LEXINGTON, Ky. – A persistent effort by one of the state’s top players ultimately ended Sacred Heart Academy’s quest for a second straight state championship.
Eva Mitchell finally found the back of the net on her seventh shot of the night – coming in the 78th minute – to give West Jessamine a 1-0 victory over the Valkyries in Saturday’s quarterfinals of the state tournament at Paul Dunbar High School.
A University of Kentucky commit, Mitchell scored her 40th goal of the season and 102nd of her stellar career.
“I saw Anna (Lee) running to the right of me, and I played it to her and she gave me a great one-two ball back,” Mitchell said. “It was perfect. It couldn’t have been a better ball. I just heel-poked it in.
“It was a great feeling. I missed so many. When I finally got another one I was like, ‘I’m making this next one.’ Luckily I got it.”
Ranked No. 8 in the state, West Jessamine (22-4-1) continued an impressive run through the postseason by knocking out the defending state champ and No. 1-ranked Valkyries (17-4-1). The Colts defeated No. 2 Boyle County in the 12th Region final and No. 3 Notre Dame in Monday’s Semistate Four game.
Up next for West Jessamine will be No. 4 Simon Kenton in Wednesday’s 8 p.m. state semifinal at Bryan Station.
“There ain’t no little county school that wins state, but we have a chance,” Colts coach Kevin Wright said. “It’s all unity and wolfpack. We just breed it into them.”
Sacred Heart outshot West Jessamine 10-9 – including three shots on goal by Sarah Buse – but never could break through. Colts goalkeeper Anna Rexford made six saves.
“I don’t think anything was because of a lack of effort,” Sacred Heart coach Jaclyn Puntillo said. “We just had some unfortunate bounces and were playing against two of the best players in the state (Mitchell and Lee).”
Mitchell had a pair of chances late in the first half to give the Colts the lead, but Valkyries senior goalkeeper Sarah Stodghill made two nice saves to keep the game scoreless. Stodghill finished with five saves.
The Valkyries had several opportunities in the second half, including a shot by Kiley Polk from 25 yards out that just sailed over the crossbar in the 46th minute.
Mitchell missed off the crossbar in the 55th minute but finally broke through with just 2:15 remaining.
“Sooner or later it’s coming down,” Wright said. “Just keep chopping that tree and chopping that tree. … But (Sacred Heart) is so solid. They have no holes.”
It was a tough finish for a Valkyries team that had won 10 of its previous 11 matches since a 1-0 loss to Highlands on Sept. 12.
Puntillo was most disappointed for the six seniors who left quite a legacy at Sacred Heart – four regional titles, one state runner-up finish and one state title.
“This group has so much to be proud of,” Puntillo said. “I’m so proud of what they did all year long and even tonight. …
“I love winning, and my team loves winning. It was great to win a state championship last year, but that’s not why I do this. I do this because I really love my kids and they’re so great to be around. Being their coach is the highlight of my day.”
In Saturday’s other quarterfinals:
* Simon Kenton 4, Lawrence County 0: Abigail Zoeller had a goal and an assist to lead the No. 4 Pioneers (21-3-1) over the Bulldogs (18-3-2) at Lafayette. Hannah Allen, Haley Dougherty and Sydney Case also scored for Simon Kenton, which outshot Lawrence County 18-0.
* Owensboro Catholic 2, Greenwood 0: Lily Moore and Olivia Thomas scored first-half goals to lead the No. 7 Aces (23-3-1) over the No. 22 Gators (17-4-1) at Lafayette. Owensboro Catholic will face Lexington Catholic in Wednesday’s 6 p.m. semifinal at Bryan Station.
* Lexington Catholic 6, Russell 0: Kennedy Tranter scored four goals to lead the No. 16 Knights (17-8-2) over the Red Devils (18-5) at Paul Dunbar.
Jason Frakes can be reached at (502) 582-4046 and jfrakes@courier-journal.com.