VANCOUVER – The No. 4-ranked UBC Thunderbirds capped off their Alberta road trip with a 2-1 win over the Lethbridge Pronghorns on Sunday afternoon. A second-half marker from Shayla Chorney (Vancouver) turned out to be the difference for the 'Birds, as they move to 10-1-1 on the season and ahead of the Trinity Western Spartans for the top spot in Canada West's West Division.
                      
The Thunderbirds controlled the pace of play from the opening whistle, but Lethbridge did well to defend, and despite a decided advantage in possession, UBC couldn't find the mark in the game's early going.
 
After 35 minutes of this stalemate, T-Birds' leading scorer Jasmin Dhanda (Surrey, B.C.) drew first blood for the Blue and Gold. The veteran forward found space at the top of the box and let go of an absolute bullet. Pronghorns goalkeeper Micaela Stone got a piece of the shot, but not enough to keep it out of the Lethbridge cage.
 
Dhanda nearly doubled the UBC lead just before halftime, but Lethbridge defender Kim Shellenberg made a terrific effort and stymied Dhanda before she could get a clean shot off.
  
After the intermission, Chorney wasted no time doubling UBC's lead, as the defender bagged her third goal of the season just over a minute into the second half.
 
Stone made a terrific stop at 72 minutes to keep the game close for the Pronghorns. UBC forward Amelia Crawford (Richmond, B.C.) timed her run brilliantly, raced onto a loose ball and charged in alone on the Lethbridge keeper, but Stone came off her line and made a sliding save.
 
With just six minutes remaining before stoppage time, Lethbridge got within one. Fourth-year midfielder Morag Paterson weaved her way into the box and slipped a terrific ball to the back post, where defender Claire Joyce was waiting to tap in her first CIS goal past UBC goalkeeper Olivia de Goede (Victoria, B.C.).
 
That's the way the final score line read, as the Pronghorns couldn't break through a stingy UBC defense to equalize in the game's final moments.  
 
The final stats of the game show how dominant UBC was in terms of the play, as they outshot the Pronghorns 21-3, with 10 UBC attempts making their way to Stone, while Lethbridge tested de Goede just twice.
                           
UBC will return home for its final pair of regular season games next weekend, as the Fraser Valley Cascades and Trinity Western Spartans make their way to Thunderbird Stadium. The Fraser Valley contest is set for Friday, October 23, while the showdown against Trinity Western will take place Saturday, October 24. Both contests will start at 5 p.m. (PT). 

- with files from Eoin Colquhoun (Lethbridge Sports Information)