The Ankeny girls’ soccer players didn’t need the wind at their backs on Monday night.
The third-ranked Hawkettes scored three goals in the first half against the wind and went on to post a 4-0 victory in a non-conference game against visiting North Polk, the No. 2 squad in Class 2A.
“It kind of worked in our favor,” said Ankeny coach Simon Brown. “We were able to score those goals, and that took a lot of the pressure off of us for the second half.”
Alli Macke scored a pair of goals to lead the way, while Emma Gott had a goal and two assists. Camryn Dietz added an assist and then scored the Hawkettes’ final goal in the second half.
“Last year when we played North Polk they man-marked Macke, so we started her out wide and we had all speed on top,” Brown said. “Alli was able to score twice, Emma got a goal on Senior Night, and then Cam got one, too.”
Ankeny took a 1-0 lead when a cross by Gott eventually led to a goal by Macke, whose left-footed blast found the right side of the net. Gott then scored off an assist by Dietz to make it 2-0.
Gott later beat two North Polk defenders before crossing the ball to Macke, who tapped it into the net for her second goal. It was her team-leading 12th goal of the season.
Ankeny goalkeeper Claire Close made six saves in the win. Taevah Ganahi replaced her midway through the second half and completed the team’s seventh shutout.
The Hawkettes raised their record to 10-3. It was the first loss for North Polk, which dropped to 12-1.
“They’re good all over,” Brown said of the Comets. “They were not to be overlooked, so it was a good win for us.”
Ankeny will travel to Urbandale on Tuesday for a CIML Conference game. The No. 12 J-Hawks are 1-5 in the league and 5-7 overall.
The Hawkettes can clinch at least a tie for the conference title with a victory.
