The University of British Columbia Athletics

VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds women's soccer team was on the doorstep of a return to the CIS Championships last November after a three-year absence before being denied that opportunity by Alberta in the Canada West semifinals. As the team learned firsthand, progress is not always linear as the team was forced to take a step back after being on the verge of a breakthrough.
 
"Sometimes making mistakes and falling short is not a detriment, but rather a chance to gain wisdom in the long-run," remarked second-year head coach Andrea Neil. "The players use the opportunities of how they felt in the face of defeat and take that into their training."
 
The Thunderbirds finished third in the Canada West last year with an 8-1-3 record allowing just five goals all season, a league best, as well as being a threat offensively, averaging 2.4 goals for per game, good for second overall. Remarkably, the Thunderbirds played 675 consecutive minutes of shutout soccer last season. However, the team surrendered seven goals over its final four games, all against teams with winning records.
 
"We have to approach this season with a tactical style both in possession as well as away from the ball," said Neil. "In order to continue to grow, we must be able to score against not only the lesser competition, but also against some of the better competition, whereas that has been a weak-spot in the past. That is most certainly going to be an aim this year."
 
After a win against Calgary in last year's Canada West quarter-finals, the Thunderbirds season was cut short in the semifinals by the Alberta Pandas with a last minute strike in extra time. In the third-place match the Thunderbirds fell short to host Victoria in a scoreless game that was decided by penalty kicks.
 
While the team losses a significant portion of its veterans, the T-Birds offset that void by bringing in an impressive recruiting class. Gone are the likes of Janine Frazao, the two-time Canada West Player of the Year, goalie Alyssa Williamson, a Second Team All-Canadian, and First Team All-Star Taryn Lim. That's in addition to graduation of Second Team All-Stars Jordan Kitagawa and Christina Donnelly.
 
After a stellar rookie campaign where she earned Canada West Rookie of the Year honours, Jasmin Dhanda returns as the crux of the T-Birds offence coming off a team-lead six goals during the 2013 campaign. Dhanda also earned Second Team All-Star status last year, as did fullback Aman Shergill, the only other returning player who earned all-conference honours in the previous year. The sophomore duo will be an integral part to the Thunderbirds success this season.
 
Entering the picture are 10 recruits in total, all of whom will play a considerable role on the youthful, energetic Thunderbird squad of 2014. Among the newly added is Vancouver Whitecaps FC Girls Elite midfielder Reetu Johal, the product of Tamanawis Secondary School in Surrey, who is set to make an immediate impact at midfield. Johal starred on the championship-winning team at the 2013 Canada Summer Games in Sherbrooke, Que. and competed in the prestigious Gothia Cup in Gothenburg, Sweden.
 
Amrit Berar comes to UBC with two years of college experience after being named to the Pacific Western Athletic Association (PacWest) Second All-Star Team as a Langara College Falcon. Berar also has extensive championship experience, playing for British Columbia on four occasions and winning a bronze medal in 2009 to go along with silver in 2011.
 
The T-Birds also welcome three products of the decorated Coastal Football Club in the likes of Emma Leese, Nadia Langenberg and Emma Kallner. All three are provincial HPL champions with the Surrey-based club while Leese and Kallner also have experience at the international level playing in Western Europe and winning a bronze at the 2013 Maccabiah Games, respectively.
 
All but two newcomers hail from B.C., with Madison Matulionis and Elizabeth Swoboda, moving to Vancouver from Calgary, and Livingston, Mont., respectively. The out-of-province tandem joins a team with no fifth-year seniors as this year's class has the opportunity to succeed for years to come.
 
Rounding out the recruiting class are Alix Varchol, Stephanie Pospiech, and Alisha Murtland, all B.C. natives. Varchol won gold at the under-16 provincial championships as well as a bronze at the under-17 level while Murtland was captain of the St. Michaels University School team earning numerous accolades throughout her high school career. Pospiech is the reigning Female Athlete of the Year at Handsworth Secondary School in North Vancouver and will compete for a starting position at midfield.
 
"Every one of the incoming players is paired with a veteran player as their mentor. All returning players are given the role of being a mentor, and that's really important in welcoming new players into our family," said Neil.
 
Although Williamson is out, the Thunderbirds return Emily Wilson who finished in a tie for fifth for shutouts in the Canada West earning a blank sheet in each of her four appearances, although only credited with three. A pair of second-years in Olivia de Goede and Marlee Maracle will join Wilson in goal this season.
 
Other key returning players include the team's third- and fourth-highest scoring players during the 2013 regular season including Madison Guy, with four, and Kym van Duynhoven, with three. The team also welcomes back Taylor Shannik who was second on the team in helpers, assisting on five goals last season.
 
The Thunderbirds begin their season on the road September 5 in Victoria before returning to the mainland to close out the opening weekend in Abbotsford against Fraser Valley two days later. The team makes its home debut the following weekend against the University of Northern BC, which finished with just one win during last year's campaign.
 
New to the Canada West this year are MacEwan University, based out of Edmonton, UBC Okanagan, and Thompson Rivers as the conference grows to 16 teams.
 
The Thunderbirds will battle solely against BC teams during their 12-game schedule, playing each provincial rival twice, whereas last season UBC faced every Canada West opponent on a single occasion.
The Canada West Final Four will be hosted by the Pacific Division's top-seeded team October 31 and November 1 before the season culminates at the CIS Championships November 6-9 hosted by Laval University in Quebec City.