VANCOUVER – Forward Shayla Chorney scored an 84th-minute goal to give her UBC Thunderbirds women's soccer team a 2-1 road victory over the Manitoba Bisons Saturday.
 
After Alanna Shaw tied things up for Manitoba (3-7-3) in the 76th minute, UBC (6-3-4) managed to storm right back and capitalize on a defensive breakdown for the late go-ahead goal. Jasmin Dhanda had given the Thunderbirds a 1-0 lead late in the opening half.

Bison goalkeeper Maddie Wilford faced 11 shots on goal and made nine saves in the loss, as the Bisons' playoff prospects took a massive hit with just one game remaining on the regular season. On the other side of the pitch, Marlee Maracle made three saves on the day for UBC.



"We played well for long stretches today, but we're missing that last little bit to make the game out of reach," said UBC head coach Jesse Symons. "Credit to Manitoba for making it difficult to break through and for sticking with it. We had to push and showed our quality with the finish by Shayla. We showed great character as a team to keep going and as we have done all year we have a great mindset if we get scored on. Great credit to the players to compete to the end today."

UBC's best chance of the first five minutes came from Dhanda, who broke in on the Bison net to get off a shot, but was stymied by Bison goaltender Wilford. UBC's sustained attack continued as Amelia Crawford launched a hard shot from up close at which Wilford absorbed. Crawford would get another opportunity in the 14th minute, but her shot would cross right in front of the goalmouth and out of bounds.

UBC continued to dominate possession in the first half, thanks to pinpoint passing that broke down the Bison defences on multiple occasions, forcing Wilford into action eight times. All the pressure finally broke in the 44th minute, as Dhanda blasted a shot to the top-left corner from the middle of the box to give the visitors a 1-0 edge heading into the half.
 

Fantastic left footed goal from @JasminDhanda in the top left corner!! Assisted by winger, Margaret Hadley #goBirdsGo

— UBC Women's Soccer (@ubcwsoc) October 22, 2016

After an early flurry of chances by the Bisons to open the second, UBC regained its sustained attack from the first half and generated some quality chances, but Wilford did well to keep the Bisons within striking distance to tie the game.

The Thunderbirds kept pressing, as they re-established their game plan from the first half, completing crisp passes on offence and keeping the Bisons pinned along the sidelines as much as possible when defending. A great chance came in the 69th minute, as Sara Schur collected her own rebound and would have had a clear shot on a wide open net — if not for the fantastic hustle by the UBC defence to get back and block the shot.
 
But Manitoba finally broke through in the 76th, as Sara MacLennan lobbed a beautiful pass to Alanna Shaw, who deftly played the ball across from up close for her first goal of the season. 

The goal gave new life to the game, as both teams stepped up their intensity to pick up that crucial go-ahead goal. Ultimately it was UBC capitalizing on a defensive breakdown right in front of the Bison net, as Chorney jumped on the loose ball and put it past Wilford in the 84th minute. 

Bison rookie Hailey Lavarias nearly scored a miraculous goal from over 40 yards out with a shot that seemed destined to find the top-left corner, but Maracle read the shot well and timed her jump perfectly to snag the ball.

Both teams play the backend of their weekend series Sunday, October 23 at 9 a.m. PT / 11 a.m. PT. Manitoba gets right back to action at the West Turf Fields on the U of M campus, hosting the Victoria Vikes. UBC travels across town to play the Winnipeg Wesmen.