WORTON — Kent County High School is hosting a first-round match in the Class 1A East Region I girls soccer tournament tomorrow.
That’s good news.
Even better news is that KCHS (2-10) will face off against a known opponent in North Dorchester (1-10).
And the best news of all is that in their home-and-away series this season, Kent defeated North Dorchester by a combined score of 6-4 — including 3-0 at home on Oct. 9 to avenge a 4-3 loss nearly a full month earlier in what was only the second match of the season.
Head coach Ben Joiner is optimistic heading into round three of the Trojans-Eagles rivalry.
“We feel like we match up well against them, and that win the last time around gives us a lot of confidence,” Joiner told The Evening Enterprise in a text message.
“We aren’t taking them lightly,” he added. “They are a tough team with something to prove and we know they’ll come ready to play.”
A win on Wednesday would be the first playoff victory for the seniors on this year’s team.
The match will start at 3:30 p.m. in Trojan Stadium.
The last time these two sides met, senior Delilah Markovic netted a hat trick. Freshman Amelia Ritchie assisted once. And first-year high school soccer player Lyric Frase earned the shutout; among her saves was a stop on a penalty kick.
Joiner’s explanation of what changed between the Sept. 11 and Oct. 9 matches against North Dorchester was fundamental.
“We are a different team than when we played them the first time,” he said. “We started to play up to our potential.”
Joiner said the Trojans’ “individual games have grown and their ability to play as a team has improved significantly since that first match.”
“It was great for them to actually get to see all that hard work pay off against a really gritty and resilient North Dorchester team,”Joiner said.
The win against North Dorchester capped a tough week of three matches in four days that began with back-to-back losses by shutout to defending Class 2A state champion and unbeaten Queen Anne’s (12-0) and North Caroline (6-6).
Frase, who started the season as Kent County’s backup goalie, has stepped up in the starting role. She was credited with 13 saves against Queen Anne’s and 15 the following day against North Caroline, leading to a performance brimming with confidence in the match at the end of the week against North Dorchester.
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The winner of the Kent-North Dorchester match will advance to the 1A East Region I semifinals at top seed Colonel Richardson (7-5).
No. 2 seed Perryville (5-7) will host No. 3 seed Bohemia Manor (4-8) in the other semifinal.
The region championship match is Oct. 28.
