Darnell Dickson, Daily Herald

American Fork’s Lewis Knecht had just scored his fourth hat trick of the season in his team’s 3-0 boys soccer victory against rival Lone Peak and his focus after the match wasn’t on taking a victory lap.

Knecht was standing near the AF bench, talking to a group of young kids who dream of one day playing varsity soccer for the Cavemen.

“I think he’s the humblest, kindest kid,” AF assistant coach Josh Winn said. “He will find these little kids here on the field. He’ll love them. He mentors them and he picks them up. I think most of my boys do that.

“Every Tuesday we have the oldest senior players mentor and train the freshman and sophomores, As a result, our sophomore team is first in the Canyons League and killing it. A lot of that comes down to the way that these older young men treat and mentor the younger players that are coming into this program. We just decided that we are a family and our culture was going to be different than two or three years ago.”

Both Lone Peak and American Fork are at the top of their game in 2025. The Knights went into last Friday’s showdown as the No. 1 6A team in RPI and are now 9-2 overall, 2-2 in Region 3. The Cavemen are coming off their first state championship season and are sure to rise from their No. 4 RPI spot after their big victory.

Darnell Dickson, Daily Herald

Winn, who has coached many players on both sides over the years, said the two North County programs build from their club teams (LaRocca and Utah United) and create a culture that demands excellent.

“These are the two best teams in state by a mile,” Winn said. “They have the most college committed players. I coach half these guys in club. I love them. I thought Lone Peak played fantastic. I thought that our boys today, after a really, really rough loss to Lehi, bounced back really professionally. I loved their energy, and I love the recommitment that they have to try and establish themselves back in region and getting ourselves ready for state. It was awesome.”

The two programs have built a little differently: Winn said every player on the American Fork roster lives within school boundaries and six players for Lone Peak don’t.

“I think I’ve coached these players in almost 90 games in the calendar year,” he said. “So they’ve played a lot of soccer together. There isn’t turnover that you have at some other high schools, where they’re trying to bring together 16 to 18 kids and mesh them. Most of these kids that play for these two programs are starters for Utah United. They start for USL teams and that allows us to be able to play on the same page earlier and not have to figure out how to play. We are very proud that we are a community team. We’re proud to represent our community.”

That community showed up in droves for Friday’s matchup, lining the north sideline of the AF soccer field. It was a crowd so big that the head official had to ask fans to move off the west end line for safety purposes.

Darnell Dickson, Daily Herald

After a scoreless first half, Knecht, who has totaled 45 goals in his career, went to work. American Fork made a deep run into the Lone Peak scoring third and was awarded with a penalty kick, which Knecht slotted for a 1-0 lead in the 55th minute.

Five minutes later, Lone Peak had its best scoring opportunity but AF goalkeeper Jackson Dingus made an impressive diving stop. That defensive gem turned into a breakaway for Knecht, who beat two Knights defenders and the goalkeeper for his second goal and a 2-0 lead.

In the 75th minute, a Caveman shot clipped off the crossbar and Knecht was in the right spot for the loose ball to score his third goal for the 3-0 advantage.

It was vindication for American Fork (9-1 overall, 3-1 Region 3) after a stunning shootout loss to Lehi on Wednesday, its first defeat of the season.

“This was an intense match, especially because this is our rival team,” Knecht said. “After the game against Lehi, we knew we had to bounce back. We won the state championship last year and I think we got a little too cocky. We got comfortable and Lehi took it to us. Last night we talked about it and we planned for this game. We knew we were going to have to fight. We got the result we wanted.”

Darnell Dickson, Daily Herald

Knecht provided the offensive power but it was the American Fork defense that made the biggest difference in the match.

“I would personally say that Lone Peak is the most lethal offense in the state,” Knecht said. “But our defense is the best in the state and we handled them. I’m super proud of our defense. It’s easy to score goals when the defense does all the work for you.”

Knecht is headed to play for Kyle Beckerman at Utah Valley University in the fall and plans on serving a church mission in 2026. He said he embraces the opportunity to mentor the next generation of American Fork boy soccer players.

“I was so excited when they sanctioned a sophomore team at American Fork,” he said. “I really looked forward to taking the kids in and teaching them about the culture, which is different here than at any other school. There’s no culture better than American Fork, but you’ve got to learn it. It’s all working out.”

The two teams will meet again, this time in Highland, on April 30.

Darnell Dickson, Daily Herald

Expect even more excellence and competitiveness.

“Soccer has always kind of waited for its moment, and I feel like for the last couple of years, it’s finally arrived,” Winn said. “We’re going to get the World Cup back. People are going to be excited to see the explosive growth of soccer. And the reason why I think soccer has become more popular is because our Utah kids are finally getting chances to play big time college and professionally, and to be able to play on the men’s national team. I think all but three of my starting 17 boys all have college offers, and the other three it’s because they’re going on church missions. So when we start getting soccer at that level, then soccer becomes a little more fun to watch, right?”

American Fork's Gavin Nash (in red) slides on the field as Lone Peak's Seth Larkin races toward the ball in a Region 3 boys soccer match on Friday, April 11, 2025.

American Fork's Ian Brinkerhoff (left) and Lone Peak's Seth Larkin compete for a ball in a Region 3 boys soccer match on Friday, April 11, 2025.

The American Fork boys soccer team huddles before the start of a Region 3 match against Lone Peak on Friday, April 11, 2025.

Lone Peak's Caden Shin (14) heads the ball in a Region 3 boys soccer match against Lone Peak on Friday, April 11, 2025.

Lone Peak goalkeeper Samuel Parker gets wrapped up in the net while defending a shot against Lone Peak in a Region 3 boys soccer match on Friday, April 11, 2025.

Lone Peak's Patrick Stevenson (11) handles the ball against American Fork pressure in a Region 3 boys soccer match on Friday, April 11, 2025.

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