The Acalanes Dons Freshman team closed out their preseason schedule undefeated with a dominant 7–0 non-league road victory over Emerald High School on Saturday morning. The Dons, who had 3 players notch 2 goals each, controlled the match from start to finish, pulling away in the second half to secure the shutout on the road. 

The balanced, offensive effort was led by winger James Ammerman, who scored two goals and was named “Man of the Match.“

Acalanes struck first just seven minutes in when midfielder Jonny Rubin capitalized on a defensive breakdown, finishing a perfect pass into an open net. While the Dons maintained possession and pressure throughout the first half, Emerald stayed in the game by playing a high press that repeatedly caught Acalanes offsides, with seven calls in the opening 20 minutes alone. Emerald’s goalkeeper also delivered a series of outstanding saves to keep the score close as the half progressed.

As the first half wound down, Acalanes finally broke through again on a corner kick, with Ammerman finishing his first goal to give the Dons a 2–0 lead heading into halftime.

The second half opened with a steady stream of Dons pressure. Nine minutes in, David “The Machine” Penn sent in a well placed cross to Samuel Chamberlain, who rose to head it home to make it 3–0. 

The match became more physical soon after, with Emerald picking up two blatant fouls that led to yellow cards. Acalanes remained composed, however, as Nick Siewert delivered a perfect ball to Calder Williamson, who finished confidently to extend the lead to 4–0.

Williamson added his second score of the night when Kacper Zarzycki won the ball in midfield and set up a perfect pass that Ammerman controlled smoothly and lifted a composed finish over the goalkeeper for the fifth goal of the match. 

Late in the game, Chamberlain scored his second, finishing from close range off a corner sent in by Mason Foster. The scoring was capped when Ammerman stole the ball off the restart and fired a strike from just outside the box.

Over four preseason matches, the Dons freshman squad outscored opponents 26–1, a testament to the team’s defensive strength and organization. Goalkeepers Matt Roberts and Lucas Leingan anchored the back line with confident, consistent play, while defenders Luke Fratarcangeli, Gibran Khan, Logan Lewis, Tyler Anderson, Owen Lee, and Makai Ramsey provided disciplined support, helping shut down attacks and limit opponents to a single goal all preseason. Go Dons!