East Union High kicked off Valley Oak League with a 4-0 win against Central Catholic.

“Our defense played well,” said Lancers coach Carlos Gaspar on Monday. “We did good job controlling the game.”

Hailey Sims scored twice for East Union (1-0 VOL, 4-3-2). The junior midfielder also came through with an assist against the Raiders (0-1 VOL, 2-3-1).

Taylor McMahon and Taylor Campbell both had a goal and an assist in the Valley Oak League opener played at Dino Cunial Field.

Gaspar praised the efforts of his two junior goal keepers, Kylie Mendez and Malia Allen.

As for scoring opportunities, East Union took 23 shots including 10 on goal. “We have to do a better job on converting on those opportunities,” Gaspar added.

The Lancers will travel to Oakdale on Wednesday.

Manteca 3, Oakdale 2

OAKDALE – The Buffaloes broke a 2-2 in the second half with Kaley Miller delivering the go-ahead score off a pass from Jordyn Silva.

Miller assisted Caitlynn Wong’s first-half goal. At that point, Manteca (1-0 VOL, 9-0-2) led 2-0 following Cameron Silva’s early score, which was assisted by Esmeralda Ochoa.

“They scored twice early in the second half,” said Manteca coach Justin Coenenberg on the quick attack by the Mustangs (0-1, 3-3-2).

The Buffaloes had a 22-7 advantage over Oakdale at shots on-goal.

“It was good way to start the season, especially with a win like that on the road,” Coenenberg added.

His team will travel to Central Catholic on Wednesday.

Kimball 7, Weston Ranch 0

STOCKTON – The Cougars opened league play with a lopsided loss to visiting Kimball.

Weston Ranch (0-1 VOL, 0-7-2) will play in the Kimball Christmas Classic in Tracy beginning on Thursday.

Ceres 1, Lathrop 0

CERES – The Spartans (1-1 Western Athletic Conference, 7-2) suffered a tough loss on the road.

The Bulldogs scored the game’s only goal in the 79th minute off a direct kick.

“Our defense played well throughout the game,” said Lathrop coach Jose Montes.

His team will travel to Pacheco on Wednesday for another WAC clash.

Ripon Christian 1, Mariposa 0

MARIPOSA – The Knights won a pivotal game, squeaking past the defending Southern League champion Grizzlies on their home turf on Monday.

“The first half was tightly contested with both teams having good opportunities to score,” said RC coach Kevin Tameling.

Shortly before the end of the half, RC (2-0 SL, 3-2-1) took advantage of a golden opportunity off a corner kick.

Rachel Oosterman drove a ball to the back post, with freshman Maya DeJong trapping the ball and shooting it past the keeper.

In the second half, the Knights fended off Mariposa constant attacks by playing strong defense. RC goalie Nicole Chapman came away with 12 saves to earn the shutout.

Boys varsity

Ben Holt Academy 2, Ripon 1

LODI – The Indians (3-4) took the early lead in the non-league affair against the Bobcats at the Grape Bowl.

Bart Flamini’s unassisted score put his team ahead only to see Ben Holt Academy (2-1) counter later in the half for the 1-1 tie.

The Bobcats went ahead for good early in the second half. “It was a ball that took a bad bounce on our part,” said Ripon coach Tiffany Gonsalves.

The Indians will play Calaveras at Stouffer Field at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Mariposa 3, Ripon Christian 0

MARIPOSA – The Knights opened Southern League play with a loss to the Grizzlies (1-0).

Ripon Christian (0-1) was credited for playing solid defense. “Our midfielders also did a good job of controlling the action,” said coach Christian Manes.

The Knights will continue league play at Delhi on Thursday. Game time is 3:30 p.m.

Sierra 5, Kimball 0

The Timberwolves controlled this VOL match from the outset, with Audie Garza scoring early on to pace the attack.

In the 38th minute, Andrew Banegas made it 2-0 with his score.

He helped add to the lead with another goal. Gabriel Cervantes was credited with the assist.

Goals by Jordan Shin and Manny Magana closed out the scoring for Sierra.

JV boys

Sierra 4, Kimball 2

Alejandro Paz scored twice and Paul Pimentel and Armanveet Singh added a goal each for Sierra.

JV girls

East Union 8, Oakdale 0

Brittney Barrington led the Lancers in the home win by scoring four goals and delivering two assists in the VOL opener.

Giselle Hamilton chipped in with a pair of scores while Melanie Gonzales and Taylor Theiss added a goal each.