Polk County goalkeeper Cate Brown

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As Polk County took midfield Friday evening for post-match handshakes with A.C. Reynolds, shouts could be heard coming from the Rockets fans in the stands.

“Good job goalkeeper.” “Great job keeper.”

Those were words of praise for Wolverine goalkeeper Cate Brown, who delivered an outstanding effort in Polk’s 2-0 loss in G.M. Tennant Stadium in a matchup of two of the area’s top programs.

Reynolds (15-3-2) scored in the first 10 minutes of the match and again in the final minute, rebounding from a 4-0 loss to Hendersonville on Monday. The Rockets did an exceptional job holding Polk’s offense in check, the Wolverines forcing goalkeeper Claire Rhoden to record just two saves.

On the opposite end, the Wolverine defense found itself under pressure much of the evening, yet largely turned aside every Reynolds chance. Brown had much to do with that.

The sophomore keeper especially shone in the opening 10 minutes of the second half, when Reynolds kept possession almost exclusively in the Polk end of the field. In the second minute Brown stopped a hard drive launched from well inside the penalty area, deflecting the shot upward and then snaring it as it fell.

Five minutes later she faced a free kick from just outside the box on the left wing and had to leap high to punch that try over the crossbar. Three minutes following that, she dove to her right to deflect a drive from Reynolds’ right flank that look destined for the far post.

Brown – along with defenders Natalie Serrano, Jasmine Baird, Mia Wolfe and Jill Brown – kept Polk County (12-3-1) within striking distance until the final minute, when Christina Diavatis, working some three yards from the net, headed in a long throw-in just past Brown for an insurance goal.

Reynolds took a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute on a sequence where the ball quickly went from Polk’s end of the field to the Rockets’ end and back to midfield, where Diavatis flicked a pass down the right flank to Evva Hamilton, who in the back and forth got a step on the Wolverine defense. Hamilton initially looked to be offside, but a Polk defender on the opposite side of the field remained well behind before she took the pass.

The flick gave the streaking Hamilton a one-on-one opportunity with Brown, and the Reynolds senior dribbled almost to the 6-yard box before hammering a drive in the top left corner of the net.

Polk County will close its regular season on Tuesday, facing another team coming off a loss to Hendersonville. The Wolverines will travel to Mountain Foothills 7 Conference leader Brevard, who will need a win to secure the conference crown after falling 1-0 on Thursday to the Bearcats.