Momentum proved a fickle friend Wednesday at Utz Field.
Polk Middle had the added incentive on its side much of the first half, spent most of the second half trying to regain it and finally did so to secure a 4-2 victory over Apple Valley Middle in a key Blue Ridge Conference East Division battle.
The Wolverines rebounded from Monday’s loss at Rugby Middle to improve to 8-2 overall. Apple Valley dropped to 5-3, and the win kept the Knights from moving into a second-place tie with the Wolverines in the East Division race.
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“We needed this one, especially coming off Monday,” said Polk Middle head coach Lennox Charles. “We could easily go lose to Hendersonville or Flat Rock or Brevard, but now hopefully those four teams, with Apple Valley, will beat each other a little bit and allow us a little more leeway in (the conference standings).
“So it’s a big win, and now we’ve got three on the road.”
As has been their trademark this season, the Wolverines scored early. Asher Brooks took a pass down the sideline from Brennan Oates and struck a cross toward the back post. The cross wound up deflected back toward the middle of the six-yard box, where Callaway Cameron met it and drilled a shot high into the net for a 1-0 Polk lead in the sixth minute.
Oates found the net in the 15th minute for his 17th goal of the season, then added his 18th in the 19th minute, giving Polk Middle a 3-0 advantage.
But the blue-tinged proverbial tide soon turned. Apple Valley worked a forward free for a shot and goal in the 23rd minute, and that gave the Knights a momentum boost that they thrived on well into the second half. Apple Valley struck again early in the second half to pull within 3-2, making for a nervous period for the Wolverines.
“If it’s 3-0 at halftme, mentally it’s different for them,” Charles said. “They’re going to come out and fight anyway, but you give them some more belief. I told them (at halftime) that the first team to score is going to set the tone for the second half.”
Apple Valley continued to press, looking for the tying goal, but Polk Middle finally gained some breathing room with just under four minutes left in the match.
Oates took possession of the ball in the middle of Apple Valley’s end, dribbled toward and down the right sideline, then curved back just before the end line and struck a cross into the penalty area. Cameron was there to meet the pass and connect on a low hard drive into the left side of the goal, giving Polk a two-goal lead.
The Wolverines made that stand.
“We responded,” Charles said. “This was a good win.”
Polk Middle will kick off its three-match road trip on Monday, heading to Hendersonville Middle for a 4:30 p.m. contest.
