Woodside soccer shut down by St. Francis

Given how much Woodside struggled at times this season, a runner-up finish was quite an accomplishment.

“I’m satisfied for the girls. [Our season] was not a matter of improving, it was surviving. We had about 15 must-win games,” said Woodside head coach Jose Navarrete. “Any type of trophy will do.”

St. Francis (13-8-3) took a quick 1-0 lead before most anyone had settled in. The Wildcats stabilized and played the Lancers even for most of the rest of the game before St. Francis iced it early in the second half with its second goal.

While the defense was mostly up to the challenge, the offense for Woodside (9-5-8) was mostly lacking. The Wildcats managed just four shots for the game, only two of which were on frame. St. Francis, conversely, pulled the trigger on 10 shots, six of which were on goal.

Most of the fans were still settling into the bleachers at Valley Christian when the Lancers took a 1-0 lead just three minutes into the game. Courtney Mathisen received a pass at the top of the Woodside penalty box and placed her shot just inside the right post for what turned out to be the game-winning goal.

“It was not a real good start for by us,” Navarrete said.

Woodside, to its credit, steadied itself after the flash goal and held the Lancers to just one other shot on goal over the final 37 minutes of the opening half. The Wildcats had a chance to equalize 10 minutes later, but could not take advantage. A ball was sent to the top of the St. Francis penalty box where it skipped past the Lancers goalkeeper, who had come well off her line to make a play on the ball. Woodside’s Gabriella Silvestri was in position to latch on to the loose ball and when she looked up, she saw an empty net.

But her shot attempt slipped off her foot in the soggy conditions and sliced well wide of the frame.

“[A goal there] would have helped, but we still had a lot of game left,” Navarrete said.

Unfortunately for the Wildcats, it would be their best chance.

Woodside got a good look early in the second half, but Raquel Krampert’s shot was saved four minutes after the halftime break.

Three minutes later, St. Francis doubled its advantage as the Lancers’ Stanford connection, sophomore twins Catherine and Sarah Paulson who have both committed to the college power, combined to give their team a 2-0 lead. Catherine Paulson started the sequence by beating a couple of Woodside defenders to gain the penalty box. She then hit a pass back to sister Sarah Paulson, who was stationed at the top of the box before she quickly slotted a through ball to Morgan Ketas, who hammered a shot into the back of the net.

Rebecca Weeks’ looping shot in the 54th minute soared just a bit high for Woodside, which would be the Wildcats’ best chance of the second half.

“Overall, the best team won today,” Navarrete said. “This is our first loss in eight games. We lost to a good team today.”