‘Thrilled beyond belief.’ Power programs from Lexington, Louisville to decide state title.
The 2022 Kentucky high school boys’ soccer state championship match will be contested between the last two schools to win the trophy, and both earned their spots in this year’s title game through different dramatic paths.
Paul Laurence Dunbar — the defending state champions — erased a 1-0 deficit against Ryle with three goals in a 10-minute span in the second half. The Bulldogs ultimately won 4-1 to book a return trip to the state title match.
Awaiting them will be St. Xavier, who defeated Bowling Green, 2-1, with a sudden-death goal in overtime.
St. Xavier was ranked No. 1 in the state in the end-of-regular-season Maher Rankings, while Dunbar was slotted at No. 2.
Both state semifinals were played Thursday at Frederick Douglass High School in Lexington.
Saturday night’s KHSAA Boys’ State Soccer Tournament championship match between Dunbar and St. Xavier will be played at 7:30 p.m., also at Frederick Douglass High School.
The match will be streaming online via subscription at KHSAA.tv or pay per view at go.prepspin.com.
Here’s how the state’s top two soccer teams found their way into Saturday’s title tilt.
Second-half comeback sends Dunbar to state finals
Calling Dunbar’s second-half comeback against Ryle “the response of champions” would be a cliché, but sometimes there’s no other way to describe things.
After falling behind to a tap-in goal by Ryle junior Diego Hoenderkamp (his 24th goal of the season) just before halftime, Dunbar head coach James Wray didn’t hold back during his halftime talk to his team.
Wray said he wasn’t sure what team he was watching play in the first half, but the response from Dunbar was nearly immediate after the break.
Dunbar went from danger-adjacent to confident with the ball in the attacking third, and the goals soon followed.
The Bulldogs got scoring contributions from junior Kasen Johnston (twice) and senior Antonio Blackman in a span of 10 minutes, surging the defending state champions ahead for good.
Sophomore Chaz Rich added a late goal to seal the win.
Experience undoubtedly played a part in Dunbar’s comeback efforts Thursday night: The Bulldogs returned five starters from last year’s state championship team, while three other players saw significant minutes in the title game.
The victory over Ryle also offered Dunbar a measure of revenge.
Dunbar’s last postseason loss came to Ryle in the first round of the state tournament in 2020. Thursday was the first match between the teams since.
Dunbar will attempt to win its sixth state title Saturday, entering the match with an 18-2-3 record.
“I think it’s good for the state to have two top programs in the final,” Wray said of the matchup with St. Xavier. “Hopefully, a lot of soccer people and non-soccer people can come out to watch it. Hopefully, we can put on a good show for them.”
Ryle, the 9th Region champion, ends its special season with a 19-5-2 mark.
The 2022 season for Ryle transcended what happened on the pitch: The Raiders’ leading goal scorer of their 2020 team, Lance Paul, who went on to play for Transylvania, died unexpectedly after a brief illness last year.
Ryle honored his legacy during the 2022 season and its run to the region championship, and has dedicated a scholarship fund in his honor.
Last-second prayer helps power St. Xavier
The earlier game of Thursday’s doubleheader was a thrilling contest.
St. Xavier — the most successful boys’ soccer school in the state — defeated Bowling Green, 2-1, with a winning sudden-death goal scored with just 3.2 seconds left in the first overtime period.
St. Xavier junior Frankie Klein performed the sign of the cross prior to delivering a massive throw-in toward the Bowling Green penalty box, where junior Trip Campbell eventually prodded the ball into the back of the net for the winning goal.
“I don’t know how to react. I’m thrilled beyond belief. It’s unbelievable,” St. Xavier head coach Andy Schulten said. “Three seconds left. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like this, ever.”
The match had been tied 1-1 dating back to the first half. Sophomore striker Stone Work opened the scoring for St. Xavier with his 27th goal of the season in the sixth minute.
That was canceled out by Bowling Green senior striker Yaredi Yaredi scoring his 19th goal of the season later in the opening half.
St. Xavier will enter Saturday night’s final with a 24-1-3 record.
The Tigers are 15-time state champions (the most all-time in KHSAA), having last won the state crown in 2020.
St. X’s soccer program predates KHSAA sanctioning, which is why the Tigers’ school records include two more state championships than are recognized by the KHSAA.
This story was originally published October 28, 2022 at 8:19 AM.
