VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds improved to 3-1-1 on the year, tying them for the top spot in Canada West, thanks to a 3-0 win over the Alberta Pandas in Saturday's home opener at Wright Field.
After struggling to find their form last weekend in Victoria, the T-Birds wasted no time taking control on Saturday.
Kira Graham scored the first two goals for the 'Birds and
Shanlee Johnston added a third just before halftime, and the home side cruised comfortably through the second half to pick up the win.
"We had been struggling to score field goals, and we got three today," said UBC head coach Hash Kanjee. "Obviously we still have to sort out our set plays, but I am encouraged by the fact the forwards got three goals."
Graham broke in on goal in the 16th minute and was able to get a shot off just in time to beat Pandas keeper Alyssa Greco to open the scoring. She added her second in the 30th minute, when Greco made the initial save on a T-Bird shot but was beaten on the rebound.
Johnston, one of UBC's many rookies, extended the lead to 3-0 with just a few seconds remaining before halftime.
"It is a young group this year and you can see that with a lot of unforced errors, and we have to fix that," Kanjee said. "Alberta gave us a little bit more room than Calgary or Victoria, so we were able to build on some things, but it's not going to be easy."
Rookie goalkeeper
Bea Francisco recorded her second shutout of the year for UBC. Her biggest test came early in the second half, when she made a sprawling save on a redirected shot from Alberta's Toni Almhjell. The Pandas ended up with three consecutive short corner opportunities as a result of that chance, but all three were thwarted by Francisco and the T-Bird defence.
The Pandas fall to 0-5 on the year, and will be looking to break into the win column on Sunday when they finish their series with the T-Birds at Wright Field. Game two begins at 1 p.m.
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