Portland Soccer Wins Season Opener by a Landslide

Portland Women's Varsity Soccer traveled to Pennfield Monday evening, battling the cold, and the Panthers.

Portland walked away with the victory beating the Panthers 7-1. It was an offensive night for the Lady Raiders, seeing 5 different scorers. Leading the offense for the Raiders was Junior Gabby Weber and Freshman Karagan Calley who each had two goals. The powerful duo of Juniors Lauren Spitzley and Raina Spitzley contributed one goal each. Senior defensive powerhouse Kate Kraczon's corner kick tallied another goal for the Lady Raiders. 

Team Captains Kraczon and L. Spitzley are both excited for the upcoming season. "I feel pretty confident with the upcoming season. I think we have a  good group of girls that work well together. I’m excited to see how we do throughout the season," Kraczon stated. L. Spitzley added that she is "very excited and hopeful...I’m really looking forward to playing with our team and building chemistry to go far in the district and possibly farther."

In goal, Junior Lex Foren had numerous stops; the defense kept the ball out of the goalie box for most of the game.

Coach Ashley Schaibly, in her first year as head coach for the Lady Raiders, is optimistic for the season as she starts her career 1-0. "I'm incredibly proud of these girls for securing our first win. It’s a special moment for me as their new head coach, and their hard work the past few weeks really showed on the pitch. I believe we have the potential to achieve remarkable things this season!"

Both Captains agree. 

"With Ashley being our head coach for her first time this season, I’m confident we will experience big wins and successes," L. Spitzley said "I think we all played great, but there’s more to see from us this season as we all grow as players." Kraczon added, "Coach Ashley has done a really good job bringing this group together so fast as it’s her first year. I think we played good throughout the game as we improved as it went on."

Come support the Ladies Raiders as they pick back up play next week with two home games. 

Tuesday, April 1st is the home opener for both JV and Varsity. The Lady Raiders turn around and both teams play home again on Thursday, April 3rd. Game times are 4pm and 5:30pm both days.

Write up by Tina Hengesbach. Photos by Brita Spitzley.