First-half goal flurry propels Polk Middle past Canton Middle

It took Polk Middle a few minutes Wednesday to get its offense on target.

Once they locked in, though, the Wolverines seemingly couldn’t miss.

Polk Middle scored five goals in less than 11 minutes en route to a 6-1 victory over Canton Middle in a Blue Ridge Conference boys soccer match at Utz Field.

The Wolverines (2-0) dominated the match from the outset, but still remained scoreless late in the first half. Polk just missed one goal early on as Thomas Varnadore’s drive bounced off the crossbar and Keaundree Green had a hard drive deflected.

But the Wolverines finally got on the board with 12:03 left in the half as Varnadore scooped up a loose ball and fired it in the net.

That opened the proverbial floodgates for Polk, Owen Highsmith swooped in on pass from Topher Pearson in the penalty area and poked it past the Canton goalkeeper to make it 2-0 with 10:50 remaining.

Some five minutes later, Tommy Jackson scored off a cross from Highsmith, and Pearson tallied two minutes after that as he redirected a corner kick from Varnadore into the net for a 4-0 lead.

Jackson then added his second goal on Pearson’s second assist with 1:49 left in the half, giving Polk its five-goal advantage at the break.

Cooper Meyer added a goal in the second half, with Blake Anderson providing the assist, before Canton scored a late goal.

Polk Middle returns to action on Tuesday, traveling to Apple Valley for a 4:30 p.m. match.