After a first-round  bye, the Palo Alto High School girls’ soccer team (9-2-1, 15-2-1), No. 2 seed, will play No. 7 Menlo-Atherton High School (7-4-3, 11-5-4) in the Central Coast Section quarterfinals this Saturday at Paly.

Although this will be the first time the Vikings take on M-A this season, the teams met in a scrimmage last year that resulted in a Viking loss (2-1).

“It was a tough game and a hard battle, so I expect Saturday to be a good game,” junior forward Heidi Moeser said.

Assistant coach Eric Seedman said he does not believe the Vikings’ loss to M-A last year will affect their play tomorrow.

“Each year is a new one, so past results against a specific team are not really relevant,” Seedman said. “M-A has a good team. That is our focus.”

In order to prepare for CCS, Seedman says the team has been working on the smaller details of the game.

“Things like executing and defending throw-ins, corner kicks, set plays [and] penalty kicks,” Seedman said. “We have also done some conditioning and work on defensive clearances. This should all help us get ready for tough competition.”

The Vikings have been playing strongly this season, with only two losses out of the 18 games played. Moeser says the team expects to make it far into the playoffs.

“We expect to make it all the way to the finals and win by playing the way we know how to,” Moeser said.

The Vikings will kick off against M-A at noon tomorrow at the Hod Ray Field.