State-ranked Pella too much for Newton girls soccer

PELLA — The Newton girls soccer team hung around for the first 40 minutes of its Class 2A Region 5 semifinal on Wednesday.

But Abby Warner’s hat trick was too much for the Cardinals to overcome during their 4-0 road loss to fifth-ranked Pella.

The Lady Dutch led 1-0 at halftime but scored three goals in the second half. The hosts totaled 34 shots and 23 shots on goal.

Newton got 25 saves from Natalee Freese. The Cardinals (9-9) put both of their shot attempts on goal.

Warner added one assist to her three goals, while Claire Smock scored the other goal and Taylor Semini and Briana Shannon each tallied one assist.

The Lady Dutch (13-4) defeated 10th-ranked ADM on Thursday to clinch a spot in the state tournament.