The Palo Alto High School boys’ soccer team (5-2-5) broke its five-game tie streak when it defeated Santa Clara High School (1-6-3), 2-0, on Wednesday.
Coach Donald Briggs was happy to get his first victory in nearly a month.
“A win is better than a tie,” Briggs said. “I’ve never been with a team that tied five games in a row.”
At the first half of the game, Paly started off the game with a strong offensive effort, keeping the ball in Santa Clara’s half of the field. The Viking forwards were able to take aggressive shots, eventually leading to the first goal from senior midfielder John Richardson. Sophomore striker Skyler Felt soon followed with a goal of his own.
The Vikings’ offensive pressure wasn’t the only key to the win. Defensive players junior Gerrit van Zyll and senior Nittai Malchin held a strong back line, while senior keeper Austin Shiau earned another shutout in his second game back from injury.
Shiau recovered from his injury in time to replace junior keeper Kris Hoglund, who broke his leg.
“It [Kris Hoglund’s injury] affected us [the team] in two ways,” Briggs said. “One, our other keeper Austin is back to play. If Austin was healthy to play, then we could put Kris up as a forward. Kris was our leading forward last year. Two, not only did we lose our keeper but also a potentially biggest scorer.”
Emotions flared when Paly took the lead. When van Zyll intercepted a pass, a Santa Clara player pushed him and although the referee saw the scuffle, he failed to make the call. Towards the end of the first half, there was more shoving between the two teams.
In the second half, Paly was unsuccessful in scoring, but with a two-goal lead and Santa Clara struggling to create offensive opportunity, the Vikings were able to close out the victory.
With junior forward James Maa and senior forward Brandon Nguyen were subbed into the game, the Vikings kept the pressure on Santa Clara. Maa brought the ball down the sideline with speed while Nguyen cut through the middle of field with the help of senior forward Zac Hummel and Richardson.
Senior midfielder Mark Raftrey showed his ball-handling skills, narrowly escaping two opposing defenders when he cut straight through them. The Vikings’ defense held strong against Santa Clara’s forwards to preserve the shutout.
The win gives the Vikings some momentum heading into the last four games of Santa Clara Valley Athletic League play.
Paly was happy to have won the game but the victory wasn’t a surprise to them, Santa Clara was the last team the Vikings beat before their tie streak.
“It was great to finally have the streak over with,” Raftrey said. “Ties really hurt us in the standings because they’re worth a lot less than wins. If we’re going to qualify for CCS [Central Coast Section Championships], we have to keep on winning.”
The Vikings will play Los Gatos in their next home game at 3:30 p.m Tuesday, Feb. 9 at Paly.