The scouting report on Trinity that Polk County received from a recent opponent noted that the Bulldogs had good speed at spots throughout their lineup.
As the Wolverines received and discussed that report, assistant coach Ken Abrahamsen reminded the team that speed is relative.
Relatively speaking, Trinity did not have the same quickness that Polk County has to offer.
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And that proved a deciding factor in Monday’s playoff matchup. The Wolverines raced to a 5-0 halftime lead en route to claiming a 6-1 victory over the Bulldogs in a 3A third-round encounter.
Photos: Trinity at Polk County
And now it’s the match that many anticipated as soon as the playoff brackets were announced. Polk County (16-2-4) will travel to Hendersonville (20-2-1) to again face its conference rival. Match date and time are still being finalized, but whenever the third installment of the trilogy occurs, it is certain to be a must-watch.
“If you were a neutral party, this would be a very enjoyable one to watch,” said Polk County head coach Lennox Charles.
The Wolverines built their large halftime advantage with the same approach that has served them well all season.
Trinity (13-3-4) got an early look at goal, but Polk’s defense quickly shut that down and the Bulldogs really didn’t threaten much thereafter. The Wolverines quickly flipped the field and began pressuring the Trinity defense, and the first breakthrough came in perhaps the most unexpected manner.
On a long throw-in in the ninth minute, sophomore Reeve Carroll performed her trademark somersault throw, doing so with enough power to get the toss to the goal, where the Trinity goalkeeper touched it but couldn’t stop it. Ball and goalkeeper fell into the net, putting Polk up 1-0.
The Wolverines’ speed then took center stage, with Polk’s forward line putting constant pressure on the Bulldogs’ back line. Three minutes after Carroll’s first goal, she scored again, corralling a pass from Gabby Savaia in a corner-kick scramble and banging home a shot from six yards out.
Another three minutes, another goal. This one came as freshman Kenley Savaia gained possession atop the penalty area and simply ran past two defenders, dribbling all the way to the right corner of the six-yard box before rifling a strike into the left side of the net. A 3-0 Polk lead in the 15th minute, stunning the Bulldogs.
“I told them in pregame that we wouldn’t know for sure if they had speed like us until we got on the field,” Charles said. “You can watch all the film in the world, and it helps with some things.
“I felt we were going to be a little bit better, that if we played our game, we could be OK. We just had to match their work rate and intensity that they play with. I thought we did that and more. Getting that one early kind of put them on their heels.”
There were more goals to come before the half. Another corner kick in the 33rd minute led to another goal, Carroll’s header off that kick looping in the air long enough for Charley Dusenbury to head it into goal.
Dusenbury then set up Polk’s final first-half goal in the 38th minute, deftly snagging a free ball near midfield and passing wide to Hurley Bell, who sent a rolling pass up the right flank to Kenley Savaia, who dribbled nearly to the end line before delivering a perfect cross that Gabby Savaia hammered into the left side of the net.
That sequence, that passing, is exactly what Charles felt the Wolverines didn’t display in their second-round win over Piedmont Community Charter. He saw much more of what he liked Monday.
“When you’re in the rhythm of playing every two or three days, and then we finished and don’t play for (10 days), I felt some of it was that,” he said. “Being able to play Thursday and then play again today, now it’s a little more normal and natural for what the season was.”
The Wolverines continued to produce scoring chances in the second half but converted just one, that a Gabby Savaia tally with 11 minutes remaining. By then the outcome wasn’t in doubt, and Polk County could celebrate what may well have been its final home appearance of the season.
And begin focusing on the huge task ahead.
“It was good to get up that good start, and I feel we were better,” Charles said. “No game is easy until you make it that way, and we made it so that we could have a comfortable second half.”
