VANCOUVER – The No. 3 UBC Thunderbirds women's soccer team suffered a heartbreaking loss in penalty kicks to the No. 9 Alberta Pandas in its first game at the Canada West Final Four in Langley on Friday afternoon.
The loss knocks the Thunderbirds out of contention for a spot at the CIS championships in Montreal.
“We haven't conceded a goal and we've lost,” said UBC head coach Mark Rogers after the emotional game. “It's a tough way to lose, on penalties. The frustration is that the girls put everything out there and my heart goes out to them because they are obviously very disappointed. But unfortunately, it can be a cruel game sometimes. It just didn't work for us today.”
Alberta outscored UBC 4-2 in penalty kicks after both teams went scoreless in regulation as well as the half hour of extra time.
But both teams had chances to score.
Five minutes into the match, UBC's
Rachel Ramsden hit the crossbar.
There were more chances in the second half for the Thunderbirds.
In the 65
th minute, Canada West Most Valuable Player
Janine Frazao broke towards the Alberta net on a breakaway but chipped the ball wide of the right goalpost.
Frazao got another good chance six minutes later, but was turned away by Alberta goalkeeper Kelti Biggs, who pushed Frazao's shot over the crossbar.
In the 75
th minute, it was Alberta's turn for a good opportunity at goal. The Pandas' feared striker Heather Lund headed a ball from the far left towards the UBC net but the ball was blocked rookie goalie
Emily Wilson, who started in place of the injured Canada West Rookie of the Year,
Alyssa Williamson.
Wilson was called upon to make another good save in the second half of extra time off Panda Sarah Smyth.
“I'm really proud of my team,” said Rogers. “They played well. We hit a crossbar early on and then missed on a one-on-one. The only issue is obviously there were some nerves in front of the goal. We definitely created enough to win the game. It's just a tough lesson. They're young players, there's no issue with the effort and the desire to go win that game. They fought for everything. At the end of the day, it didn't work for us.”
UBC will now play for bronze at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday against the University of Victoria.
Three graduating seniors,
Natalie Hirayama,
Lisa Furutani and
Diane Rizzardo, will play their last games in a Thunderbirds uniform.
Alberta advances to the gold medal match against Trinity Western on Saturday afternoon.
