June 1, 2025 | UPSL Women’s Division | Bob Pates Stadium, Burnsville, MN
Vlora Starting XI: Gracie Freyberg, Andreas Delius, Keira Olabode, Sisley Wessel, Olivia Peal, Julia Taylor, Alyssa Freeman, Tina Million, Emma Olson, Hannah Hagman, Halima Bigirindavyi
The Vlora women’s team earned their first win of the season on Sunday, hosting the Karen Football Association in a 5-1 win at Bob Pates Stadium to leap over some of the early hurdles they have faced this UPSL season. Both teams entered the game looking for their first point and Vlora were still awaiting a first goal of the season. The hosts would get what they needed on both accounts.
Vlora started with the majority of the possession and pressed high on the KFA. The hosts had made a few changes to the starting XI on Sunday and one of those changes was ready to go when one of the first serious scoring chance arrived. Sisley Wessel took a corner from the right side for Vlora and was still in the area when the ball was eventually recycled out. She took a few steps into the box and cut a shot across a sharp diagonal angle, finding the underside of the bar to dink in her first goal of the season.
Vlora had a deserved goal, but had to do some defensive work in response as the opener helped spark some chances on the count for KFA. Goalkeeper Gracie Freyberg had it under control and was able to get a full game to continue to build connections with the likes of Hagman, Million, and Olabode in defense. The KFA players did find momentary opportunities to press high and get scrappy with the Vlora backline, forcing the hosting defenders to spring into action in a game where the ball was often on the far side of the pitch.
The fun was not over for the half, however, as Olivia Peal had her say with the game. Peal scored twice in the first half, using her speed and ball control to break through KFA’s lines and high-stepping goalkeeper to chip one shot in and sink a low shot for a second. Peal, who has been active non-stop across the team’s games pressing for the ball, had finally found the rewards for her work. The KFA came out of halftime, during which Vlora led 3-0, with more energy and some changes that forced Vlora to work for its clean sheet. The hosts were able to swing momentum back their way with a third goal for Peal to complete her hat trick. She went on to be named player of the match.
Peal, a St. Michael-Albertville-alum who now attends Jacksonville University, told team media that she was happy to get back to scoring for Vlora and capitalizing on the hard work the team has put in recently.
“It felt really good to score. We focused in this week and trained harder to make this happen. We focused on the things we weren’t doing well and where we needed growth. You could see the results on the field today, which feels amazing. It’s great to see the things you see in practice and everyone doing their part.”
Sunday’s game left Vlora just short of the halfway mark for the 2025 regular season, a factor that Peal added shows there is still a lot of time for the women’s team to come together and achieve their goals.
“A shaky start can be kind of expected with a group like this, where we’ve only been together a couple months and most of us are coming from different teams, different styles and formations,” Peal explained. “The more we work on connecting and fusing our styles, the better we’ll be. Today can be the start of something great and it shows that we’re working. We have a lot of season left and we can still get a lot done.”
Vlora’s final goal was scored by Lauren Smith, who had come in at halftime alongside Gabi Medeiros and Ellie Nhean to help Vlora spread minutes across the roster on a day that proved major for team morale. Her shot scooped cleverly over the keeper to make it 5-0, though KFA did eventually score a shot from distance to make it 5-1 just before the full time whistle. All three Vlora players made positive impacts on the game, as did second half substitutes like Julia Lindow, Mia Silva, and Maggie McAlister.
