Polk State Soccer Prevails 2-1 Over Darton College, Now Ranked No. 15

Polk State Soccer began its 2012-13 season with a 2-1 win over Darton College on Saturday at the Lakeland campus field.

Following the win, the Eagles are now ranked at No. 15 in a National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll released Tuesday. Prior to Saturday's victory, Polk was not ranked.

Darton (Albany, Ga.) was ranked at No. 2 prior to its meeting with Polk,but is now in the No. 10 spot.

Defeating such a highly ranked team will surely help his team as it heads into Wednesday night's matchup against Warner University, said Head Coach Bill Read.

"Darton brought their ranking, and beating them gave us a confidence boost," he said.

Darton scored first on Saturday, posting its only goal with five minutes left in the first half. Polk State midfielder Bre Eldridge responded about halfway into the second half, tying the game with an assist from defense/midfield teammate Ashlyn Dellheim. The Eagles sealed their victory with the second goal, made with just a minute of play remaining. This time it was forward Nicoline Holland behind the ball, with an assist from forward/midfielder Rachael Montoya.

Read said the team will concentrate on "shoring up its midfield and moving up and down the field as a unit" heading into Wednesday's game at Warner.

Polk State was to have begun the season with a visit to Mississippi to take on Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, Jones Community College, and Pearl River Community College, new opponents for the College after an NJCAA redistricting.

However, those games were cancelled because of Hurricane Isaac. Darton, too, had to cancel a trip to play in Mississippi. The game against Darton was a last-minute add to fill the gap in the teams' schedules.