The Vikings’ girls soccer team looked strong in their season opener with a 3-0 victory against Woodside.

Right out of the gate the Vikings had the ball moving. In the opening minutes of the game a flurry of nice passes left Tess Preising (‘17) with a solid shot on goal that was deflected by the goalie. On the ensuing corner kick, Preising scored to give Paly the early lead at 1-0.

At 12 minutes, Talia Malchin (‘17) showed her powerful leg as she almost scored on a 50-yard boot from midfield. At 15 minutes in, the Vikings continued to dominate possession and Woodside had yet to log any shots on target.

Paly’s attack continued to produce opportunities on offense, with nice crosses from Emily Tomz (‘18) and Reilly Filter (‘17), and a good look at goal from Claire Moley (‘19). At 20 minutes in, the Vikings finally were able to cash in on one of those opportunities. Freshman Chloe Japic (‘20) scored her first varsity goal in impressive fashion, leading with her left foot. The Vikings lead 2-0.

When asked about Paly’s striking performance on offense, Lauola Amanoni (‘17) was thrilled with Japic’s performance.

“There’s some new rising stars coming up, and I’m super excited for them because they are looking good,” she said.

Japic showed her versatility with several more powerful shots that were saved by Woodside’s goalie just before half time.

The second half began quiet offensively for the Vikings. Still, at 73 minutes, they began to heat up again as junior Darrow Hornik (‘18) hit a shot that just missed, nicking the cross bar. Then at 78 minutes, junior Ally Scheve (‘18) cashed in with a goal after a well-executed passing play to give Paly a 3-0 lead.

The Vikings defense dominated the remaining minutes just as they had all game, with little pushback from Woodside. PALY’s defense played phenomenally and only allowed Woodside two shots on goal.

The exciting opening performance from Paly’s defense was summed up well when Amanoni spoke in a postgame interview with Viking.

“We have a lot of new players and this is the first time that we’ve actually come together to play, and we did a really good job,” Amanoni said.

Look to catch the Lady Vikes in their rivalry game this Thursday at Gunn High School at 6:00 PM.