Wolfpack in line for the top seed

Greenbrier High School boys soccer coach Chip Warren looked to his bench during a game earlier this season and realized he was down to his fourth goalkeeper.

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One was out with injury, one was injured during the game and another was attending a funeral.

The Wolfpack still won, 5-0, against region foe Stephenson. Warren, whose team needed only a win Friday at Newton County to secure the Region 2-AAAAA title, said the Wolfpack have been overcoming those type of obstacles.

"They responded and came out and did a good job," Warren said. "We've been deep enough to where it hadn't hurt us so far."

The Wolfpack's resilience has set them up for a probable top seed in the Class AAAAA tournament. Greenbrier, which had been a perennial contender in Class AAAA, was 11-0 and 5-0 in region play entering Friday's game at Newton County. But the Wolfpack have yet to crack the AAAAA top 10 this season.

"We haven't garnered any respect yet," Warren said. "Hopefully, we'll surprise some people when we get to (the) playoffs."

The Wolfpack should benefit from having both their goalkeepers healthy. Seniors Brandon Sanders and Devin Lemaire split time in the net the first few games of the season.

When Sanders went down with a partially torn ligament in his ankle, Lemaire commanded all the minutes.

Sanders stayed off the injured ankle for more than a week and underwent extensive physical therapy.

"I played all game every game," Lemaire said. "I definitely had to step up."

Both are back now as the Wolfpack make their final push before state. Each spends a half in goal.

"It works out, because we both at least get playing time," Lemaire said.

Both are wary of the team's final stretch, despite the Wolfpack's dominance.

Sanders said he remembered a late-season game when he was a freshman. The Wolfpack were rolling and Evans was having a down year, but the Knights surprised the Wolfpack on their home field.

"That kind of resounds every time we go into games like Newton (on March 27)," Sanders said. "It's that one game that can mess up a season."

Greenbrier, like many area teams, has backloaded its schedule with tough, non-region opponents. The Wolfpack will close the season with games against Evans and Lakeside, the likely top two seeds from Region 3-AAAA. They play host to Aquinas on April 14.

The ultimate goal is a state championship.

"But we take it step by step," Lemaire said. "We tell ourselves, 'We can't get here unless we win region. And we can't win region unless we win our first game, our second game, our third game.'"