by Samantha Hurst
Two of Polk County High School’s spring sports continue to roll over opponents as they make their way through the early parts of their seasons.
Coach Jeff Wilson’s softball team led by hot-handed pitcher Jamie Hrobak and several consistently good hitters at plate have kept the Wolverines up 6-0 for the season.
The Lady Wolverines downed North buncombe Friday, March 9 with a score of 7-1. “It was just an outstanding night across the board,” Wilson said.
Hrobak had 15 strikeouts and only two hits against her. At bat Katie Ruff got off three hits, while teammate Alyssa Montgomery had two hits and two RBIs.
The team played Madison away Tuesday, March 13 but no score was available at press time. They face off against Asheville away tonight.
Tennis
The tennis court has also been friendly to the Wolverines.
PCHS’ Wolverines advanced to a 7-0 record after a shutout win over East Rutherford 9-0 Monday, March 13.
Seniors Madison Alexander, Sam Vining and Patrick Rhimer all returned this season, which Coach Richard Davis said was a big boost for the team.
“Having three seniors on the team that have been playing since they were freshman, that’s a good start right there,” Davis said. “Those guys all take tennis really seriously, with two of them playing year round.”
Last week the guys also beat West Henderson at the net 6-3 and then followed up with a dominating win over Thomas Jefferson 8-1 March 8.
Alex Shahban and Jessee Ewing, meanwhile, play at numbers five and six. These players came out as freshman, Davis said, but quit to take private lessons for two years and improve their game. Davis said they accomplished that goal.
“When you have a good four, five and six positions on your team it makes it a lot easier to win matches because it creates a good solid top six,” Davis said.
And that’s important heading into matches against tough opponents like Highland Tech and Hendersonville, he said. But in the end, Davis knows the road to the state playoffs runs through matches against Owen, Mountain Heritage and Thomas Jefferson.
The team played North Henderson away Tuesday night, their next match will be Tuesday, March 20 at home against Crest.