By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Both of the 9th Region champions in high school soccer posted high-scoring victories in state tournament matches on Saturday, but the season ended for two other local teams that couldn’t put the ball into the net.
In the boys’ quarterfinal round, 9th Region champion Ryle defeated Corbin, 4-1, to advance to the final four in the state playoffs and Warren Central knocked off 10th Region champion Campbell County, 1-0, on a penalty kick shootout.
Notre Dame blasted Corbin, 5-0, in a girls’ state quarterfinal game to move a step closer to its fourth state title, but 8th Region champion Simon Kenton lost to Louisville Sacred Heart, 1-0, in the first two minutes of sudden-death overtime.
Ryle (23-2-2) will play defending state champion Daviess County (20-3-2) in a boys’ semifinal match at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Lexington Lafayette High School.
The bracket for the girls’ state tournament has Notre Dame (21-5-2) taking on Daviess County (20-5) at 6 p.m. Thursday at Lafayette.
Here’s a rundown of Saturday’s state quarterfinal matches involving local teams:
NOTRE DAME 5, CORBIN 0 — Senior midfielder Maddie Wilhoite scored three goals and Notre Dame’s defensive unit posted its fifth shutout in seven post-season playoff games by giving up just one shot on goal in the second half.
Wilhoite got the first goal of the match in the 7th minute off an assist by senior Morgan Dickhaus. A pair of unassisted goals by midfielders Ellie Hellman and Allison Robertson extended the Pandas’ lead to 3-0 by halftime.
In the first 20 minutes of the second half, Wilhoite scored two more goals to put the game away early. Robertson got her 17th assist of the season on a corner kick that Wilhoite put into the net.
Notre Dame advances to the state semifinals for the first time since 2014. The Pandas need to win two more matches to claim the program’s fourth state championship and first under current head coach David Gronotte. Notre Dame teams have a 3-5 record in state championship finals.
RYLE 4, CORBIN 1 — The Raiders scored two goals in the first seven minutes to take control of the match and led 4-0 by halftime to come away with their first state tournament win since 2011.
Sophomore midfielder Adam Arellano got the first goal and Mitchell Wartman made it 2-0 a few minutes later. Later in the first half, Wartman got an unassisted goal and Will Snyder scored off an assist by Arellano.
Corbin was limited to two shots on goal, but Chris Lebanion scored in the 48th minute to keep Ryle goalkeeper James Spindley from recording a shutout.
The Raiders will make their third appearance in the state final if they get past Daviess County in Wednesday’s first semifinal game. Ryle was state runner-up in 2006 and 2011 under head coach Stephen Collins.
SACRED HEART 1, SIMON KENTON 0 — The lone goal in the match was scored by Sacred Heart sophomore midfielder Cara Francke at the 2:11 mark in the overtime period. Her shot from the upper left corner of the penalty area sailed over the outstretched arms of Simon Kenton junior goalkeeper Skylin Yates and into net.
Yates made seven saves before Sacred Heart, the top-ranked team in the girls’ state tournament, got that winning goal. This is the second time in the last three years that Simon Kenton lost to the Louisville team in the state tournament.
The Pioneers (16-6-3) were limited to just two shots on goal in Saturday’s match. They had scored 27 goals in their five previous post-season playoff victories.
This is the third consecutive year that Simon Kenton made it to the state tournament. There were 10 underclassmen in the Pioneers’ starting lineup for Saturday’s match and Yates was the one named to the state all-tournament team.
WARREN CENTRAL 1, CAMPBELL COUNTY 0 — Neither team scored in 90 minutes on the field so the players took turns in a penalty kick shootout and Warren Central won by a 5-3 margin. It was the second straight shootout win for the Dragons and their fourth of the season,
Campbell County senior goalkeeper Luke Oehrle made seven saves to hold Warren Central scoreless until the shootout. The Camels had four shots on goal, but they couldn’t get the ball past Kemal Esmic, the Dragons’ 6-foot-4 goalkeeper.
Campbell County (16-7) made it’s first appearance in the boys’ state tournament with six seniors in the starting lineup. Junior midfielder Nick Phelps was the player named to the state all-tournament team.
SOCCER STATE TOURNAMENTS
(at Lexington Lafayette High School)
Wednesday – Boys’ semifinals
RYLE vs. Daviess County, 6 p.m.
Louisville St. Xavier vs. Warren Central, 8 p.m.
Thursday — Girls’ semifinals
NOTRE DAME vs. Daviess County, 6 p.m.
Louisville Sacred Heart vs. West Jessamine, 8 p.m.
Saturday
Boys’ state championship game, 5 p.m.
Girls’ state championship game, 7 p.m.