WEEKEND PREVIEW: SPARTANS HOST HUSKIES AND PANDAS IN WEEKEND WOMEN’S SOCCER MATCH-UPS

WOMEN’S SOCCER (CANADA WEST)
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2011
WEEKEND PREVIEW

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WEEKEND PREVIEW: SPARTANS HOST HUSKIES AND PANDAS IN WEEKEND WOMEN’S SOCCER MATCH-UPS


LANGLEY, British Columbia – This weekend The Spartans will play their last two Canada West regular season home games at Rogers Park. On October 21 the game against the University of Saskatchewan Huskies will kick off at 5 p.m. Then on the following evening the Spartans will honour their senior athletes at conclusion of their game against the No. 6 University of Alberta Pandas at 5 p.m.

Trinity Western Spartans (8-1-1)
CIS Ranking: No. 2
Canada West ranking: 1st
Last Weekend: UBC 1-1 T
Streak: 1 tie, 9 unbeaten
2010 Canada West record: 9-3-2, 2nd
2010 Canada West Tournament: 4th
2010 CIS Tournament: N/A

Despite standing alone at first place in the Canada West conference, the Spartans face a pair of opponents that are scrambling for position in the home stretch.

Last weekend, the Spartans played a lone game against No. 4 UBC, the Spartans closest ranked opponent. Nothing was decided in this game between rivals, as ninety minutes resulted in a 1-1 tie. Rachel Ramsden opened the scoring for UBC by striking one past Kristen Funk to give UBC the lead.

The Spartans were unable to respond until Spartans rookie, Sarah-Kim Bergeron, put one on the board for Trinity Western with ten minutes left in the game. The 1-1 draw ended the Spartans winning streak at eight, but brought the Trinity Western unbeaten streak to nine games.

These last two Spartans home games will provide Trinity Western a chance to clinch a place in the playoffs.

University of Saskatchewan Huskies (5-3-2)
CIS Ranking: N/A
Canada West ranking: 5th
Last Weekend: Lethbridge 3-0 W, Calgary 1-1 T
Streak: 1 tie
2010 Canada West record: 7-6-1, 5th
2010 Canada West Tournament: N/A
2010 CIS Tournament: N/A

Currently just outside a playoff position, the Huskies need solid play and a little luck to overtake the University of Victoria. The Huskies are one point out of the Final Four but hold two games in hand over Victoria as they battle for the fourth and final playoff spot.

The Huskies managed a convincing 3-0 shutout of the Lethbridge Pronghorns last week. Opening the game slightly more than ten minutes into play, Elizabeth Hudon found her own rebound and sent it sailing past the Pronghorns keeper. Two minutes later, Lindsay Manz scored an insurance goal, making the score 2-0 by the 15 minutes mark of the game. By the final whistle the Huskies made a 3-0 game to gain the win and the shutout.

On the next day, the Calgary Dinos were not so easy to overcome. Sarah Benson scored early for the Dinos, but the Huskies responded early in the second half with a Gillian Pinder goal. The final score of 1-1 dropped the Huskies a place in the Canada West standings and kept Calgary within striking distance of their closest ranked team.

University of Alberta Pandas (8-2)
CIS Ranking: No. 6
Canada West ranking: 2nd
Last Weekend: Calgary 3-0 W, Lethbridge 2-0 W
Streak: 2 wins
2010 Canada West record: 10-2-2, 1st
2010 Canada West Tournament: 1-1, 3rd
2010 CIS Tournament: N/A

The Spartans vs. Pandas game will feature the two Canada West teams with the most points, as they battle it out for first place in the conference. The Pandas have been impressive thus far, but will face a daunting weekend lineup as they play the No. 4 UBC Thunderbirds and the No. 2 TWU Spartans.

Last weekend the Pandas wasted no time in proving their mettle against provincial rivals. Their first challenger was the Calgary Dinos, who were unable to beat the Pandas goalkeeping pair of Kelti Biggs and Christine Tallon. On the other side of the field the Pandas’ Kayla Michaels scored the game winning goal only three minutes into the game. Elise Emmott and Amanda Black scored the clinching goals for the Pandas, on their way to a 3-0 victory.

The game against Lethbridge played out as a simple win for the Pandas. Heather Lund and Darcie Kutryk scored for Alberta, while Kelti Biggs earned the shutout in a 2-0 game. Alberta’s weekend sweep solidifies them as a contender in Canada West.

All weekend matches will be broadcast live on CanadaWest.TV.

-TW-

Last Updated: 2011-10-20
Author: Mark Janzen