Mustangs lose 5-0
Palo Alto – The Gilroy girls’ soccer team got an eyeful in its season opener against Palo Alto.
The A League Vikings exploited the Mustangs weaknesses and opened the season with a 5-0 nonleague win.
“It was a good learning experience for us,” GHS coach Jose Hernandez said. “That was especially so for our first-year players. They got to see that as quick as we think we are, other teams are quicker, and as hard as we think we’re working, other teams are working harder.”
The game got off to a promising start as the Mustangs were able to dominate the tempo offensively during the first five minutes with Ariane Vera leading the charge. Once Palo Alto began to get the ball to the corner and get Gilroy players out of position, it was able to control the tempo and led 2-0 at halftime.
Hernandez wasn’t happy with the communication of the defense in the first half, but he felt the girls worked that out at halftime. Sophomore defender Cheyenne Strametz saved two shots when the Vikings drew Sara Hugo out of the goal.
“This is a level we have to get ready for as quickly as possible,” Hernandez said.
The Palo Alto JVs also won 5-0.
