PCHS Wolverines overcome missed chances, top Madison 3-2

Opportunity knocked early and often Wednesday night for Polk County’s boys soccer squad.

It just took some time for the Wolverines to answer.

Polk County dominated much of its Western Highlands Conference matchup with Madison before pulling out to a late two-goal lead, then holding on for a 3-2 win over the Patriots at Polk County Middle School.

There was much to celebrate in the win for Polk County. The Wolverines won back-to-back matches for the first time this season, improved their record to 4-8 overall and moved to 4-2 in WHC play. After falling behind 1-0 early in the second half, Polk rebounded with a quick goal, then regained control of the match before taking and extending the lead.

But there were also some what-ifs to temper that enthusiasm, as Polk had numerous scoring threats in the first half but were unable to convert, leading to a scoreless tie at the half.

“The good news is, we won,” said head coach Lennox Charles. “I asked them after the game, ‘What was the thing we could have done and didn’t do in this game?’ And Dylan (Weicker) said, ‘Finish.’

“We got off to a slow start, but after the first 10 minutes, for the next 20 or 25 minutes we clearly had the better of the game. If we finish 50 percent of those chances, if we finish 30 percent of those chances, then we’re probably up 2-0 and then it’s a completely different game.

“We didn’t do that, but what’s even more positive is that when we went behind, we didn’t fall apart. We came back and scored and kept working and got the lead.”

Polk certainly didn’t let its first-half misses, or Madison’s first goal at the 32:02 mark, derail its determination. The Wolverines narrowly missed an equalizing goal just 15 seconds after Madison’s score, but then got that goal at the 30:22 mark when Wil Rimer intercepted a Madison pass, split two Patriot defenders and buried a shot into the back of the net, evening the score at 1-1.

Polk continued to apply pressure, keeping the ball in Madison’s half of the field for much of the next 15 minutes, before finally getting the breakthrough goal. Austin Wolfe’s corner kick perfectly reached David Sanchez, whose header on goal was barely knocked aside by Madison’s goalkeeper. But the deflection to the right side of the field wound up at the feet of Polk’s Alex Miller, who tucked a shot into the right corner of the net for a 2-1 lead with 14:12 to play.

Polk had a golden chance to widen the margin at the 10:17 mark but failed to convert a penalty kick. The Wolverines, though, got another such chance at the 7:28 when a Madison defender was whistled for an inadvertent hand ball in the penalty area while trying to stop a driving Miller. Weicker took the free kick and drove it home to give the Wolverines a two-goal advantage.

Madison, though, began to up its offensive pressure, scoring with 3:38 left in the game to cut the deficit to 3-2. It would be the Patriots’  last hurrah, though, and the Wolverine defense was able to prevent any other scoring opportunities.

“After we tied it up, we retook the game over for a while,” Charles said. “We played with more energy and more confidence.”

Polk County returns to action Thursday night, hosting Shelby in a match scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. at Polk County Middle School.