Claremont High School girls soccer certainly came out to play this year, racking up a solid 7-0-1 record just in the first couple weeks.

Monday was no exception as the Wolfpack blanked visiting Walnut High School 5-0 on a chilly night at CHS.

Right from the start it was clear that the Mustangs were in trouble when, scarcely a minute into the game, sophomore Janelle Gutierrez booted one in from about 30 yards out. It was a really pretty goal to be sure, but also a bit of a Hail Mary that many goalkeepers could have batted away.

Savannah Beans earned the unofficial MVP prize for three goals including the game’s second which came at about the five-minute point as Beans outran a defender to take on the keeper one-on-one. She also racked up the game’s two final goals which sealed the Mustang’s fate.

Sophie Jones has been the Pack’s top scorer so far this year and she added another one to her tally with a nice play shortly after the start of the second half off a pass from teammate Mackenzie Boulware.

Another storytelling stat, Claremont’s goalkeeper junior Hollyn Carlton had only one save, the exact same number of serious shots on goal that Walnut mustered.

Claremont played a solid tactical game with aggressive play and excellent passing. The girls seem to gel well as a team which is important particularly when the competition gets tough as league gives way to CIF tournament play.

After the match coach Tim Tracey told his team that he was proud of the way they played saying, “They came out strong at the start of the second half but you did not panic.” He also noted that the team did a good job of capitalizing on great opportunities.

“We’re strong as we have ever been up top,” Coach Tracey said. “Our system will make the difference, we have multiple people who can work in multiple positions, we don’t have any one individual who is going to be our go-to person.”

“Sophie has of course scored the most goals and other teams are looking at her as a target but others can get the job done,” he said.

The Pack will have two games on Friday as part of the annual Claremont Holiday Classic tournament and then will start back up with Palomares League games after the winter recess beginning January 11 when they take on Bonita, in La Verne.

—Steven Felschundneff

steven@claremont-courier.com