Polk County Middle's Aaron Dickey (4) stops a Hendersonville runner from scoring with help from Dayvion Stinson (2) and Aiden Billings (31)

A fine line: Wolverines win battle in the trenches to top Bearcats

March 24, 2021

Guys in the trenches. Big men up front. Hog mollies.

Take your pick of monikers for offensive and defensive linemen, apply it to Polk County Middle’s units and fill in this blank – the _____ played awfully well Wednesday.

Buoyed by strong line play on both sides of the ball, the Wolverines closed their regular season with a 28-6 victory over Hendersonville Middle at Utz Field.

Karlen McEntyre ran for three touchdowns and Lorenzo Sanchez added another as Polk Middle closed its regular season with a 2-3 record. The Wolverines will have a postseason game next week, date to be determined, against a team from the Blue Ridge Conference’s West Division.

Polk Middle took the opening kickoff, drove 49 yards and scored on a short McEntyre run. McEntyre added the 2-point conversion and with 3:40 still left in the first quarter, the Wolverines held an 8-0 lead and would never trail again.

“I’m proud of the way the offensive and defensive lines played today,” said Polk Middle head coach Ethan Edwards. “We’ve only had one win to this point, and it would be easy for middle school kids to give up. The guys have kept working hard and we just need to keep building confidence. They don’t realize yet that’s what it’s all about.”

Polk County Middle’s offensive line prepares to engage at the start of a play in Wednesday’s game

With Hendersonville Middle’s offense largely kept in check, Polk Middle added another score just before halftime on a 29-yard McEntyre run, that set up by a 28-yard pass from Gunnar Alm to Sanchez on a fourth-and-19.

McEntyre then opened the third period with a 45-yard scamper around left end to up the Wolverines’ lead to 20-0.

The Wolverines stopped a Hendersonville Middle drive inside the 10-yard line midway through the fourth period, then added their final score as Sanchez broke free for a 64-yard touchdown jaunt. Hendersonville finally got on the scoreboard in the final minute of the game.

“I’m proud of how we handled some adversity,” Edwards said. “It seems like when one thing has gone against us this year, that has been our fate. Something goes against us and we get down.

“The kids kept their heads up today and fought through that.”