Even when opposing defenders know that he’s getting the ball, Ankeny forward Landon Benge is still pretty hard to contain.
The senior racked up two goals and two assists to lead the eighth-ranked Hawks to a 5-1 victory at Waukee in a CIML Conference boys’ soccer game on Monday. He now has 17 goals, which is tied for second in Class 4A.
“It was a matter of getting back into our style of soccer,” said Benge, whose team was coming off a 1-0 loss to Pleasant Valley two days earlier. “Saturday was a game that we were not the aggressors that we normally are, and we bounced back and played our style!”
Ankeny held a 2-0 lead at halftime and then added three more goals in the final 40 minutes. The Hawks improved to 2-3-1 in the conference and 7-4-1 overall, while Waukee’s records dropped to 0-5 and 2-10-2.
“We played well and dominated the midfield and allowed only two shots defensively,” said Ankeny coach Trevor Fuccio. “We were a bit unfortunate not to keep a clean sheet.”
Ankeny’s Andrew Loder had a goal and an assist in the win. Austin Lundberg and Ty Newhard also had goals, while Dylan Gloviak added an assist.
“We created 28 shots,” Fuccio said. “We could have been more clinical, but I’m happy that we were able to convert more in the second half.”
The Hawks rebounded from Saturday’s shutout loss, when they were held scoreless for the only time this season.
“We were very frustrated with the result on Saturday, but happy to see us bounce back against Waukee,” Fuccio said.
Ankeny will travel to Davenport North this weekend for a pair of games. The Hawks will face Muscatine (6-5-1) on Friday before playing No. 6 Iowa City High (8-1-2) on Saturday.
