VANCOUVER - Played out under extremely poor visibility, the UBC Thunderbirds women's soccer team moved top of the conference with a win over Mount Royal with some help from Trinity Western who inflicted Alberta's first loss of the season.
The fog rolled in but two first-half goals gave the Thunderbirds a secure lead that proved to be enough as they held on to claim the shutout and the win.
The win never seemed fluent but it was easy enough with Mount Royal having very few attempts and rarely threatening
Emily Wilson in goal. UBC registered seven shots to Mount Royal's one and contained any offensive threat of the visitors with consummate ease.
Jasmin Dhanda gave the hosts the lead in the 19th minute with a coolly slotted finish past the keeper after being played in by
Nicole Sydor. It was her fifth goal of the season as she continues to impress in her debut season. Dhanda started the season coming off the bench in most games but has proved a mainstay of the starting lineup in recent weeks and provided an offensive spark every time she gets her foot on the ball.
Shayla Chorney scored the second as she tapped home from six yards out after Dhanda played her in with a low cross after she skipped down the right flank.
The second half continued in much the same vein, UBC had a large share of the possession but they were unable to add to the score. Coach
Andrea Neil pulled off some key players with 30 minutes to go, obviously thinking ahead to tomorrow's important tie against Alberta. Rookie
Janna Speed got her first run out in Thunderbird colours and
Meagan Pasternak got some much-needed time on the pitch as she continues to make her way back from injury.
"We came away with a win tonight but it wasn't our best performance so we have another opportunity tomorrow to play with a bit more energy," commented coach Neil afterwards. "We had the chance to rotate the roster a bit tonight and that's important in a long season with back-to-back games such as this one."
The Thunderbirds take on the University of Alberta Pandas in their final game of the season tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. at the Thunderbird Stadium.
Mt. Royal will travel to Langley for a game against Trinity Western at 5 p.m.
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