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Nine players scored at least a goal to help the Hollister Haybalers girls soccer team defeat the Seaside Spartans 15-0 in the second game of the season.
It took four minutes for the Balers to open the score. Kylie Varnes made a run on the right side using her speed to beat a defender before taking a shot near the 6-yard box. The Seaside goalie attempted to block the ball with her foot but the ball got through near the right corner of the goal.
Five minutes later Summer Forrest scored her first goal of the game off a free kick from outside the 18-yard box. She led the Balers with three goals.
“I think it’s really important to focus on the build up of the goals,” Forrest said. “None of our goals were just cheap shots into the net. They were all off crosses or hard, well-deserved goals.”
Sydney Stacy and Mia Briano were among the four players who scored two goals each. Both scored their goals in the first half.
In the 25th minute, Stacy set up Briano for her first goal to extend the Balers’ lead to 5-0. Two minutes later, Briano returned the favor, assisting Stacy inside the 18-yard box to take a 6-0 lead.
“As a younger team we’re doing really well connecting with every single player on the field,” Stacy said.
![Summer Forrest (#11) gets her shot saved by the Seaside goalie in the first half. Photo by Noe Magaña.]()
Summer Forrest (#11) gets her shot saved by the Seaside goalie in the first half. Photo by Noe Magaña. ![Sydney Stacy scores her first goal on a shot near the 6-yard line. Photo by Noe Magaña.]()
Sydney Stacy scores her first goal on a shot near the 6-yard line. Photo by Noe Magaña. ![Samantha Alvarado-Castillo scores off a 180 degree spin to put the Balers 3-0.]()
Samantha Alvarado-Castillo (#18) scores off a 180 degree spin to put the Balers 3-0. ![Alana Tiopan makes a run on the right side of the field. Photo by Noe Magaña.]()
Alana Tiopan makes a run on the right side of the field. Photo by Noe Magaña. ![Baler Goalie Itzel Flores watches the action across the field. Seaside did not get a shot on goal in the game. Photo by Noe Magaña.]()
Baler Goalie Itzel Flores watches the action across the field. Seaside did not get a shot on goal in the game. Photo by Noe Magaña. ![Ana Kaplansky makes a on the right side of the field before crossing the ball into the penalty box. Photo by Noe Magaña.]()
Ana Kaplansky makes a on the right side of the field before crossing the ball into the penalty box. Photo by Noe Magaña. ![Mia Briano competes for ball possession. Photo by Noe Magaña.]()
Mia Briano competes for ball possession. Photo by Noe Magaña.
The Balers opened a 8-0 lead going into the half. Defender Morgen Ortiz said the big lead allowed the team to work on components of the game that will be useful in more competitive upcoming games.
“So definitely we take the second half as an opportunity to fix everything that we could do better,” she said
In the second half, the Balers focused on using the sidelines to set up plays. They scored five goals off centers.
Coach Becky Bonner said the play buildups speak to the skills of the players. “Diversity in their skill set, and their ability to shoot and move the ball—it’s going to be, if we can keep it up, a dynamic force which is really great to see.”
Bonner said the game allowed her to get all the players on the field.
“Everyone played seamlessly no matter who they were playing with,” Bonner said. “I think that says a lot about the girls—that they were looking up for each other, that they were passing to each other, they were communicating with each other.”
Bonner said a big focus of the first games is to gather data and figure out the best way to play. That includes experimenting with positions and see how players work with each other. For this reason, she set up preseason games with teams from different divisions to analyze how her team responds to different situations.
“In the next few weeks it’s going to be really nice to see how we adjust in every situation, because that’s just as important.”
The Balers are now 2-0, and are scheduled to play Pioneer High in San Jose on Dec. 6. Pioneer is coming off a 16-0 win over Yerba Buena High of San Jose.
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