Files from U of A Sports Information
EDMONTON - The no. 5 UBC Thunderbirds couldn't complete the comeback effort on Sunday as they ended their 2010 regular season with a 2-1 loss to the no. 4 ranked Alberta Golden Bears at Foote Field in Edmonton.
Golden Bears defender Antonio Rago picked up a goal and an assist in the victory while Canada West leading scorer Sam Lam notched the other Alberta tally.
Rookie midfielder
Sean Haley scored the single for the T-Birds.
Lam, who finishes the season with 19 points in 13 games, scored his eighth goal of the season in the 27th minute when he took a Rago pass while in the middle of the 18-yard box and had his shot go off a UBC defender before finding the back of the goal.
In the 41st minute, Edmonton native Rago marked his first goal of the season when he perfectly sailed a free kick right into the top of the net, giving the Bears a 2-0 lead at halftime.
UBC poured on the pressure in the second half, sending 12 shots in Alberta's direction, with fourth-year midfielder
Tyson Keam leading the way with four shots.
Unfortunately for the Thunderbirds, Alberta netminder Steven Reid, who was playing his last regular season game for the Bears, made six saves in the final 45 minutes, totaling eight on the afternoon.
Reid also caught a piece of Vancouver native Haley's shot in the 76th minute on a two-on-one, but it powered through to break Reid's shutout bid. Grabbing the assist on the goal was UBC 'keeper
Matt Robinson.
With an 11-2-1 record, the first-place Bears will host the Canada West Final Four next weekend, facing off against the fourth-place Saskatchewan Huskies (7-4-3) while the T-Birds (8-3-3) match-up against the third-place Calgary Dinos (8-4-2).
Alberta has clinched a spot at the CIS Championships in Toronto the following weekend as conference regular season champions and will be joined by the winner (or second-place finisher if Alberta wins) of the CW Final Four.
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