This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Sports

GIRLS SOCCER: Scotts Valley Shutout in Season Opener

Valley Christian scores a pair of goals early to win non-league affair.

Valley Christian 2, Scotts Valley 0

The Star: Freshman midfielder Sara Van Wagoner scored the eventual game winner in the 10th minute off a pretty cross by a Warriors teammate. Not sure if she was even going to make the varsity team a few weeks ago, the talented freshman scored a goal and recorded an assist during her impressive varsity debut.

The Turning Point: Already down a goal 10 minutes into the game, Scotts Valley couldn't clear the ball out of the box, leading to a second Warriors scoring tally. The costly three-minute span early in the first half put the Falcons behind by two scores. Valley Christian won the game 2-0.

Find out what's happening in Santa Cruzwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The Quote: "We have some good tests early," Scotts Valley High assistant coach Mike Ross said about the Falcons tough early schedule. "We made some mistakes with our youth today."

What's Next? Scotts Valley will take part in the Palo Alto Winter Classic girls soccer tournament with games against Gunn High-Palo Alto and Woodside Priory ahead on the docket. .

Find out what's happening in Santa Cruzwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Bottom Line: It was a tough early test for a young Scotts Valley team.  After kicking off regular-season play against a very formidable foe Tuesday, more tough games are ahead before Santa Cruz Coast Athletic league play begins in early January. Valley Christian, a West Catholic Athletic league member, speed and tenacity overwhelmed the visitors during the 2-0 shutout win.

__________________________________________

SAN JOSE—Valley Christian High freshman girls soccer player Sara Van Wagoner certainly knows how to make an entrance.

On a field littered with young players, the young Valley Christian underclassman scored the first goal of the game and recorded an assist on the second, helping her team defeat Scotts Valley High 2-0 on a chilly Tuesday afternoon at Valley Christian High.

The non-league matchup was the season opener for both girls soccer teams, kicking off the 2010 season in style for the blue-and-white-clad hosts.

Valley Christian (1-0, 0-0), a West Catholic Athletic league member, didn't waste any time before taking an early lead.

With ball possession tilted in their favor for the majority of the game, the Warriors took advantage early in the first half.

Off a quick cross from the corner, Van Wagoner was rewarded for her hard push to the net.

The corner pass landed right on the foot of the cutting freshman, who tapped in the first goal at the 10:00 mark to put Valley Christian ahead, 1-0.

"It was great to score in my first game," Van Wagoner said. "I didn't expect it. I'm more of an assist player. It feels great."

Two minutes later, the Valley Christian offensive pressure struck again.

After two shots were blocked away from the net, another freshman contributed to the cause.

 Kendra Stewart banged in the rebound goal to push the lead to 2-0, putting the visitors in a big early hole.

"We made some mistakes with our youth today," Scotts Valley assistant coach Mike Ross said. "Playing at this level is completely different. We are very young. Today was a good learning experience for us."

Junior forwards Jessica Romeo and Taylor Rohde finally gave their defense a little breather midway through the first half, putting together a nice give-and-go in the midfield.

However, whenever a little open space popped up, the Warriors defense quickly recovered.

The Falcons were held without a shot on net during the 80-minute contest.

Senior captain Aly Bothman is one of only three seniors on the young 2010 squad.

"We improved a lot from our scrimmage last week," Bothman said. "Keeping our communication level up is a big key. Communicating better and gaining more experience will be very important for us."

Sophomore Kacey Lilly, junior Ranae Maloney and sophomore Rachel DuBridge all played steady in the back end for the Falcons.

"We intend to be very competitive," Ross said. 'This preseason will give us a chance to play against several quality opponents. Those type of games can only help down the road."

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?