Class A, No. 14 Southwestern shuts out Hauser again

Scoring one goal against Hauser has proven difficult this season for Class A, No. 14 Southwestern.

On Monday, in the sectional opener for both squads, Cecil Newton scored two goals less than two minutes apart to spark the Spartans to a 5-0 victory.

Southwestern already had two wins over Hauser this season but both came in overtime after no goals were scored in regulation.

“Since we lost Ethan Sipes and Jesse Wilkins up front, it’s been a struggle to score (goals),” said Southwestern head coach Taylor Meredith. “Those first two Hauser games we didn’t score in regulation at all. Even the last game, we only scored one goal on a (penalty kick) so it wasn’t in the flow of things.

“We’ve really abandoned everything at practice except for trying to figure out ways to score. That’s a kid’s dream to come shoot for two hours. That’s what we’ve been doing.”

The first half Monday was played in a light, steady rain that turned much heavier in the second half.

Newton’s first goal came when Hauser goalkeeper Luke Raisor failed to secure the ball in the front of the net. Newton then tallied his ninth goal of the season with 18:48 left in the first half off an assist by Mo Eckert.

“We talk about following and that first one, the goalie just bobbled it and Cecil was there to put it in,” said Meredith.

Less than 10 minutes later, Southwestern goalkeeper Chandler Holt made an emphatic defensive statement when he denied Landon Pendleton’s penalty kick that kept the Jets off the scoreboard.

Holt and Jay Utley split time in goal earlier in the season but the role is all Holt’s now.

“They battled it out for the year and eventually Chandler’s experience got it,” said Meredith. “He has grown with more and more confidence and it was tough to find time to get Jay in to battle. … Chandler has done fantastic and he saved that (penalty kick) for us tonight. That was awesome.”

The Spartans extended the lead in the second half with a Landon Drake goal with 24:06 to go. The goal was Drake’s 12^th this season.

Utley scored his first goal of the season at the 8:50 mark with an assist to Dusty Stevens.

Jay Brown came off the bench late and scored his third goal of the season in the final seconds of the match.

Hauser finished the season 9-7-1 with a trio of shutout losses to Southwestern.

The Spartans (12-3-1) now prepare for another defensive battle Wednesday with No. 17 Southwestern (Hanover), who defeated No. 5 Shawe Memorial, 3-2, Monday before the rain settled in.

The Rebels (11-2-4) and the Spartans played to a scoreless draw on Sept. 12.

“Hanover is pretty good. Their goalie is pretty good. He’s everywhere,” said Meredith. “They are really physical, probably the most physical team we’ve played. We had a fun one with them earlier this year.”

Whiteland Sectional

In the opener Monday, Whiteland defeated East Central in penalty kicks to advance in the sectional to face Shelbyville Wednesday at 6 p.m.

Triton Central Sectional

Mendenhall Field was the site for a pair of quarterfinal matches Monday.

In the opener, Centerville defeated Connersville, 1-0.

New Castle followed with its own shutout victory, 2-0, over Rushville.

The Bulldogs and Trojans will meet Wednesday in a semifinal contest at 5p.m.

The second semifinal is Greensburg against Triton Central.

Indianapolis Lutheran Sectional

In the lone quarterfinal match Monday, Christel House defeated Providence Cristo Rey, 3-0, to advance to Wednesday’s semifinal against No. 3 Greenwood Christian Academy.

In tonight’s quarterfinal matches, Central Christian Academy battles Lutheran then Morristown takes the field to face Knightstown.

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