girls also have previously taken part in the event.

“We get to play three games against three different opponents,” Angelo said. “You get to play against teams you don’t normally see.”

Coach Pepe was not only focused on the event as a whole, but he was also focused on his team as it prepares to open the new season.

“Personally, I want to make sure everyone has a good tournament,” Pepe said. “I want everyone to stay healthy. We want everyone to come off the field healthy. That is the big thing. We want to keep everybody healthy.”

The event is a good one for all the teams taking part in it.

“For the kids, there are a lot of positives,” Pepe said. “You get to play teams you don’t get to see during the regular season. Things are going well.”

It takes a lot of hard work to put on an event such as this one.

“I want to thank the administration, the boosters and the grounds crew for everything they do to put this event on,” Coach Pepe said. “They are second to none. They have all worked hard. The administration has worked hard. The boosters have worked hard. The ground crew has worked hard getting all the fields ready.”

The Big Red boys enjoy competing at the event.

“This event brings everyone together,” Bowers said. “We see teams from outside the valley. We are able to compete against teams we don’t normally see. We get to see other teams. It is a good tune-up for the season.”

The Weir girls faced some stiff competition Saturday morning.

“We just played the state champions,” Angelo said. “It was only 2-0, and we scored on ourselves. We did some good things, and we did some bad things. We got to see what we can do. We know what we can’t do. We are going to keep working.”

The Brooke boys used the games as a tune-up for their season opener Wednesday at home against St. Clairsville.

“We open Wednesday against St. Clairsville,” Coach Pepe said. “We are looking forward to that game. The kids are doing well. I have got a young team. I am proud of them. We just have to play together. We just have to stick together. I have good senior leaders, and I have got some good juniors right behind them.”

Coach Pepe wanted to thank all of those people who made Saturday’s special event possible once again this year.

“I want to thank the boosters,” he said. “We have one set of boosters for the boys and the girls. We’re one big family with the boys and the girls. We’re like brothers and sisters. We have one group of boosters. They work really hard. I really want to thank the boosters, the administration and the school board for everything they do. They all work really hard.”