The Norwalk girls soccer season ended in heartbreaking fashion on Thursday night with a 2-1 loss to Lewis Central in penalty kicks. The 13th-ranked Titans won the Class 2A, Region 3 championship game by making all five of their attempts in the PK shootout. The 2nd-ranked Warriors went 3-for-4.

The story of the match was missed opportunities and misfortune for Norwalk, which had at least three shots deflect off the crossbar and others that sailed just wide of the net. LC took an early 1-0 lead on a breakaway goal about five minutes into the game. Norwalk tied the score on Braelyn Clark’s perfectly-placed one-timer goal over the keeper with 17:02 left in the first half.

Despite dominating the Titans from a possession and shots standpoint, the Warriors were unable to score again during the second half and two 10-minute overtimes, forcing the shootout. Addison Burch, Tatum Miller and Clark all converted penalty kicks for Norwalk, but Anna Larson’s shot toward the left post on attempt two was deflected away on a dive by Titan goalie Jemi Cornelison.

Lewis Central, which lost to Norwalk 4-0 on May 10, advances to state with an 11-8 record. The Warriors, who entered the night on a nine-game winning streak, finished 14-5.

Norwalk Softball wins 1-0

The Norwalk softball team defeated the preseason No. 1 in Class 5A on Thursday night, winning 1-0 at Ankeny Centennial. The Class 4A second-ranked Warriors improved to 3-0 overall, opening the season with consecutive wins against three Top 10 teams in the state’s largest class. Centennial was playing its first game of the year.

Norwalk junior Carly Brewer produced the game’s only run with a solo homer in the top of the second inning. Brewer also pitched a complete game two-hit shutout in the circle, striking out 11 Jaguar batters and walking four. Nyah Hulbert, Grace Dehmer, Lauren Black and Addi Downe all added singles for the Warriors, who will return to action Tuesday at ADM.