Sonora bests Summerville in girls’ soccer,
Sonora defeats Summerville 5-0 as rivalry renews
Sonora High School’s varsity girls soccer team defeated Summerville 5-0 Tuesday evening at Dunlavy Field in a match pitting the rivals against each other for the first time since COVID-19 restrictions shut down high school sports in spring 2020.
Amarys Machado, a senior co-captain for the Wildcats, opened the scoring early in the first half. She has scored eight goals in her last three matches.
Sonora improved to 3-0 on the season, which will include at least three more matches against Summerville. Summerville, who defeated Bret Harte 2-0 last Thursday at Thorsted Field in Tuolumne, fell to 1-1 so far in the current modified Mother Lode League standings.
Tuesday’s game was originally scheduled at Thorsted Field, and the rivals were supposed to play again Thursday at Sonora High School. However, the game was moved to Dunlavy Field in Sonora because there was too much snow on Thorsted Field on Monday.
The Bears are scheduled to host the Wildcats at 5:45 p.m. Thursday in Tuolumne.
Summerville’s senior co-captains, sweeper Kamryn Pitcher and forward Mikaila Kronholm, didn’t complain about the venue changes after Tuesday’s match.
“We learned a lot tonight,” Pitcher said after the game. “We get to play them three more times, so now we have to move forward. We learned a lot about ourselves and their team tonight. We know what to work on.”
Kronholm said she and her teammates are glad to be playing at all. They weren’t sure they’d have a soccer season this academic year.
“With the circumstances, I’m very proud of our team,” Kronholm said Tuesday evening. “I’m very proud. We put up a good fight and we didn’t give up.”
Gabrielle Frediani, a right-footed left wing for the Wildcats, scored with her left foot to make it 2-0 in the first half. Frediani said she received a pass as she moved down the left, dribbled around a defender, and then chipped the ball over the goalkeeper.
Sonora’s Alexia Villegas scored on a header from the right to make it 3-0 later in the first half. In the second half, Irelynd Speer scored the fourth goal for the Wildcats from distance before Ava Vann made it 5-0 to close out the scoring.
Sonora’s defense helped Wildcats goalkeeper Hanna Nunnelley earn her first shutout of the pandemicshortened season. Sonora is now 3-0 with consecutive victories over Calaveras last week, in Valley Springs and Sonora.
Victoria Gast and Ellery Stewart scored goals for the Bears in Summerville’s 2-0 home win over Bret Harte last Thursday.
The Wildcats then face Bret Harte in Angels Camp on Tuesday and host Bret Harte on March 25. They also play Summerville again home-and-away on March 30 and April 1.
Summerville is scheduled to play Calaveras twice next week, with the Bears hosting on Tuesday and Calaveras hosting at Toyon Middle School on March 25.