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The script that flipped Friday for Polk County did not have a satisfactory ending.

The Wolverines reached the Sweet 16 round of the state 1A playoffs largely due to a game-opening scoring flurry in Tuesday’s 4-3 win over Thomas Jefferson. Bishop McGuinness did the same Friday to Polk, tallying twice in the first six minutes to help set the stage for the Villains’ 4-1 victory in G.M. Tennant Stadium.

Bishop McGuinness (16-4-4) moves into Saturday’s state quarterfinals and will travel to Bradford Prep, the second seed in the 1A West bracket. The Villains would undoubtedly love a repeat of Friday’s start in that one.

Mahol Chom’s low rolling drive just inside the far post gave Bishop McGuinness the upper hand just 109 seconds into the match. Leo Blacutt followed four minutes later with a header off a deflected shot, and the challenge of facing the Villains quickly felt almost Sisyphean for the Wolverines.

Polk County (15-5-3) did have a handful of early corner kicks but could never convert one to regain momentum. Nor could the Wolverines unleash Cooper Meyer or Thomas Varnadore for one of their trademark sprints on goal as the Villain defense remained disciplined and focused on preventing exactly that.

“They compacted us in midfield and we weren’t able to get our normal runs in around wide,” said Polk County head coach George Alley. “They’re solid all around. They’re big, they’re athletic, just a really solid team.”

Bishop McGuinness extended its lead to 3-0 in the 32nd minute on a Dylan King goal. Say this for the Wolverines – they remained undeterred, and their persistence was rewarded in the 38th minute. Nate Martinez unleashed a free kick from some 25 yards out that Villain goalkeeper Asael Guzman deflected in front of goal, where Polk’s Manny Albarran, charging in on the free kick, won the race to the rebound and tapped it past Guzman to slice the Bishop lead to 3-1.

Bolstered by that strike, the Wolverines began the second half with renewed energy. King quickly sapped much of that, taking advantage of a ball not cleared in Polk’s end and finding the right side of the net with a strike just 55 seconds into the half.

The Wolverines tried to regain their footing, continued to press and had several chances to trim the lead. An offside call negated a goal in the 46th minute. A whistle following a collision between Meyer and Mason Hudson, leaving the goal wide open, halted another threat, and a Varnadore header off a long Will Garrison corner kick just found the crossbar in the 67th minute.

“That fourth goal was just a killer,” Alley said. “It’s really hard to come back from that. We needed to catch a couple of breaks. A couple of those maybe don’t get offside, maybe we get to 4-2, who knows.

“They jumped on us. They made the most of their chances. I give them credit for that.”

The loss didn’t diminish a stellar season for Polk County. The 15 wins were the most for the program since 2019, and the Sweet 16 appearance was the first for the Wolverines since 2018.

“I’m proud of the guys,” Alley said. “It was a great season, and I hate to see it end that way. These seniors, I’m going to miss them.”