Hendersonville Middle remained undefeated Wednesday, advancing past Polk County Middle 4-3 on penalty kicks after the teams battled to a 1-1 draw through regulation and two overtime periods in the Blue Ridge Conference Tournament semifinals.
The host Bearcats improved to 14-0 with the victory, while Polk Middle’s season came to an end at 8-5-2.
Hendersonville struck first in the 12th minute on a shot from approximately 20 yards out, carrying that 1-0 advantage into halftime. Polk Middle, which had struggled in previous matchups against the unbeaten Bearcats, proved more competitive in the opening 30 minutes.
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The Wolverines found their equalizer in the 52nd minute when Rhys Jackson converted a spectacular free kick from 30 yards out. Jackson’s strike sailed into the upper left corner of the goal, beyond the goalkeeper’s reach, knotting the score at 1-1.
Neither team could break the deadlock through the remainder of regulation or the two overtime periods, sending the conference semifinal to a penalty kick shootout.
In the decisive shootout, each team took five attempts. Polk goalkeeper Jasper Mathews nearly kept his team’s season alive, getting his hands on three of Hendersonville’s attempts, but couldn’t keep any of them out as the Bearcats prevailed.
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