The wait was definitely worth it for the No. 6 UBC Thunderbirds women's soccer team as it opened its 2011 season with a big 1-0 road win against the No. 5 Trinity Western Spartans in Langley.
 
The start of the highly anticipated game was pushed back for an hour because the game officials were delayed.
 
The Spartans were the top team in the pre-season Canada West poll, while UBC was a close third, while the two squads sit even closer in the national rankings.
 
Rachael Sawer (North Vancouver, BC) scored the only goal of the game in the 65th minute. She hit a shot past diving TWU goalie Kristen Funk that tipped into the net off the crossbar.
 
In the first half, Sawer had an equally good opportunity to open the scoring but her hard shot hit the Trinity Western crossbar and the ball was then corralled by Funk before any other UBC player could get to it.
 
There were few chances from either team before Sawer found the net.  But once she did, Trinity Western pushed to tie the game.  Rookie UBC goalkeeper Alyssa Williamson (Langley, BC) won the battle to start in net, and made two big saves in the 73rd minute on Daniela Gerig.
 
Williamson made nine saves to record her first clean sheet in Canadian Interuniversity Sport play.
 
UBC will now return home with a 1-0 record and will host Regina and Manitoba next weekend. Trinity Western is now 0-1 and will host the same two teams as UBC next weekend but in reverse order.