Hillsdale nets a big victory

Up 1-0 midway through the second half, Gallatin’s unbelievable volley put an exclamation point on the Knights’ 2-0 win.

The win increased the lead for Hillsdale (7-0-3 PAL Bay, 24 points; 10-1-5 overall) to six points over Woodside (5-2-3, 18 points; 8-3-3) with a handful of games left in the regular season and extends their unbeaten streak to 14 games. The Knights haven’t lost since dropping a 2-0 decision to Monte Vista-Danville in the season opener Dec. 3.

“To seal the game like that was special,” Gallatin said.

The strike was started by a free kick just outside the Woodside penalty box on the right side of the field. Tyler Hughes sent a cross into the box and it deflected high in air toward the upper left corner of the Wildcats’ 18-yard box.

Right where Gallatin was positioned. Gallatin kept his eye on the ball, striking it perfectly in the air and sending a rocket to the far, upper right corner of the net to set off a wild celebration.

“I kind of blanked out,” Gallatin said, a senior. “I just saw it in the air. I heard, ‘It’s you! It’s you! So I took the shot. … It felt very good. I was on JV last year, so I didn’t get to experience all that winning. To have an impact in an important game is special to me.”

Gallatin said he had been practicing his finishing over the last couple of weeks and the work paid off with his second goal of the season in the 61st minute.

“It was an amazing goal,” said Hillsdale head coach Jaime Gomez. “You just have to be ready for it. What a goal at the right time.”

It gave the Knights some breathing room as the two teams renewed a rivalry that began last season as the two battled it out for the 2025 Ocean Division title, which Hillsdale won on the final day of the season. The Knights beat Woodside 3-0 and went on to capture their first Central Coast Section soccer championship.

Both teams earned a promotion to the Bay Division for the 2026 campaign and it looked like the Wildcats might have closed the gap, playing the Knights to a 1-all draw Jan. 9.

Wednesday, Woodside could not keep up or slow down a Hillsdale squad that played one of its better games of the season. It appeared the Knights took a 1-0 lead in just third minute when Anthony Pozzobon hit a waist-high side kick that was buried in the far right corner of the net, but was waved off because of offside.

It may not have counted, but the Knights certainly had the Wildcats’ attention.

“It was offside, but it was announcing we were here,” Gomez said.

And it was only a matter of time before Hillsdale got a goal to count. While Cristian Gomez was loosing up the left flank with countless attacks, the rest of the forward line was using a high press, forcing Wildcat turnovers in their own end and leading to runs at the Woodside goal.

And midway through the first half, the Knights broke through. Bernardo Chaparro started the sequence by jumping up into the attack from his right fullback spot, making a long run into the attacking third before laying the ball off to Hughes.

The Woodside defense cleared the initial danger, but the Knights intercepted the ball and were back on the attack. Chaparro sent a cross to the middle of the field from near the right sideline, where Gallatin managed to flick it into the path of Cristian Gomez.

The senior wing chased down the ball on a weakside run, beat his defender and then beat the goalkeeper just inside the far right post to put the Knights’ up 1-0 in the 21st minute.

“Cristian has been great this season, giving the team what we need — taking people on, getting off crosses,” Coach Gomez said.

While the Hillsdale offense was not letting Woodside rest, the Knights’ defense was just as effective as reigning Daily Journal Athlete of the Week, Hillsdale goalkeeper Emi Lopez, was not called into action too often as his defensive line did a fantastic job of cutting off the Woodside attack.

It is the fourth shutout in a row for Lopez and the Knights’ defense, which has allowed a total of five goals this season.

Despite the big win, there is still plenty of work for the Knights to do if they are to become the first team since the 2005 and 2006 Hillsdale teams to win an Ocean Division and Bay Division title in back-to-back years.

“We know the job’s not finished,” Gallatin said.

Next up for the Knights is another monster match as they’ll be on the road at second-place Burlingame at 4:30 p.m. Friday. Coach Gomez said he met with his team captains last weekend to stress the importance of this week.

“Woodside had been playing well. Getting results. We knew what (Wednesday’s game) meant,” Coach Gomez said. “We knew this week was an important week. This week is a decisive week.”