Waldorf was pleased by his team's overall fitness level in their first game and complimented Daigle, David Buckley, Cole Jacobsen, David Baird and freshman Kyle Wisner for tenacious defense that shut Grace Christian's offense down.

The Mariners never quite found their offensive mojo in the game, however, but Waldorf said the leadership of midfielders Nicolas Monteiro and Mark Walsworth began to gel in the second half.

"They have a lot to learn about each other and their supporting cast before they'll be able to manage the trick of guiding the team's efforts both ways for 80 minutes," he said. "I can't wait to see what happens."

The Lady Ms, meanwhile, found themselves in a similar defensive-minded battle with Grace when it came their turn on the AFS pitch, holding their own in a scoreless game until a second-half goal -- a beautiful, arching shot that sailed over the keeper and into the corner of the net -- proved to be the 1-0 game-winner for the Grizzlies.

"This was our first time playing on a full field," said Assistant Coach Sue Rennolds. "One of the disadvantages of being in Homer is not having the proper field conditions early in the year."

Add to that disadvantage the fact that three of the Lady Mariners' top players -- Lindsay Layland, Rhoslyn Jennings and Corinne Ogle -- missed the game due to academic testing going on back home, and a 0-1 loss to a good Grizzlies team looks a lot more palatable.

"The awesome thing about it was their fitness levels and their intensity on the field," said Rennolds. "We found a couple of things we can sharpen up, but there's some great potential on this team."

Like the Homer boys, the Lady Ms hung in the game on the strength of their defense. Goalkeeper Lauryn Cashman, subbing in for regular keeper Layland, did an admirable job, said Rennolds, making several nice saves and inspiring the rest of the team.

It may still be a week or more before the Homer High field is ready for soccer, but there's no time to rest for the HHS soccer teams, who head back north to the Mat-Su Valley Friday for back-to-back road games against Palmer and Colony. The Colony Knights boys' and girls' teams both finished sixth in the state tournament last year.

"I know those are both strong teams with solid reputations," said Rennolds. "They're going to be excellent competition."

Aaron Selbig can be reached at aaronselbig.@homernews.com.