VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds men's soccer team was voted the new No. 1 team in the latest Canadian Interuniversity Sport rankings, released on Tuesday. It's the first time this season UBC has held the top spot, after trailing York since the beginning of the 2011 campaign. This weekend, the Thunderbirds will visit two provincial rivals.
No. 1 UBC Thunderbirds
2011 conference record: 5-0-3 (1st)
2011 CIS ranking: 1
Last week: beat Trinity Western 1-0
Streak: 3 wins
Last week was a huge one for the Thunderbirds, even though they only played one match and scored just a single goal. That one goal was enough to push them past the rival Trinity Western Spartans, give them a four point cushion on top of the Canada West standings, and make them the top-ranked team in the nation.
That should give the T-Birds plenty of momentum to ride into their upcomming road swing against Victoria and Fraser Valley. UBC was extremely successful at home against those squads on opening weekend, outscoring them a combined 8-2. The offence has continued to thrive since then, establishing itself as the best attack in the conference, averaging almost a full goal per game more than any other team.
Reigning Canada West Male Athlete of the Week
Sean Haley (2nd, Vancouver) leads the attacking unit with five goals on the year, including the lone marker against the Spartans last week. He is one of seven T-Birds with at least two goals this year.
Victoria Vikes
2011 conference record: 4-2-2 (2nd)
2011 CIS ranking: -
Last week: tied Fraser Valley 0-0, beat Fraser Valley 4-0
Streak: 1 win
The Vikes have come a long way since a disastrous 0-2-0 opening weekend that included a 4-0 loss to UBC. They are unbeaten since then and have outscored opponents 10-0 in their last four matches.
Their recent success has the Vikes ranked third in both goals scored and goals against. Rookie midfielder Craig Gorman is coming off a two-goal performance against Fraser Valley last weekend that vaulted him into a tie for the team scoring lead with four on the year. Andrew Ravenhill also has four to his credit this season.
Bobby Eng, Gavin Barrett and James Rhodes are the mainstays on a Vikes back line that has been perfect for the past four games. All three have made at least five starts this season, while most spots on the field have seen the playing time spread around to several different players on a deep Victoria roster that features 12 seniors.
Fraser Valley Cascades
2011 conference record: 1-6-1 (7th)
2011 CIS ranking: -
Last week: tied Victoria 0-0, lost to Victoria 4-0
Streak: 1 loss
While the Vikes turned their season around after opening weekend, the Cascades have been stuck in a tailspin since their first meeting with the T-Birds back in early September. Fraser Valley opened the season with a surprising 1-0 upset of Trinity Western, but they are winless since then, having been outscored 18-4 by their opponents in that time.
And while the Vikes have held opponents scoreless for four straight matches, the Cascades haven't managed a goal of their own in four matches. Their offence ranks last in the conference, and defensively they rank second-last with a 2.25 goals-against average.
Third-year forward Sasa Plavsic has three of the team's five goals this year, including a great long-distance strike off a free kick against UBC, but the Cascades need some secondary scoring options to climb their way out of the Canada West basement.
