VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds (4-1-3) are looking to round into form when they visit the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack (1-4-3) on Friday, October 4, at 5:00 p.m. PT and the UBC Okanagan Heat (1-7) on Saturday, October 5, at 5:30 p.m. PT as the Canada West playoff race intensifies.

UBC holds third place in the Pacific division with 15 points, five back of the Calgary Dinos (6-0-2) and seven behind the U SPORTS No. 1-ranked Trinity Western Spartans (7-0-1). The 'Birds are also just three points up on both the UNBC Timberwolves (3-2-3) and the University of Victoria Vikes (3-2-3). The top two teams in the division earn a direct berth in the Canada West quarter-finals, while the remaining four compete in a play-in game against Prairie division opponents. TRU and UBCO are the two teams currently outside of the playoff picture in seventh and eighth place with six and three points respectively.

Last Action

The T-Birds were in tough on the road against two provincial rivals last weekend, drawing the UFV Cascades 1-1 before falling to the first-place Spartans 2-0. Danielle Steer scored the only UBC goal of the weekend off an Emma Peckinpaugh corner in the 22nd minute against the Cascades, but Katie Lampen tied it up for UFV in the 86th minute to come away with the draw at home. The 'Birds then held Trinity Western off the scoresheet in the first half the following evening, but conceded two late goals in the second half for their first loss of the season. Goalkeeper Emily Moore faced eight shots on target and made six saves, while Vanessa Tome had a team-high three shots in the loss.

TRU picked up two big points at home last weekend in an impressive 1-1 draw with the Dinos and a 0-0 draw with the Cascades. UBCO earned their first win of the season with a 1-0 victory at home against UNBC last weekend before dropping their seventh match of the year 1-0 to Calgary.

Coach's Take

UBC head coach Jesse Symons knows each season has its ups and downs and is focussed on preparing his team to peak in the playoffs.

"We took a lot from our last two matches with learning how to manage leads, and how to stay on the front foot if games are tied," said Symons. "This weekend will continue to be a progression for playoffs in a few weeks. We have to build on our mindset to want to keep a high tempo and emphasize the importance of our individual talent all over the field to work together to control matches."

Symons was happy with how his team created chances in both matches a week ago, but recognizes room for improvement."

"We had some very exciting moments in both matches and held two good attacking teams to very little in the run of play," said Symons. "We will continue to keep on improving our transition moments and also look to really see our attacking players get around goal where they cause teams trouble with their technical and athletic qualities. TRU and UBCO bring very different tactical pictures so we will have to be prepared to play both games on the front foot to establish the run of play."