Heating up at just the right time, the UBC Thunderbirds look to make an even bigger splash at this weekend's Canada West final four tournament hosted by Grant MacEwan University in Edmonton Friday and Saturday, November 1^st and 2^nd.

The T-Birds take on their arch rivals from Langley, the Trinity Western Spartans, in one of two semifinals Friday afternoon. The 'Birds are gunning for a berth in the conference championship for the first time since 2016, and a spot at the upcoming U SPORTS national championship.

But in order to accomplish these goals, they'll have to get past a Spartans team that has proven to be more than a formidable opponent for UBC over the last few seasons.



The 'Birds managed a single point against TWU in two meetings this year by way of a scoreless draw in the first week of September at Thunderbird Stadium. The Spartans earned a 2-0 win over UBC in Langley several weeks later.

Friday's semifinal is the first playoff meeting between the 'Birds and Spartans since the 2017 conference semifinal where TWU advanced to the championship with a 3-0 win.

Either way, this semifinal is a true heavyweight tilt between the holders of the last five conference championship titles. Kickoff is set for 2:00 p.m. PT. Saturday's gold medal match goes at 2:00 p.m. PT with the bronze medal preceding at 11:00 a.m.
 

Last Action

UBC advanced to this weekend's final four thanks to a dominant 4-0 win over the Saskatchewan Huskies in Saskatoon last Saturday. The 'Birds put up 18 shots, 12 of them on target, while Emily Moore made six saves for the clean sheet. This after defeating Lethbridge 1-0 in a play-in game two days earlier.


The Spartans edged the Fraser Valley Cascades 2-1 in Langley while outshooting the visitors 14-2.
 

Players to Watch

Katalin Tolnai (#19, F) – After missing much of the regular season due to injury, the rookie midfielder has scored in both of UBC's playoff games so far, including the game winner in the 1-0 play-in game against Lethbridge.



Emily Moore (#1, GK) – The fourth-year keeper finished the regular season with the conference's second best save percentage (.864) while seven of her eight wins came via a shutout. Moore has not allowed a goal against these playoffs.
 

Coach's Take

Sometimes the standings at the end of the regular season can be overshadowed by how a team is playing entering the playoffs, and right now the T-Birds feel they're on a bit of a roll.

"Overall I'm really impressed with the professional approach they took in Saskatchewan," UBC head coach Jesse Symons said, praising his squad's performance in the quarter-final. "I felt from back to front we were bought in, team culture is very good and full credit to the team for the performances they put in."



The T-Birds have no opponent they're more familiar with than the Spartans, making for what should be a very tightly fought, intense battle.

"They've got good structure and good balance with their team," explained Symons. "They've got some good players all over the park. As a team we're ready to go and hopefully we'll be able to match their mindset from the outset and if we do I really am excited to see how we perform. Everyone's healthy, everyone's motivated and we're a team that really wants to push through Friday night."