Both of Newtown High School’s soccer teams went on the road and their work cut out for them in second-round state playoff action. The No. 17 girls visited top seed Mercy of Middletown and fell 3-1 on November 8. On the boys’ pitch, No. 12 Newtown was at No. 5 Suffield and fell in a 1-0 nail-biter the next day.

“Knew we were in for a battle. We were able to keep them scoreless for the first half of play,” said NHS girls’ Coach Adam Bourret, who completed his first season guiding the Nighthawks. “(Goalkeeper) Grace Newsom was under a lot of pressure — kept us in the game despite being knocked down multiple times by Mercy players. They finally broke the tie in the second half on a scramble in the box. They broke us down a couple more times, but the girls never gave up. They made us all proud with their no quit attitude.”

Izzy Caron scored from long range late in the game to reduce the margin but it wasn’t enough.

“I couldn’t be more proud of this group. They came a long way since our first day of tryouts. Their growth in skill and character will set the tone for the future. It was as much a learning experience for me as it was for them, they taught me a lot being a head coach and I am forever thankful for this group. Thankful as well to our captains — Kenzie Del Pozo, Ella Morits, Izzy Caron. They were instrumental in the cultural changes and were leaders on and off the field,” Bourret said.

Other seniors who will be missed are Julia Dimyan, Sydney Oltran, Sofia Verdi, and Sara Premus.

“Finishing 10-8-2 and getting a win in each tournament is a success for a team that was counted out multiple times. A lot to build on for the future,” said Bourret, whose squad won a South-West Conference Tournament game and its state playoff opener.

The Newtown boys enjoyed a 9-1 win over No. 21 Kaynor Tech in the Class L first round after an impressive 10-4-1 regular season. Coach Ryan Lyddy had plenty of reason to be pleased with his team’s performance throughout most of the campaign. The Hawks will lose 15 seniors: Yarema Stasyshyn, Kyle Ruddy, Brady Lavelle, Hayden Bobowick, Johnny Celli, Emad Azba, Connor Muir, Woody Morris, Gabe Petertonjes, Elliot Rosecrans, Gjin Abazi, Gabriel Appiah, Alexander Dzamko, Luke Kellerman, and Evan Johnson.

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