Dunbar-Lexington Catholic rematch will decide the girls soccer region title
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Paul Laurence Dunbar seeking its first 11th Region championship since 2018.
- Dunbar defeated Henry Clay 2-0 thanks to early goals and solid defense.
- Lexington Catholic advanced on Joanna Bryant’s four goals against Douglass.
If Paul Laurence Dunbar is to win its first 11th Region girls soccer championship since 2018, they will have to do so by defeating defending champ Lexington Catholic for a third straight time this season.
The matchup of the No. 6 Bulldogs and No. 3 Knights, according to the online Rundell Rankings, will take place Saturday at Scott County High School, the site of their wins in the semifinals on Thursday.
Dunbar took down Henry Clay 2-0 in the early kickoff, while LexCath got four goals from senior forward Joanna Bryant in a 5-1 win against Frederick Douglass.
“The whole ride has been exciting and fun, and I’ve been so happy for my girls to have this and experience this,” first-year Dunbar coach Jeff Stone said. “Catholic is always a challenge. So no matter if it’s the first game, second game, third game, whatever. … It’s a dogfight.”
During the regular season, Dunbar (19-2-1) became the first Lexington team to defeat the Knights in six years, a span of 46 games. The Bulldogs later backed up that 4-1 win with a 1-0 victory in the 43rd District championship game, preventing Lexington Catholic (18-4-1) from earning that title for the first time since 2019, as well.
“We got a little better in the last game from the one before it. So that was a good thing,” Lexington Catholic coach Terry Quigley said. “Dunbar was a load, both games. There’s no doubt about it. And we have to figure it out. I’m excited about the game.”
Lexington Catholic’s Bryant said her team is ready for Dunbar this time.
“I think we’re pretty confident right now in our team. Our culture has definitely gotten better, even over the past few days,” she said. “The last two games, we didn’t bring our best, but we’re ready this time.”
Bryant’s big night powers LexCath past Douglass
Lexington Catholic got a couple of quick early goals from Bryant and Emme Peterson to take a 2-0 lead into halftime against No. 12 Frederick Douglass (18-6-1), but Coach Quigley warned his team at the break against getting complacent.
“We went out there and were like, ‘The game’s not over. It’s 2-0.’” Bryant said. “That’s a tough score to maintain. So, we knew we had to go out with the same fire that we started with and get as many goals as possible.”
It didn’t take long for Douglass to prove the point. Broncos midfielder Anna Adkins got loose in the box and cut her team’s deficit in half, 2-1, with a point-blank goal with 27:54 left in the game.
But it took Bryant less than 20 seconds to restore the margin as she rocketed a shot into the goal from outside the 18-yard box to make it 3-1.
“I think everything was the third goal,” Quigley said. “I watched them get better after that, and it made me really happy. They actually worked harder. They didn’t hang their head. They attacked.”
Bryant got her hat trick on another shot from outside the box for a 4-1 lead with 19:02 left. She set the 5-1 final margin less than five minutes later.
Dunbar scores early and hangs on against Henry Clay
Paul Laurence Dunbar seemed to catch Henry Clay off guard in the opening moments of their 11th Region semifinal Thursday as Bulldogs freshman Emerson Stone shook two defenders at the top of the box and fired a left-footed shot for a 1-0 lead less than five minutes in.
“That early goal gave us a lot of momentum and energy to push through the game,” said Emerson, the youngest of coach Jeff Stone’s two daughters on the team. “They are a very high press team and that was one of the few chances we got early in the half.”
Moments later, Dunbar sophomore Sophie Griffith pounced on a corner kick into the 6-yard box to double the advantage.
But the Bulldogs could not rest easy. Henry Clay quickly became the aggressor after going down 2-0 and didn’t let up until the final horn.
“They’re a team that I think once they get down they still fight no matter what,” Dunbar junior midfielder Kennedy Morgan said.
Still, the Bulldogs’ defensive effort maintained the shutout.
“It was very hard,” Emerson Stone said. “We really had to work hard to get back. We couldn’t slack off a bit.”
Saturday’s 11th Region girls soccer finals
At Scott County High School
Paul Laurence Dunbar vs. Lexington Catholic, 11 a.m.
This story was originally published October 17, 2025 at 7:07 AM.
