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Early goals lift Troubies in rematch of 2024 title games

Early goals lift Troubies in rematch of 2024 title games

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Senior Jada Dwyre and junior Miley Blough each netted goals within a 17-minute span in the first half, boosting St. Francis to a 2-0 win over Granite Bay in the varsity matchup of a Sierra Foothill League girls' soccer tripleheader at Cristo Rey's Adamson Family Sports Complex Thursday.

The Troubies improve to 5-0-3 for the year, extending their unbeaten streak of 15 games dating back to last season's regular-season finale. St. Francis has now won five straight games in the head-to-head series with GB, including three shutout wins in the 2024 calendar year: the Troubies beat the Grizzlies in the Sac-Joaquin Section final on February 24; then repeated the feat in the NorCal Regional title match one week later, both by 1-0 final scores.

Dwyre's score came in the 12th minute, on the second overall St. Francis shot and the first shot on goal. Junior Madeline Squaglia sprinted up the right sideline to the corner, then played a cross to Dwyre on the near side of the box. Blough's goal followed in the 28th, when she hooked a corner kick off the gloves of GB goalkeeper Ellie Ow and into the cage.

Those two goals stood up for the remainder of the game, despite 13 total Grizzly shots and nine after the Blough corner strike. Freshman Mia Rabinovitz tallied three saves en route to her shutout, oddly all on headers. St. Francis managed only three of their nine second-half shots on goal, all in the final 15 minutes.

The varsity win followed a 3-0 shutout by SF's Gold junior varsity squad in the opener. Annika Rose drew a foul just above the 18 in the 17th minute, with Emma Kryski converting the free kick. Freshman Azaria Agbodike continually got through the Grizzly back line throughout the first half, eventually notching a goal courtesy of a Mariko Palmieri cross in the 35th.

Granite Bay managed to protect its cage for almost the entirety of the second half – that is, until the final 30 seconds. Palmieri posted her second assist of the game, this time to fellow freshman Anna George to set the board at 3-0. Sophomore keepers Gianna Flesoras and Guinevere O'Brien combined for JV Gold's fifth shutout of the year, notching save totals of four and five, respectively.

Finally, the JV Red forged a 1-1 draw with Granite Bay in the frosh-soph finale, with Charlotte Kryski assisting Elizabeth McNearney off the latter freshman's corner kick in the 69 minute. The one-goal lead held up until the 78th, when a Troubie and a Grizzly collided just inside the right edge of the box. That contact was ruled a foul, and GB buried the ensuing penalty kick for the equalizer.

Thursday's set closes out the calendar year for St. Francis soccer, with the team returning to competition on January 7 in continued league play at Whitney. Start times follow the Tuesday format:3:30 p.m. for JV Red, 5:30 for varsity and 7:15 for JV Gold.