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Warriors preparing for pivotal gameBy CAREY FREEMAN
© St. Petersburg Times, LECANTO -- If Seven Rivers Christian has developed a serious rival in recent years, it is Montverde Academy. The Warriors have beaten Montverde for the district championship the last two seasons, and on Friday at 2:30 p.m., they will meet the Eagles in a game with similar implications. It is not for the Class A, District 2 title, which will be won by top-ranked and undefeated Orangewood Christian School. The Seven Rivers-Montverde showdown is for No. 2, which is just as important given the Warriors' desire to make a return trip to the playoffs. "Undoubtedly, Orangewood has a stranglehold on the district," said Paul Kalfa, Seven Rivers Christian's coach. "They are tough and a well respected program, and I think all the other teams are looking to get the second seed. "A win would give us a bye in the first round and a higher seed, which would allow us to face Orangewood later in the tournament," he said. A victory Friday puts off a potential matchup with the Rams until the district final, when the Warriors will have secured a postseason berth. They will have to do things differently than they did in a 4-2 loss to Montverde earlier in the season. The primary concern is the defense, led by junior sweeper Steven Blake. "Lately, we've been getting back to what we believe Seven Rivers soccer is all about -- defense," Kalfa said. "We got away from that earlier in the season, but we're getting back to what Warriors soccer is all about." Seven Rivers will be looking to Chris Roth, Joey Zeiss and Beau Barry to score, but it knows the difference will be if it's able to keep the Eagles off the scoreboard. One thing that should help is the Warriors' ability to adapt to challenges -- something they did last Monday in a 3-0 victory over Mount Dora Bible, a squad they tied 2-2 earlier in the year. "This team is very good at making adjustments," Kalfa said of Seven Rivers Christian.
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