Posted: Dec 08, 2025
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Senior midfielder Miley Blough assisted on the first goal then scored the second in leading St. Francis to a 2-0 shutout over Rio Americano in the varsity opener of a non-league girls' prep soccer tripleheader at Cristo Rey's Adamson Family Sports Complex Monday.
The Troubadours improve to 2-1 for the year. The Raiders open their season at 0-1.
Blough delivered a corner kick off of the Rio goalkeeper to sophomore Monet Zauner in the 26th minute of the contest, putting SF on the board and helping shift the momentum of a contest in which the Raiders had dominated possession for the majority of the first half. Then Blough scored a goal of her own midway through the second half. She faked one way, then turned the other for a blast from the penalty arc with 19:12 left in the game, or 61st minute overall.
Blough's goal came on her sixth shot of the contest, but oddly, it was the University of Nevada commit's first attempt that arguably sparked St. Francis' surge in the first half. Mia Nelson and Eliza Hurley had put shots on goal in the 10th and 15th minutes, respectively, then Zauner had a shot field blocked in the 17th, but the ball largely stayed in Rio's attacking end for the first 24 minutes of the contest.
In the 25th, Blough fired her first shot that Raider keeper Mikaela Cano saved over the top of the cage. The Troubies did not convert that corner kick, but a minute later, Blough sent another shot that senior defender Charlie Jones deflected across the endline. This sent Blough to the corner marker yet again. This time, the ball made its way past sophomore Brynn Baker in the box to Cano's gloves, then glanced to Zauner for the tap-in finish.
St. Francis outshot its guest by a 8-0 margin from the Zauner goal to the halftime break. Blough nearly assisted Zauner a second time with 1:55 left in the half, but Cano swooped in to intercept the serve.
Rio came out firing in the second half in a similar manner as it had to start the game, but a shot off goalkeeper Mia Rabinovitz plus another striking the crossbar held up the Troubies' lead. Overall, the Raiders held a 5-0 shooting advantage across the first 10 minutes in the second half before Blough's goal broke that stretch. St. Francis then controlled possession for the next 13 minutes, with a Nelson attempt nearly finding its way to the back of the net in the 74th. Rabinovitz came up with a spectacular save in the 77th when she smothered a charge from junior striker Isabella Chong.
Monday's win marked the second individual shutout of the year for the sophomore Rabinovitz, and the 11th overall.
The Troubadours' Gold and Red junior varsity squads followed the varsity win with losses of 5-1 and 6-1 to the Raiders, respectively. Gold faced a 4-0 deficit at halftime and a 5-0 hole by the 47th before spoiling the shutout bid in the 53rd. Sophomore Paityn Lowery scored on a header from Anna George on a corner kick for her first goal of the year.
The Troubadours improve to 2-1 for the year. The Raiders open their season at 0-1.
Blough delivered a corner kick off of the Rio goalkeeper to sophomore Monet Zauner in the 26th minute of the contest, putting SF on the board and helping shift the momentum of a contest in which the Raiders had dominated possession for the majority of the first half. Then Blough scored a goal of her own midway through the second half. She faked one way, then turned the other for a blast from the penalty arc with 19:12 left in the game, or 61st minute overall.
Blough's goal came on her sixth shot of the contest, but oddly, it was the University of Nevada commit's first attempt that arguably sparked St. Francis' surge in the first half. Mia Nelson and Eliza Hurley had put shots on goal in the 10th and 15th minutes, respectively, then Zauner had a shot field blocked in the 17th, but the ball largely stayed in Rio's attacking end for the first 24 minutes of the contest.
In the 25th, Blough fired her first shot that Raider keeper Mikaela Cano saved over the top of the cage. The Troubies did not convert that corner kick, but a minute later, Blough sent another shot that senior defender Charlie Jones deflected across the endline. This sent Blough to the corner marker yet again. This time, the ball made its way past sophomore Brynn Baker in the box to Cano's gloves, then glanced to Zauner for the tap-in finish.
St. Francis outshot its guest by a 8-0 margin from the Zauner goal to the halftime break. Blough nearly assisted Zauner a second time with 1:55 left in the half, but Cano swooped in to intercept the serve.
Rio came out firing in the second half in a similar manner as it had to start the game, but a shot off goalkeeper Mia Rabinovitz plus another striking the crossbar held up the Troubies' lead. Overall, the Raiders held a 5-0 shooting advantage across the first 10 minutes in the second half before Blough's goal broke that stretch. St. Francis then controlled possession for the next 13 minutes, with a Nelson attempt nearly finding its way to the back of the net in the 74th. Rabinovitz came up with a spectacular save in the 77th when she smothered a charge from junior striker Isabella Chong.
Monday's win marked the second individual shutout of the year for the sophomore Rabinovitz, and the 11th overall.
The Troubadours' Gold and Red junior varsity squads followed the varsity win with losses of 5-1 and 6-1 to the Raiders, respectively. Gold faced a 4-0 deficit at halftime and a 5-0 hole by the 47th before spoiling the shutout bid in the 53rd. Sophomore Paityn Lowery scored on a header from Anna George on a corner kick for her first goal of the year.
Red opened its season by surrendering three unanswered before freshman Victoria Tateishi finished a counterattack in the 30th minute. Other than Keira Jennings' free kick in the sixth, Tateishi had every Troubie shot in the nightcap. Meanwhile, the Raiders attempted 29 shots, with 21 on goal.
Monday's set also featured the annual soccer "Booster-Q" barbecue and a toy drive to support the Stanford Settlement's Operation Cratchit.
All three teams resume action this weekend in tournament play. Varsity kicks off action at River City's Raider Cup Classic on Thursday against Pioneer at 3:05 p.m., with JV Gold also taking on Pioneer in the same tourney Friday morning. JV Red heads west to the Carondelet Macaulay Cougar Classic, taking on Berkeley on Friday night at 7:30 p.m.
