Dunbar boys soccer, Gio Chavez named WKYT Athlete of the Week

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - Dunbar boys soccer has punched their ticket back into the state finals as they look to defend their title Saturday night against St. X.

The Bulldogs have won 5 boys state soccer championships since 1990, and they’re looking to make it six.

“Just the tradition and the pride these guys take playing for a program like this with all of its past successes and they just try to continue that year after year and you know, we try to carry that on,” said third-year Head Coach James Wray.

Junior midfielder and forward Gio Chavez led Dunbar’s scoring through the first two rounds of the state tournament, but he said it’s very much a team effort.

“If it wasn’t for the team we wouldn’t be here, it’s not just one player, it’s the whole team.”

MaxPreps currently has Dunbar as the #5 boys soccer team in the country.

After losing over half their starters from last year’s championship team to graduation, they said they weren’t sure that would be possible this year, but the upperclassmen stepped up, and it’s paid off.

“We’ve been really pulling it together at the end. We’ve been really playing as a team, connecting passes, making runs and working with each other, not working for any one of us ourselves,” said Mason Freddock, a senior goalie for the Bulldogs. “It’s just what makes us as good as we are this year.”

Dunbar shares the ball- eight different players found the back of the net in their elite eight game, a 10-0 victory over Corbin, which was beneficial against Ryle in the Final Four, a team they said was a great defensive team. The Bulldogs went on to win that match 4-1

The team said they are ready for their championship game, Saturday at 7:30 P.M. against St. Xavier (MaxPreps #3 team nationally) at Douglass.