Damuth, North Henderson power past Polk County

A two-goal flurry just before halftime and the scoring of Paige Damuth made for a long evening Thursday for Polk County’s girls soccer squad.

Damuth notched a hat trick, her three goals powering North Henderson to a 5-0 win over Polk County in a non-conference matchup in G.M. Tennant Stadium.

The Wolverines (0-2) kept the Knights (1-0-1) at bay for the first 27 minutes, their defense largely keeping North Henderson from mounting any successfull offensive challenges.

Damuth initially solved that in the 28th minute, though, by powering a long drive from well outside the penalty area that found the upper half of the net, giving the Knights a one-goal advantage.

The game then changed in the 38th minute. Ana Oviedo doubled North’s lead with a looping chip shot from the right wing that dropped into the left corner of the net. Some thirty seconds later, Damuth raced down the middle of the field with possession, splitting Polk’s defense and dribbling deep into the box before slipping a low shot into the goal, upping the advantage to 3-0.

Damuth completed her hat trick in the second half as the Knights controlled most of the flow of play, with Polk only generating a handful of scoring chances.

Polk County is set to be back in action on Tuesday, traveling to Patton for the start of Mountain Foothills 7 Conference play.