A 3-2 defeat to rival Mountain View High School (18-3-1, 10-1-1) in the Central Coast Section championship game over the weekend ended a strong 2014-15 season for the Palo Alto High School girls’ soccer team (16-3-1, 9-2-1), which finished behind Mountain View in both CCS and the De Anza Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League.

According to Viking junior midfielder Alison Lu, the game was evenly matched, and her team was disappointed to lose.

“I thought the game was pretty frustrating as we had many chances in front of the goal, but just weren’t able to score,” Lu said. “We were really focused on scoring, and I think that made us forget that we still had to defend, [which resulted in us] leaving holes in our back line.”

Senior goalkeeper Sarah Lim shared similar sentiments.

“At the end of the game, we were making a comeback, and if the game lasted just a little bit longer, I think we would have gotten the tie,” Lim said.

Overall Lim felt that she was proud of the team’s performance through the last couple months.

“Unlike past seasons, we had a strong preseason, and it [that strength] continued into league play and CCS,” Lim said. “I’ll be graduating this year, but the future looks bright for Paly soccer. There are a lot of talented players in all the grades, and they know how to get back to the CCS finals.”

Lu noted the potential for success in the young team but added that the loss of key senior players will greatly impact the Vikings next season.

“The team will still be pretty strong [next season], but since the seniors from this year were a solid part of the team, it may take some time getting used to playing with different people in different positions,” Lu said.