As Ryan Lyddy pointed out, the final score in a 2-0 win over visiting Immaculate of Danbury did not tell the whole story of how his Newtown High School boys’ soccer team competed at Blue & Gold Stadium on October 5. The Nighthawks dominated the game, getting a pair of goals from Luke Kellerman along the way, and posted their second shutout victory of the fall.

“Love it. We came out with a little bit more of an edge,” said Lyddy, whose team bettered its play coming off an easy 4-1 win over Kolbe Cathedral of Bridgeport on the heels of a three-game losing streak.

“Everyone did a good job playing their role tonight,” Newtown’s coach said.

Newtown had nothing to show for its efforts in the first half despite some nice play and solid opportunities. But the Nighthawks carried their momentum into the second half and struck only 22 seconds out of the break, Kellerman made a long run up the left wing, outran the defense, and deposited a low shot into the back of net to give the Hawks the spark they needed.

Kellerman again used his speed to add to the lead. He took a nice through-ball pass from Gjin Abazi, recently back in the lineup following an injury, and again shot low for a 2-0 lead less than eight minutes into the half.

“He turned it on. We’ve been training him all season on what he did tonight,” Lyddy said of Kellerman utilizing his quick legs along the sideline. Lyddy added that Kellerman’s first two net-finders should give him plenty of confidence.

Kellerman is hopeful the goals have taken a bit of a weight off his shoulders.

“It feels good — my first two of the season. I was feeling the pressure recently,” Kellerman said. “It’s a good bounce back. We’ve just got to keep rolling.”

Brendan McAnaspie, Ryan Payne, and Connor Muir worked to create some chances. Curtis Verdi passed to Manny Adomako for an in-close opportunity and later slipped a pass through to Kellerman following a long goal kick from Nighthawk goalkeeper Yarema Stasyshyn as the Hawks continued to apply pressure.

Newtown looked to continue its winning ways in a visit to Brookfield on October 10 and came up short in a 1-0 setback. The Nighthawks carried an overall record of 6-4-2 into their final four regular season games.

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