Lexington Catholic, Sayre look to lock down district volleyball titles this week
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- Lexington Catholic is No. 10 in 43rd District semis and seeks its first district title.
- Lafayette leans on Gossett (1,000+ kills) and Trimble (3,000+ assists) for offense.
- Sayre earned its first 42nd District top seed, went unbeaten in district play
In a rarity for 11th Region girls high school volleyball, No. 10 Lexington Catholic was the only ranked team among the city’s postseason contenders as the district playoffs began this week.
That doesn’t mean the Knights can take anything for granted when they square off in Wednesday’s semifinals against Lafayette at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School. But LexCath coach Jeff Kaufmann has confidence in his squad.
“If our girls can pass and Charlie (setter Charlotte Hall) can run the offense we’ve been running all year long, it’s going to be hard to beat us,” Kaufmann said. “Because we’ve really been clicking. … I think it’s going to be a good opportunity for us to finally get a district championship.”
Lexington Catholic is the defending 11th Region champions, but it did that as 43 District runner-up to Paul Laurence Dunbar last season. The Knights haven’t won a district title since 2009 when they were in the old 40th District.
This year, tournament host Dunbar is the 43rd’s second seed. The Bulldogs lost 3-1 (25-14, 25-18, 23-25, 25-23) to LexCath on Oct. 8. Dunbar faces Tates Creek in Wednesday’s other semifinal game.
Lexington Catholic’s Hall, a 5-10 junior, recently broke the Knights’ career assists record with more than 1,700 and counting. The Knights will be buoyed by the return of 5-10 junior Miller Duncan, who has missed 16 games with an ankle injury this season.
Lafayette has a pair of all-time stat leaders, as well. Audrey Gossett, a 5-10 junior, topped 1,000 career kills at the end of the regular season, while senior setter Elise Trimble topped 3,000 career assists, both believed to be team highs, although Lafayette only began reporting statistics to the KHSAA in the past few years.
Lafayette defeated Lexington Christian 3-1 (25-22, 23-25, 27-25, 25-20) on Monday to advance to Wednesday’s semis. But the Generals will face a tough task reversing the 3-0 (25-12, 25-15, 25-15) sweep they suffered against the Knights in the regular season.
Over in the 42nd District Tournament at Bryan Station, Sayre went unbeaten in district play and earned the top seed for the first time in program history. The Spartans will be looking to parlay that into their first district crown.
Despite beating three district rivals who had been ranked at some point by the Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association this year, Sayre has not cracked the latest KVCA top 25 poll.
The 42nd District semifinals were played Tuesday. Sayre defeated Henry Clay 3-2 (25-19, 23-25, 22-25, 25-21, 15-8). The Blue Devils had defeated Scott County 3-2 (24-26, 25-22, 25-12, 16-25, 15-11) on Monday to advance to the semis. In the other semifinal, Frederick Douglass swept Bryan Station 3-0 (25-18, 25-22, 25-14).
Both the 42nd and 43rd District championship games are scheduled for Wednesday.
Girls High School Volleyball District Playoffs
42nd District Tournament at Bryan Station
Tuesday: Sayre 3, Henry Clay 2 (25-19, 23-25, 22-25, 25-22, 15-8); Frederick Douglass (14-15, 2-2) vs. Bryan Station (17-17, 2-2), 8 p.m.
Thursday: Championship game, 7 p.m.
43rd District Tournament at Paul Laurence Dunbar
Wednesday: Paul Laurence Dunbar (18-17, 3-1) vs. Tates Creek (20-11, 2-2), 6 p.m.; Lexington Catholic (27-3, 4-0) vs. Lafayette (14-18, 2-3). 7:30 p.m.
Thursday: Championship game, 6:30 p.m.
This story was originally published October 21, 2025 at 10:20 AM.
