VANCOUVER – UBC goalkeeper
Marlee Maracle made three saves in the shootout to give the top-seeded Thunderbirds a 3-2 victory in penalty kicks over the Queen's Gaels after the squads battled to a scoreless 120-minute draw in the second semifinal of the 2016 CIS Women's Soccer Championship at Raymond Field in Wolfville, N.S.
With the victory, UBC will have a chance to defend the national title it won on home turf in 2015 as the Thunderbirds will battle the Laval Rouge et Or in the CIS final with kickoff scheduled for 10:30 a.m. PT/2:30 p.m. AT on Sunday.
"Give the girls full credit for the victory tonight," said UBC head coach
Jesse Symons. "It's not the way you want to win but in the end I think it was the right team that won and we played very well today, we kept the ball, we controlled the game, players came up big when they needed to.
"I feel a few players definitely put in a shift,
Shayla Chorney had a fantastic game out on the wing she ran for miles today, I thought our midfield three after challenging them over the match yesterday really stepped up and kept the ball well and then our back four, what you can say? They have five straight shutouts in playoff time and we're doing well we are very confident back there, I don't think there's anything else you can say about Marlee. To be a part of the five shutouts also holding the ball, controlling the game and that's a lifetime moment she'll remember tonight with her parents watching her for the first few times in a UBC shirt. So yes, it was a great game, we're really looking forward to playing Laval in the final on Sunday."
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In Saturday's semifinal, the teams battled each other, as well as wind, rain and a second-half delay due to the field lights being inadvertently turned off.
The Thunderbirds had several opportunities to end the game before overtime play, including a second-half shot off the underside of the crossbar that was ruled to be not a goal.
In the shootout, both teams alternated between scoring and missing their opportunities.
UBC's
Aman Shergill opened the shootout by converting her chance before Maracle stopped Laura Callender's attempt.
Jasmin Dhanda sent her spot kick wide left, allowing Tara Bartram to tie the proceedings at 1-1.
In the third round of kicks,
Reetu Johal scored, while Maracle stopped Brittany Almeida of Queen's.
Emma Kallner of the 'Birds didn't make her shot, and Jenny Wolever of the Gaels took advantage, tying the shootout at 2-2, with her successful attempt. Â
In the fifth and final round,
Rachel Jones put UBC ahead 3-2. Then Maracle,made the save on Rachel Radu's shot to send the Thunderbirds back to the national final, setting off an emotional celebration for the squad.
"Honestly, I just cancelled out the overtime and regulation time I was playing and started fresh trying to go forward with a clear mindset," said Maracle of her approach to the shootout, the first for her this season. "With the PK stressful on both ends including the shooter, I just got on the goal line and began reading body language."
Maracle, the Adidas Player of the Game, was perfect in regulation and extra time, making five saves. Her counterpart, Madison Tyrell, stopped all seven UBC shots on goal during the first 120 minutes.
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Peter Oleskevich/Acadia Axewomen
Sunday's final will be a matchup of the last two national champions as the Thunderbirds, who already own a CIS-best six national banners, face the 2014 winners, Laval.
"Laval's a good team," said Symons. They keep the ball well, they move the ball well, they've got good players in many positions, so we'll do our homework and look to find ways to break them down and I'm sure they will do the same, so yes, overall I think we've got the two best teams at the tournament in the game, fighting for the gold medal and we'll put our best foot forward to see if we can push through in different ways on Sunday."
- with files from U Sports and Steph Mihalatos (Manager, Varsity Events)
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