Lone Peak boys soccer stays perfect by knocking off Westlake
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- Lone Peak players congratulate midfielder Evan Beus after he scored the first goal during the Region 4 game against Westlake in Highland on Wednesday, April 12, 2022.
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- Lone Peak and Westlake players battle for the ball during the Region 4 game in Highland on Wednesday, April 12, 2022.
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- Westlake defender Ammon Wittemund heads the ball during the Region 4 game against Lone Peak in Highland on Wednesday, April 12, 2022.
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- Lone Peak defender Thom Kramer kicks the ball during the Region 4 game against Westlake in Highland on Wednesday, April 12, 2022.
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- Lone Peak midfielder Luke Lovelady slots the ball away from a Westlake player during the Region 4 game in Highland on Wednesday, April 12, 2022.
With the weather impacting the first month of the high school boys soccer season, it’s not easy to gauge just how good teams like undefeated Lone Peak are.
Westlake found out in Wednesday night’s Region 4 game in Highland that the Knights are very tough to beat.
The Lone Peak defense gave up very few opportunities to a solid Thunder squad while the offense put a lot of pressure on the Westlake net.
Not every shot went in — thanks in large part to some great saves by Westlake keeper Erik Jasper — but the Knights still scored plenty to get the 4-0 win and stay perfect in 2023 (8-0).
“We were solid but we should’ve been more clinical in the final third,” Lone Peak head coach Danny Mason said. “Today was our worst game at combining in the final third.”
He felt like the defensive effort, led by Thom Kramer, Alec Midgley and Kyle Moreno, did a great job setting the tone for the Knights.
“We play really well out of the back,” Mason said. “They’re very fast and strong. They understand how to hold a line of play as a unit. So we don’t let people behind us. The only goals we’ve conceded this years has been when we brought on our subs.”
Lone Peak got the only goal it would’ve needed to win in the 14th minute when the Knights put pressure and forced a turnover coming out of the Thunder back line.
The ball was quickly passed to midfielder Evan Beus, who saw Jasper coming out hard and chipped it up over and into the net for the 1-0 lead.
Beus would play a key role in the second goal as well as he used his quickness to get the ball past the Westlake defense and was fouled in the box as he went after it.
Kramer came up from the backline for the ensuing penalty kick and calmly buried it inside the left post to double the lead.
“Evan had a fantastic game,” Mason said. “He’s a great player who has great close control and combines well with others. He’s a fantastic finisher and is clutch under pressure.”
Westlake got its best scoring opportunity late in the first half but the shot didn’t make it through and Lone Peak never allowed the Thunder to truly threaten again.
The Knights added a pair of goals by senior Noah Carlton in the second half and cruised to the win.
Mason said the key for the Knights this spring has been upping the team cohesion.
“They were very young last year and we’re still relatively young,” Mason said. “Last year was my first year as a high school coach and I probably played the seniors too much. This year I’m just playing the best players. And they are very cohesive. They are getting used to playing together and playing as a unit.”
He said the next step for his squad is to trust each other even more and not just rely on individual talent.
“The goals are to win region and win state,” Mason said. “We do a lot of training where they aren’t allowed to shoot without a combination in the final third and we need to keep getting better at that. They’ve got to play together, isolating defenders more. We’ve got a lot of talent, but we’ve been a little bit too individual up top so we’ll work on that.”
Lone Peak will next go on the road to face rival American Fork on Friday while Westlake (5-3) will look to bounce back when it hosts Skyridge the same evening.
Both games are scheduled to start at 7 p.m.
