Breaking down the girls’ and boys’ state soccer semifinals
Kylie May Stephenson’s low-driving free kick from just outside the right corner of the 18-yard box bounded cleanly through traffic and into the goal, breaking nearly 50 minutes of scoreless, physical soccer Monday, and helping send Lexington Catholic to the girls’ state tournament semifinals.
“I was really happy. I thought it was going to go to PKs again. It was rough,” the sophomore said after LexCath completed the 3-0 win over 12th Region champion West Jessamine in the state quarterfinals on the Colts’ home field. The Knights survived a penalty kick shootout with Highlands on Saturday to advance.
The semifinalists for both the girls’ and boys’ state tournaments were set Monday night. Sacred Heart and Greenwood will face off in the other girls’ matchup at Henry Clay High School on Wednesday. The boys will play Thursday at Henry Clay where it will be Ryle vs. South Warren and St. Xavier vs. Corbin.
Lexington Catholic, ranked No. 3 in the state by MaherRankings.com, took the initiative against West Jessamine from the outset, generating more possession, more shots and more dangerous moments than the Colts.
But the game wasn’t really settled until Olivia Bretz fired a shot from about 25 yards out that took a deflection off a Colts’ defender and tucked inside the right post with 15 minutes left. Mary Martin Hampton capped the scoring about 10 minutes later when she sprinted onto Bretz’s pass from midfield and managed a sliding touch around the West Jessamine keeper for the final margin.
“We’re going to stay hard-working and keep it going,” defender Katherine Truitt said of LexCath’s chances from here.
Here’s a look at semifinalists for the KHSAA Boys’ and Girls’ State Soccer Tournaments. Both finals are Saturday. All remaining games will be played at Henry Clay.
Girls’ semifinals
LEXINGTON CATHOLIC VS. NORTH LAUREL
When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday
Rankings (Maher/KHSAA RPI): Lexington Catholic — 3/5; North Laurel — 26/8.
Records: Lexington Catholic 15-2-0; North Laurel 14-0-0.
How Lexington Catholic got here: 11th Region champions. Defeated West Jessamine 3-0 in the quarterfinals and topped Highlands on PKs in the first round.
Lexington Catholic players to watch: Mary Martin Hampton leads the team in goals scored with 14, followed by Emily Scanlon’s 13. Olivia Bretz had a six-assist game in the 11th Region semis. LexCath’s back three defenders, Emma James Bryant, Katherine Truitt and Laura Banahan lead the stingiest defense left in the tournament. The Knights have allowed only seven goals all season.
How North Laurel got here: 13th Region champions. Defeated Russell in a 4-1 penalty shootout after a 2-2 tie in Monday’s quarterfinals and beat Prestonsburg 6-0 in the first round.
North Laurel players to watch: Olivia Rudder leads the team with 30 goals and 13 assists, but she’s not the only threat. Madison Dagley has scored 26 times, Makayla Mastin, 16, and Meg Anderson, 12. Anderson shares the team lead in assists with Rudder.
GREENWOOD VS. SACRED HEART
When: 4 p.m. Wednesday
Rankings (Maher/KHSAA RPI): Greenwood — 12/11; Sacred Heart — 1/19.
Records: Greenwood 16-2-1; Sacred Heart 15-4-1.
How Greenwood got here: 4th Region champions. Defending state champions. Defeated Owensboro Catholic 3-0 in Monday’s quarterfinals and beat Madisonville 2-1 in the first round.
Greenwood players to watch: An amazing 22 players on the roster have scored for the Gators led by Kayelee Manors with 12 goals and Claire Allen with eight. Sarah Wiles leads the team in assists with eight, followed by Paige Hines’ six. Goalie Taryn Guyer has recorded nine shutouts.
How Sacred Heart got here: 7th Region champions. Defeated Simon Kenton in a 4-3 penalty kick shootout after a 1-1 tie in Monday’s quarterfinals and beat Bardstown 3-0 in the first round.
Sacred Heart players to watch: The Valkyries are another team with an unusual number of goal scorers (21) led by Mallory Glass’s 21. Katie Barney and Allie George have 11 and 10, respectively. Reagan Nolan leads the team in assists with 10.
Boys’ semifinals
RYLE VS. SOUTH WARREN
When: 4 p.m. Thursday
Rankings (Maher/KHSAA RPI): Ryle — 8/12; South Warren — 5/2.
Records: Ryle 17-0-0; South Warren 15-1-1.
How Ryle got here: 9th Region champions. Defeated Boyle County 4-1 in Monday’s quarterfinals and beat Paul Laurence Dunbar 1-0 in the first round.
Ryle players to watch: Lance Paul and Conner Race each have 13 goals, scoring one apiece in their win over Boyle County. Paul also leads the team in assists with 12 and had a spectacular one on a free kick to the head of Zach Barth to give the Raiders their third goal in the quarterfinals.
How South Warren got here: 4th Region champions. First trip to state semis in program history. Defeated Daviess County 3-0 in Monday’s quarterfinals and advanced from the first round via a Henderson County COVID-19 forfeit.
South Warren players to watch: Eldin Velic has a team-high 18 goals, followed by Kiram Mujic’s 13. Anthony Cano has notched 12 of the Spartans’ 54 assists.
ST. XAVIER VS. CORBIN
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday
Rankings (Maher/KHSAA RPI): St. Xavier — 1/5; Corbin — 26/18.
Records: St. Xavier 17-2-0; Corbin 12-1-0.
How St. Xavier got here: 7th Region champions. Scored two goals in the final two minutes against North Oldham via a putback by Sulli Meyer off a missed penalty kick and a Jackson Marks goal at the 17.2-second mark to win Monday’s quarterfinal 3-2. Beat Elizabethtown 3-0 in the first round.
St. Xavier players to watch: Jackson Marks leads the team with 12 goals and five assists. Thomas Schrepferman has nine and four. Sulli Meyer and Agustin Gonzalez have seven and six goals, respectively.
How Corbin got here: 13th Region champions. First trip to state semis in program history. Defeated Ashland Blazer 3-0 in Monday’s quarterfinals and beat Prestonsburg 5-2 in the first round.
Corbin players to watch: Jose Torres leads the team in scoring with 25 goals, but the Redhounds can fill up the net with three other double-digit scorers in Gabe Cima (24), Austin Wise (15) and Kyle Webb (13). Cima, Torres and Webb each have double-figure assists.
This story was originally published October 27, 2020 at 8:01 AM.
