Holy Angels girls' soccer coach Dave Marshak and his staff marveled in preseason practice as goalkeeper Chloe Sandness boomed kicks on frame from considerable distances.

Sandness' ability to launch shots gave Marshak and his staff an idea.

"We decided it might be interesting to bring her forward to take offensive free kicks," Marshak wrote in an email.

The unusual, though not unprecedented, move has paid dividends.

Holy Angels, ranked No. 1 in Class 2A in the most recent coaches poll, beat Breck School 2-1 on Aug. 27 with help from a Sandness goal.

"Her goal was from their 40-yard line, which means it would have been 50 yards from goal," Marshak wrote. "She hammered it and it nestled right into the top corner far post."

Beginner's luck? Hardly. The senior captain struck again two games later in a 5-1 victory against Richfield. Sandness blasted the shot from the Stars' 40-yard line, meaning the goal traveled a total of 70 yards. (Most high school soccer fields are lined for football. Soccer goals sit in the back of the end zone.)

"She wasn't even really trying to score on that one, just drop it in behind the defensive line," Marshak said. "But she thumped it, and the defender and goalkeeper mixed up their signals and the ball bounced in."

Sandness is drawing attention for scoring while remaining a key part of a strong defense. She was a first-team all-state selection last season and the Tri-Metro Conference Goalkeeper of the Year. She is on the 2022 High School All-American watch list. And she is already committed to play soccer at the University of Manitoba in Canada next year.

This season, Sandness has permitted just two goals for a Stars team hungry to better last season's third-place finish at the state tournament.

Stopping goals is job No. 1 for Sandness, but her scoring prowess gives Marshak the desire to provide more chances from a distance.

"There is a good chance she may get more as the season goes on," he said. "It's a real weapon. Maybe it's the gambler in me, or maybe I just like the energy it puts in the stadium, but I don't hesitate to bring her up to let her try. I am sure at some point we get burned on a counter attack — but that will be exciting too!"