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The West Jessamine girls' soccer team following a 1-0 win over Lexington Catholic in the region championship. |
State-championship final four, region champions, district champions, 19 wins, 80 goals, four seniors, one team.
It’s hard to single out the best thing about West Jessamine girls’ soccer this season. The Lady Colts had a record-setting season that won’t soon be forgotten.
“After I got back from UK’s camp (before the season), I said, ‘We’re going to be fine and dandy,’” West coach Kevin Wright said at the end of the season. “We were just so solid, have so many good players; there’s no holes. When you’ve got good goalkeeping and kids who want to work hard and get after it and play club ball, love soccer and love each other — that’s the thing, we had such good team cohesion and camaraderie and chemistry.”
West accumulated a 19-7-1 record and never lost back-to-back matches. After losing their final regular match of season, the Lady Colts went on a six-game win streak, winning the 27th District and 14th Region to punch their ticket to the state tournament.
In the opening round, West dismantled Letcher County Central on the Lady Colts’ home turf, “The Stable”, where they had only lost one match all season.
In the second round, West hosted Boyle County and defeated the Lady Rebels 1-0 in double overtime to advance to the final four for the first time in school history.
However, West’s dream of a state championship came to an end with a 4-1 loss at the feet of Notre Dame.
West goalkeeper Rebekah Hulsing was named first-team all-state, and Hana Henderson and Maddie Lockridge were named second-team all-state.
The excellence of the Lady Colts’ season did not end there as in February the four seniors — or the “Fab Four” as they had come to be known — signed with college soccer programs. Maddie Lockridge became the second Lady Colt in as many years to sign with the University of Kentucky; Hana Henderson headed to West Virgina and signed with Marshall University; and Jenna Bird and Kathryn Hale signed with Asbury University.
“(The seniors) have just been such a staple in our program, examples in the classroom and on the field,” Wright said.
