Former Oak Mountain High School standout Toni Payne made her FIFA Women’s World Cup debut in Nigeria’s 0-0 draw with Canada on Friday in Melbourne, Australia.

Playing 15 time zones away from Alabama, the Birmingham native started as a midfielder in Nigeria’s Group B opener against Canada, which won the gold medal in women’s soccer at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Payne was credited with one clearance, two interceptions, one chance created and seven dribbles completed in the match at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium.

The focal point of the Friday afternoon contest came in the 50th minute, when Nigerian goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie turned away a penalty shot by Christine Sinclair, the all-time leading scorer in international soccer.

Nnadozie was named the Player of the Match.

Nigeria plays Australia at 4 a.m. CDT Thursday at Brisbane Stadium in Brisbane, Australia, in its next match.

Australia opened Group B play with a 1-0 victory over Ireland on Friday.

Nigeria will complete its Group B schedule against Ireland at 4 a.m. July 31 in Brisbane.

“It is the Group of Death,” Payne said before the tourney. “In my view, it is the most equal group in terms of the quality of the teams in the tournament.”

It’s been a big week in soccer for the Payne family. On Thursday, Paris Saint-Germain in France’s top women’s division announced it had signed Payne’s younger sister Nicole Payne to a three-year contract.

“It’s something I’ve always dreamed of,” Nicole Payne said in an interview for the team’s website. “I became a professional player when I was a teenager, and I’ve grown up playing football since I was four, so to experience a moment like this is very special. I’m really grateful to be here.”

Nicole Payne also played at Oak Mountain.

Toni Payne can play for Nigeria because her parents are natives of the country. She played for U.S. national teams at the under-17, under-20 and under-23 stages of her career.

For the rest of the soccer year, Payne is a forward for Sevilla FC in Spain’s top women’s division, Liga F.

At Oak Mountain, Payne led the Eagles to the AHSAA Class 6A girls’ soccer championship in 2012.

The next season, Mountain Brook turned back Oak Mountain in the state-championship game. But Payne received the Gatorade Girls’ Player of the Year Award for Alabama in 2013 as he had 47 goals and 35 assists. At the time, the assist total was a state single-season record.

After tallying 141 goals and 92 assists in three seasons at Oak Mountain, Payne played four seasons of college soccer at Duke, where she was an All-ACC selection in 2016 and helped the Blue Devils reach the NCAA College Cup championship match in 2015.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.