Ankeny boys notch 3 shutouts at Valley Invitational, raise their record to 9-0

Ankeny’s Mason Yeatts blasts a shot that results in a goal during a game against Council Bluffs Lincoln at the Valley Invitational on Saturday. He scored two of the Hawks’ first three goals in their 6-0 victory. (Photo by Dan Holm)

The Ankeny boys’ soccer team just keeps rolling along.

The Hawks won three games over the weekend at the Valley Invitational–all of them by shutout. They posted a 3-0 victory over Norwalk on Friday, then followed with a 3-0 win over Sioux City East and a 6-0 triumph over Council Bluffs Lincoln on Saturday.

“We had a successful weekend,” said Ankeny coach Marcus Varnum, whose team is now 9-0 on the season and became the new No. 1 team in Class 3A on Sunday. “That was the goal–just to continue to find the success and get the results but the fact that we were able to have that much success in front of the goal was just outstanding. I know last year that was one of our missing pieces that we felt really kind of held us back from finding the long road to success.”

Ankeny held a 1-0 lead at halftime over Norwalk (1-5). The Hawks added two goals in the second half, then racked up nine more on Saturday in the wins over Sioux City East (3-2) and Council Bluffs Lincoln (0-3).

**Ankeny’s Lucas Newhard dribbles the ball toward the goal during Saturday’s game against Council Bluffs Lincoln. (Photo by Dan Holm)**

Lucas Newhard had scored 11 of the team’s 17 goals in the first six games. He continued to contribute over the weekend, but the Hawks spread the ball around, getting goals from multiple players.

Mason Yeatts had two of the first three goals against Council Bluffs Lincoln.

“Lucas has definitely been a big part of our success, but we are adding to him with some other goal scorers and that’s exciting,” Varnum said. “We had lots of goals and lots of assists in the three games. As the year goes on, we want to make sure that we’re not relying on just one source of goals. We want to share the success and get other guys on the tally sheet.”

Defensively, Ankeny allowed no goals in three games, getting strong performances from goalkeepers Kyle Pederson and Ben Herwig. The Hawks have now recorded five shutouts and have outscored their opponents by a 29-4 margin.

**Ankeny’s Isaac O’Toole looks to pass the ball during the Hawks’ win over Council Bluffs Lincoln. (Photo by Dan Holm)**

“It was outstanding to find not only the success in front of the goal, but to keep three clean sheets throughout the weekend was exciting,” Varnum said. “The backline and Kyle and Ben both did exceptional in their roles and responsibilities.”

With three games in 24 hours, Varnum also got a chance to play his entire roster.

“Everyone got some minutes in both games on Saturday,” he said.

Ankeny will host Marshalltown (1-5) in its CIML Iowa Conference opener on Tuesday.