A four-goal Nighthawk outburst in the second half of a September 12 clash between the Newtown High School and visiting Joel Barlow of Redding girls’ soccer teams got new Coach Adam Bourret his first win. The Hawks prevailed 4-1 on goals by Izzy Caron, Kenzie Del Pozo, Ella Morits, and Teagan Waaler. Sydney Oltran and Del Pozo had assists.

“It feels unbelievable. We struggled in the first half in our attacking third. We just didn’t look like ourselves,” said Bourret, whose team fell behind 1-0 at the break.

A halftime pep talk got the ball rolling and the Nighthawks evened their season record to 1-1.

“You could see it right away in the second half — it just clicked,” said Bourret, noting that the players had good movement, created space, and connected on through-balls to generate and finish scoring chances.

Caron put home a shot from 30 yards out when she hit the top right corner of the goal, and Del Pozo added to the lead with a shot from inside the 18-yard box. Morits capitalized off a rebound following her right side corner kick. She gathered the loose ball near the end line and shielded the ball from Barlow’s goalkeeper before turning and launching a sharp-angle shot just under the cross bar with her left foot. Del Pozo sent a nice pass through to Waaler, who finished with a low shot to cap the scoring.

The Nighthawks were coming off a 5-1 loss to Daniel Hand of Madison in the opener, also at Blue & Gold Stadium, on September 9. The tough start to the season, Bourret hopes, will pay dividends down the road.

“Our whole preseason has been loaded with top-quality teams. We played the likes of Cheshire, a state runner-up; Staples, a state champ; and New Canaan from the FCIAC,” Bourret said. “We’re piling these quality teams on early so it helps us in the long run.”

Bourret was pleased with his team’s overall play in the defeat.

Del Pozo broke up the shutout when she ripped home a shot from the left side, near the top of the 18-yard box, after taking a cross from Caron. Del Pozo’s net-finder was perfectly placed inside the left post and came with 13:50 left.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.