Inexperienced and injury-riddled, no one gave them a shot. So, they took it.

With just two returning starters and a slew of injuries during the season, no one, maybe not even the Henry Clay Blue Devils, expected them to be 11th Region champions this year.

But through the adversity came a resilience that carried Henry Clay from a 1-0 first-half deficit to a 2-1 win over sixth-ranked Paul Laurence Dunbar on Friday night in the rain at Madison Southern High School.

“This is everything to me,” junior defender Charlie Boone said. “We had nine people injured at one point in the season and we battled and battled … And we come to postseason, and we’re ready. The record (10-8-3) didn’t show, but we were ready.”

Henry Clay, who came in as the No. 26-ranked team in the state according to MaherRankings.com and with just four seniors, took the lead on a penalty kick by junior midfielder Keandre Sandoval with 16:30 left. His right-footed shot clipped Dunbar keeper William Elliot’s gloves but carried through into the net. The foul in the box was drawn by Henry Clay’s Chris Sanders as he tried to gain control of the ball near the end line.

Dunbar came out more aggressive in the first half, testing freshman Henry Clay keeper Angel Urbina a number times early before Edward Navarro’s third consecutive stab at the ball put the Bulldogs in front at the 22-minute mark.

But it was Henry Clay who took more initiative in the second half, consistently pushing into Dunbar’s defensive third of the field.

Sota Ippongi, Henry Clay’s leading scorer, turned home a rifled cross into the box off a short corner kick play to tie the game 1-1 with 26 minutes to go.

“We’ve been through ups and downs. The first few games we did pretty bad,” Ippongi said. “We lost to them 7-0 earlier in the season, and we bounced back with a 2-1 W. I’m really happy. I love this team.”

Henry Clay advanced to semi-state next week and will play the 12th Region champion, which was still to be decided between Southwestern and Danville on Saturday.

“What I told these guys is ‘Why not us?’” Henry Clay Coach Jason Behler said. “Why wait for next year? Why wait for two years? Why not us? I’m just super proud of them. They did a great job.”

All-11th Region Team

Drew Harrod, Franklin County; Eddy Irumva, Bryan Station; Joshua Cromwell, Woodford County; Jordan Hatcher, Madison Central; Evan Farley, Madison Southern; Ty Matthews, Lafayette; Eddy Andrade, Dunbar; Edward Navarro, Dunbar; Sota Ippongi, Henry Clay; Charlie Boone, Henry Clay; Thomas Svetich, Henry Clay.

This story was originally published October 19, 2018 at 9:36 PM.