VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds (4-1-0) return home for a critical weekend of Canada West soccer action as they welcome Alberta (5-1-0) and Saskatchewan (3-1-2) to Vancouver. First place in the conference is very much on the line as arguably the top three teams in Canada West converge on Thunderbird Park.
THIS WEEK: vs. Alberta, Fri. Oct 1, 7:15 p.m.; vs Saskatchewan, Sat. Oct 2, 7:15 p.m.; Thunderbird Park
A look at the Thunderbirds
UBC's perfect start to their 2010 campaign came to an end last weekend as they dropped their first road game of the season 1-0 to Calgary. One mistake was all the difference and once again the Canada West proved how tough it is to take points on the road. The T-Birds rebounded nicely with a confident 3-0 victory over Lethbridge on Sunday to move to 4-1-0 on the season and are a half game behind Alberta for first in the conference.
Zach Kalthoff had not conceded a goal in his first three games as a T-Bird, however, a misjudgment on a Calgary corner proved his undoing in Saturday's loss. The first year netminder rebounded, however, making a number of outsanding saves in picking up his league best fourth clean sheet against Lethbridge. The Calgary, AB, native also leads the league in save percentage (.947) and goals against average (0.20).
Offensively, UBC has been getting production by committee as three players have two goals and a trio sits at one. Gagandeep Dosanjh, a first year T-Bird who came from the Whitecaps Residency program, has been a bright spot pushing forward for UBC as has been fellow Residency grad
Navid Mashinchi. Quick and talented on the ball, that duo has consistently been UBC's most exciting and dangerous attackers.
A look at the Golden Bears
Soccer is on the rise at the University of Alberta as both their men and women currently lead the Canada West standings in 2010. The Bears sport the league's most prolific offence, averaging 2.83 goals per game as they have scored at least three goals in each of their last four games.
Leading the charge is Brett Colvin who is tied for the league lead with five goals. Just behind him are Marcus Johnstone and Samuel Lam who have found the back of the net four and three times respectively. At the back they have not been impenetrable, allowing a goal in five of their six games, however, their offence has done more than enough to carry them to victory.
A look at the Huskies
The only team to knock off Alberta this season, Saskatchewan likes to get forward and press on attack. They have had a couple of down days, 1-1 draws with both Calgary and Victoria, however, they've also chalked up an 8-0 win over Lethbridge to prove their worth on offence.
Jerson Barandica-Hamilton sits tied for the league lead with five goals while Josh Northey and Myles Shedden each have three goals apiece. That trio likes to shoot the ball as they have combined for 59 shots over six games to pace their squad that averages almost 17 shots per game. Newcomer Paul Craig has provided most of the service and leads the league with five assists.
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