Girls soccer postseason: Douglass, LexCath repeat at districts, aim for 11th Region title
No. 2 Lexington Catholic and No. 8 Frederick Douglass enter the girls 11th Region soccer tournament this week as the only teams in the field ranked in the coaches’ poll.
But each were tested to the limit by rivals in its respective district championship games this week and both were upset by eventual region champion Madison Central last year.
The Broncos and Knights’ coaches and players know no opponent can be taken for granted.
“We just have to play our game,” Frederick Douglass coach Megan Adkins said after her team’s 1-0 win against Henry Clay in the 42nd District championship. “We get out of sorts a little bit and we hop into the other team’s games. We’re skilled, we’re fast and our defense is solid. We just have to stay together. We can’t psych ourselves out.”
Lexington Catholic (16-2-4) needed overtime to defeat Lafayette 2-1 in the 43rd District finals. It was the closest call LexCath has had in the title game over the last five years against the Generals.
“I love our team … but I think this time of year anything can happen,” Lexington Catholic coach Terry Quigley said. “We learned that last year. So, we just have to see.”
In Saturday morning’s 11th Region Tournament draw for the girls, Douglass (18-3-1) drew the opposite side of the bracket from Lexington Catholic, meaning they will not meet unless both make Saturday’s region finals. LexCath defeated the visiting Broncos 5-0 in their regular-season meeting on Sept. 23.
Back-to-back district titles for Douglass
Less than three minutes into the second half against Henry Clay, Maddi Merryweather blazed into the path of Jordan “Jojo” Williams’ cross and struck the lone goal of the 42nd District championship game at The Farm.
“I saw it coming and I said, ‘I’ve got to put everything I can on the line,” Merryweather said after being named the tournament’s MVP. “It’s my senior year. It’s what I want for this team … Everybody’s worked so hard to get that, so my foot met it. It went in. It was great.”
The Blue Devils (8-6-3) battled tournament host Douglass evenly for most of the game, generating a number of their own scoring chances and, at times, looking like they could avenge their 1-0 regular-season loss and take back the district their program dominated for many years.
“Henry Clay, they fought hard. We were back on our heels for a little bit, but the girls dug in,” Adkins said. “The defense has been really solid all year. It was a whole team effort tonight.”
LexCath takes down Lafayette in overtime
Senior Ansley Stephenson and freshman Harper Ward combined for both goals in Lexington Catholic’s 2-1 overtime win against Lafayette in the 43rd District championship game on Thursday.
Both happened on corner kicks with the golden goal game-winner coming as the result of Ward’s header that struck the crossbar and bounced down into the path of another header by Stephenson that found the net with 1:15 left in the first overtime period.
Stephenson was the corner-kick taker for Lexington Catholic’s first goal of the game. She delivered a looping ball into the 6-yard box that Ward met perfectly for a header back the other way and into the side netting for a 1-0 lead with 30:44 to play in the second half.
Lafayette tied the game with 13 minutes left in regulation when Kitty Crovo eluded her defender as she received a pass from Ileana Wilson and pivoted into a clean right-footed shot from about 10 yards out.
The win marked the Knights’ fifth straight district title and 33rd straight win over their district rivals, a streak that dates to 2019.
The Generals (8-10-1) made their fifth straight district finals by upsetting No. 21 Paul Laurence Dunbar 1-0 on Tuesday. Junior striker Sophie Hall volleyed a 18-yard rainbow shot over the Bulldogs’ keeper 15 minutes into the second half.
Record-breaker Monohan closes out career
Sayre’s Katherine Monohan, who broke the region’s record for career goals in a 2-1 win over Bryan Station on Monday, scored one goal in the Spartans’ 6-1 loss to Douglass in Wednesday’s district semifinals.
Monohan completed her high school career with 59 goals this season and 205 goals overall. When the KHSAA’s individual record book gets updated, Monohan will rank as Kentucky girls high school soccer’s third all-time leading scorer.
The girls 11th Region field
Here’s a closer look at the girls 11th Region soccer tournament field listed in order of their final regular-season KHSAA RPI ranking. Teams ranked in the Kentucky Girls High School Soccer Coaches Association poll are also noted.
FREDERICK DOUGLASS:
RPI/coaches’ rank: 2/8.
Record: 18-3-1.
How they got here: 42nd District champion with 1-0 win over Henry Clay.
Notes: Douglass surpassed 100 wins for its program and Coach Adkins’ career earlier this season. In their first season as a team in 2017, the Broncos went 1-18-2. Douglass has not yet reached a region finals.
LEXINGTON CATHOLIC:
RPI/coaches’ rank: 8/2.
Record: 16-2-4.
How they got here: 43rd District champion with 2-1 OT win over Lafayette.
Notes: The Knights have allowed just 13 goals this season, the fewest in the region. Leading scorer Joanna Bryant (10 goals) is questionable due to illness. LexCath’s 5-0 loss to Sacred Heart on Aug. 16 is its only in-state loss this season.
GREAT CROSSING:
RPI: 33.
Record: 13-3-1.
How they got here: 41st District champion with 2-1 win over Frankfort.
Notes: Freshman Kendall Crump is the youngest of three Crumps on the Warhawks (two sisters, one cousin) and she leads the team with 19 goals and eight assists. Junior Kaylynn Crump has seven goals. Senior Cameron Crump has three.
HENRY CLAY:
RPI: 39.
Record: 8-6-3.
How they got here: 42nd District runner-up.
Notes: Senior striker Avery Allen suffered a season-ending knee injury in September. She was the Blue Devils’ leading scorer at the time with six goals. Earlier this season, Henry Clay tied Lexington Catholic to snap the Knights’ 36-game win streak against Lexington teams. The Blue Devils beat first round foe Great Crossing 2-1 on Aug. 26.
MADISON CENTRAL:
RPI: 41.
Record: 13-4-1.
How they got here: 44th District champion with 1-0 win over Madison Southern.
Notes: The Indians rocked the Kentucky girls high school soccer landscape last season by knocking off then-No. 1 Lexington Catholic in the region championship in a penalty kick shootout. It snapped the Knights’ 44-game win streak over region foes. Natalie Knecht leads this year’s team with 19 goals.
LAFAYETTE:
RPI: 66.
Record: 8-10-1.
How they got here: 43rd District runner-up.
Notes: The Generals are making their fifth straight region appearance as 43rd runners-up to LexCath. Their overtime loss to LexCath in the district finals marked the closest title game between the two. Shannon Donworth and Ileanna Wilson lead the team with six goals each.
FRANKFORT:
RPI: 107.
Record: 11-9-1.
How they got here: 41st District runner-up.
Notes: Emma Johnson leads the Panthers with 17 goals.
MADISON SOUTHERN:
RPI: 111.
Record: 6-11-1.
How they got here: 44th District runner-up.
Notes: Sydney Locker leads the Eagles with 12 goals.
Girls 11th Region Tournament
Semifinals and finals at Franklin County High School
TUESDAY’S QUARTERFINALS
Listed in bracket order. District champions are home teams.
7 p.m.: Lafayette at Frederick Douglass
7 p.m.: Frankfort at Madison Central
6 p.m.: Madison Southern at Lexington Catholic
7:30 p.m.: Henry Clay at Great Crossing
THURSDAY’S SEMIFINALS
6 p.m.: Lafayette-Frederick Douglass winner vs. Frankfort-Madison Central winner
8 p.m.: Madison Southern-Lexington Catholic winner vs. Henry Clay-Great Crossing winner
SATURDAY’S FINALS
11 a.m.: Championship game.
All-District Tournament Teams
42nd District: Maddi Merryweather (MVP), Anna Adkins, Ella Flynn and Savannah Hughes, Frederick Douglass; Ava Wilson, Janie Lakin and Adrienne Reed, Henry Clay; Tatum Borman and Kennedy Harmon, Scott County; Katherine Monohan and Avery Luring, Sayre; Heaven Dobson and Fabianna Herrera, Bryan Station.
43rd District: Izzy Skinner (MVP), Ansley Stephenson, Sara-Kate Barnes and Harper Ward, Lexington Catholic; Sophie Hall, Kennedy Crovo and Ileanna Wilson, Lafayette; Kennedy Morgan and Katie Ray, Paul Laurence Dunbar; Rubie Karls and Jenny Bertram, Lexington Christian; Kaleigh Potts, Tates Creek.
This story was originally published October 12, 2024 at 11:09 AM.
