Simon Kenton has no plans of letting Wednesday night’s loss in the 8th Region semifinals go forgotten.
The Lady Pioneers had No. 2-ranked South Oldham on the ropes at times and created scoring chances, but couldn’t break through in a 3-0 loss to the five-time defending regional champions at Grant County High School.
Last season, South Oldham defeated Simon Kenton in double overtime in the 8th Region championship game, a heartbreaking loss that lingered within the Lady Pioneers program.
With several key contributors from that team returning for South Oldham, this year’s postseason matchup was a classic case of a team that had “been there, done that” facing one still building its varsity experience.
Though Simon Kenton also returned some starters from last season, the Lady Pioneers fielded a youthful lineup featuring two freshmen, eight sophomores and one senior.
“It was their (South Oldham) senior leadership,” Simon Kenton head coach Hillary Johnson said. “They’ve got seniors who have been playing since freshman year, and we are a very, very young team with not a lot of varsity experience. We had four returners who started and played for us, and we had a lot of girls play different positions, so we did a lot of evolving.”
At times, the gap in age and experience didn’t matter. At others, South Oldham’s postseason experience made the difference.
The Lady Pioneers controlled possession for long stretches, but the Lady Dragons capitalized on their opportunities. South Oldham opened the scoring in the 12th minute when a free kick found the top of the net, giving the defending regional champions an early lead.
The Lady Dragons added two goals in the second half. Abigayle Hammons scored off a deflected cross in the 59th minute before Evie Lilly headed home a corner kick from Anna Cate Shelton in the 66th minute to complete the scoring.
Simon Kenton finished with 12 shots to South Oldham’s nine, but the Lady Dragons put seven shots on goal compared to four for the Lady Pioneers, making their opportunities count.
“We were the aggressor in the first 10 minutes,” Johnson said. “That first goal kind of took the wind out of our sails, but in the second half, I truly think we had them on the ropes. We just couldn’t capitalize. It’s tough when you see a 50-yarder go in and then a deflection off a cross and then the corner. It’s tough.”
South Oldham has been a thorn in Simon Kenton’s side in the postseason, ending the Lady Pioneers’ run for the fifth time since 2020. The Lady Dragons advance to Saturday’s 8th Region championship against Woodford County, while Simon Kenton closes its season with a 14-6-3 record.
Still, there’s a reason Johnson told her team in the postgame huddle, “Don’t forget this.”
Even in defeat, the Lady Pioneers showed why their future looks bright in Independence. Young? Yes. Talented? Absolutely.
Simon Kenton scored 60 goals this season, and the graduation of its lone senior will leave much of that production in place for the next two years. Sophomore Aniah Zembrodt led the team with 16 goals, followed by freshman Cara Cunningham with 12 and sophomore Olivia Ruprecht with 10. The Lady Pioneers also return both goalkeepers, Makenna Doherty, who made three saves Wednesday, and Reese Morgan, who added one.
Zembrodt brings both production and experience to the returning group, having already spent time as a starter with two seasons still ahead of her.
“Since we lost all the seniors last year, we’ve come back really strong,” Zembrodt said. “We had to rebuild our whole team again, with a bunch of freshmen, sophomores, two juniors and a senior. It was hard, but we improved a ton and came so far from the start.”
Allie Eggleston is the lone senior leaving the program, but she leaves behind a lasting impact.
“She didn’t get a lot of playing time her junior year and knew she had to fight and earn it,” Johnson said. “She did that. Her work ethic and leadership earned a lot of accolades that she will get this year. We’re going to miss her leadership, but she was also a catalyst of making them a team.”
South Oldham may have ended Simon Kenton’s season, but with a young core hungry for more, the Lady Pioneers hope this is just the beginning of their unfinished business.
LADY DRAGONS 3, LADY PIONEERS 0
SOUTH OLDHAM — 1-2 — 3
SIMON KENTON — 0-0 — 0
Game Stats
Goals: (SO) Finerty 1′, Hammons 59′, Lilly 66′
Assists: (SO) Shelton
Shots (On Goal): South Oldham 9 (7), Simon Kenton 11 (4)
Saves: South Oldham 4 (Finerty), Simon Kenton 4 (Doherty 3, Morgan)
Corner Kicks: South Oldham 2, Simon Kenton 1
Fouls: South Oldham 14, Simon Kenton 6
Offsides: South Oldham 1, Simon Kenton 2
Records: South Oldham 13-1-2, Simon Kenton 14-6-3
