Polk County Middle’s girls basketball squad cranked up its transition game Monday – and ran right away from Canton Middle.
The Wolverines used their up-tempo attack to wear down and defeat Canton Middle, notching a 33-18 victory in the Blue Ridge Middle School Conference season opener for both schools at Polk Middle.
Autumn Owen scored 11 points and Haley Fowler added eight for Polk Middle, who began to pull away in the second period, scoring the final seven points of the quarter to take a 17-10 lead at the half.
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Still with that seven-point lead at the end of the third period at 22-15, Polk County held Canton without a point for the first six minutes of the fourth quarter, building a 31-15 lead. The 9-0 spurt came largely thanks to the Wolverines’ pressure defense and relentless offensive pace, as it was common Monday for Polk players to grab a rebound, push the length of the court and drive directly to the basket.
“We had some turnovers, but when you push the ball up the court like we do, you’re going to have turnovers,” said Polk Middle head girls basketball coach Brandy Alm. “All in all, it was a pretty good show.”
The two teams were deadlocked at 10-10 midway through the second period when the Wolverines began to take command of the game. Fowler nailed a jumper and Maranda Gosnell scored off a round to build the lead to 14-10. Karli Wood then drove the lane and score for a 16-10 edge before Owen hit a free throw with 38 seconds left in the quarter, the 7-0 spurt giving Polk its halftime margin.
After an even third period, Polk Middle began its 9-0 run with a fast-break basket, Fowler grabbing a rebound, driving the length of the court and making a nice pass to Ansley Lynch for an easy layup. Fowler then scored seconds later off a Canton turnover, and when Gosnell hit a layup a minute later, Polk led 30-15 with 2:41 left in the game.
Wood added a free throw before the Bears finally scored on two Rylee Williamson free throws with 1:52 left. Williamson added another free throw before Polk’s Bella Marino hit two foul shots with 25 seconds left.
“We’ve got a lot of things to work on,” Alm said, “This is a hard working group of girls, and they’ll keep working and getting better and better.”
Polk County Middle Scoring
Autumn Owen 11, Haley Fowler 8, Maranda Gosnell 6, Karli Wood 3, Bella Marino 3, Ansley Lynch 2
