Two local teens, representing 100 Black Men of Greater Charlotte, won the Brace Godfrey Memorial African-American History Challenge in the high school division.

A second Qcity team, competing in the middle school division, fought its way to the championship round before falling to a team from Los Angeles.

Kayla Becoats, a sophomore at Butler High School, and Ashley Lanier, a junior at East Mecklenburg High School, survived three elimination rounds before defeating a team from Valdosta, Ga., 44-31.

The annual competition was held June 17-18 in Hollywood, Fla. The high school division included 12 teams of diverse students.

For Lanier, 16, the victory was especially sweet. Competing with a different partner the year before, she made it all the way to the championship round before losing to a team from Madison, Wis.

“It was extremely disappointing,” she said, recalling her teams loss. “It was a slaughter. It wasn't even close. We were sitting there trying not be emotional, but later we were crying all over the place.”

This time around, she said, she and Becoats were “just more determined to win.”

“Oh, my goodness, it’s incredible,” said Lanier. “I really wanted to get it this time. It was the best feeling in the world.”

For Becoats, 15, the victory was also about hometown pride.

“We had to study a lot of questions and practice a lot, “ she said. “It felt really good to win and know we were the first people from Charlotte to win this trophy.”

When Becoats competed last year in the middle school division, her team was eliminated in the first round of national trials.

So this year, with help from their coach, the girls resolved to work harder, putting in three to four hours a week.

“We had a lot of encouragement and a lot of support,” said Lanier. “We were praying a lot… As you get older, you learn how to do things better.”

For their efforts, each girl will receive a $3,000 college scholarship. Becoats said she wants to attend Johnson & Wales University to study culinary arts. Lanier said she’ll definitely attend college but hasn’t decided where or what she’ll study.

And in addition to bragging rights, the local chapter of 100 Black Men will get to keep the championship trophy – the 100 Black Men Cup -- for the next 12 months.

In the middle school division, local competitors were Michael Crews of Harris Road Middle School in Concord and Kwame Barrett of Whitewater Middle School. For making it to the championship round, each received a $50 gift certificate.

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