Newton boys soccer routs Knoxville, falls to Norwalk

A fast start pushed Newton’s boys soccer team past Knoxville on Monday night.

The Cardinals scored four times in the first half and three came in the opening 10 minutes and a 6-1 non-conference win avenged last year’s overtime loss to the Panthers.

“That’s how we want to play,” Newton boys head soccer coach Zach Jensen said. “I was happy and excited to start fast. I was very frustrated with our second-half start but felt better as the half went on.”

The Cardinals played Knoxville on the Monday after prom last year, too. They dropped that road game, 2-1, in overtime. This time around, Newton was ready, able and cruised to their eighth win of the season.

“We had a sour taste in our mouth still from last year,” Jensen said. “We had a prom hangover for sure. I challenged them this year to not let that happen again, and we took care of business.”

Beiner scored first, 43 seconds into the match. His second goal came in the 10th minute and he completed the hat trick with a goal in the 59th minute.

The senior captain now has 11 goals and seven assists this season and his 29 points ranks tied for ninth in Class 2A.

“He’s grown into his body and did some speed training in the offseason to improve his ability,” Jensen said about Beiner. “His speed alone has helped us a lot this season. He’s a good finisher, too.”

Christian Lawson put in two more goals in the win, too. He scored in the 30th minute and then finalized the scoring with 18 minutes to play in the second half.

Lawson is up to 10 goals this spring, which ranks second on the team.

Beiner finished with three goals and one assist, Ryan Annee tallied one goal and one assist and Nate Lampe delivered a pair of assists.

Hunter Kennedy also had an assist to add to his school-record total.

The Cardinals (8-4) took 37 shots and put 22 of those on goal. Caleb Lawson played 65 minutes in goal and had two saves. Hunter Teague was in goal for 15 minutes and also recorded a pair of saves.

Knoxville (4-5) scored its lone goal with 26 minutes to play in the match.

Norwalk 3, Newton 2

NORWALK — The Cardinals battled back from a 2-0 hole but fell short on the road against Norwalk on Tuesday.

Newton’s five-match win streak was snapped against the Warriors during a Little Hawkeye Conference matchup. Both teams are now 3-2 in conference play following Norwalk’s 3-2 victory.

Norwalk (4-7) scored with three minutes left in the first half and two minutes into the second to take a 2-0 lead.

The Cardinals rallied after goals by Christian Lawson and Caleb Mattes in the 51st and 58th minutes, but Norwalk took the lead for good with its final tally in the 73rd minute.

“I was extremely disappointed in the first half. We looked flat in warmups. The mood just didn’t seem right,” Jensen said. “I’ll own that. Maybe it had to do with playing the night before. Sometimes it’s just hard to bring the intensity on back-to-back nights.”

Both of Newton’s goals were assisted by Kennedy, who now has a state-high 19 for the season. The Mattes goal came on a free kick set play.

Two of Norwalk’s three goals were on set plays, too, though.

“I felt like it turned at one point, but we just didn’t have enough left in the tank. I was proud of the second half and proud of the way the guys battled back,” Jensen said. “We have to clean up our defense with the opponent’s set pieces. That has to get fixed.”

Newton took 23 shots and 12 shots on goal. Caleb Lawson recorded 10 saves in 80 minutes in goal.

Norwalk got two goals and one assist from Spencer Taylor.

Defensive captain Breyton Schwenker suffered an eye injury early in the Knoxville win and did not play against Norwalk. He’s day-to-day moving forward and his absence forced Jensen and his coaching staff to make a few lineup changes.

Beiner also suffered an injury against Norwalk when he slipped and fell on a piece of turf that was not fully attached to the ground. He sprained his ankle with 20 minutes to go in the match and was on the sidelines for around 15 minutes.

“It happened right when we were making our comeback, too,” Jensen said. “The referee should have checked the field before we played. They are supposed to be getting new turf, but that is a major liability to me.

“The referee needed to walk the field and the Norwalk AD should have known about that. This game should never have been played on that surface.”