The UBC Thunderbirds (2-3) defeated the Calgary Dinos (2-3-2) 3-0 on Saturday to claim the first game of their weekend doubleheader. With Saturday's victory, the T-Birds remain third in the Canada West standings with a chance to overtake the second place Dinos with another win on Sunday.
 
Despite the high stakes, the game got off to a slow start. UBC held most of the possession but was unable to make good on any chances near the goal, ending the first quarter at 0-0.
 
"It's been a while since we've played so it seemed a little like we were dusting the cobwebs off for the first half. We started to get back in the flow and get the intensity we needed in the later part of the game," said head coach Richard Hildreth. "We worked a lot in the off-season and during the season on different types of goal scoring so it's nice to see them getting rewarded for a lot of that hard work. It's tough scoring goals so it's nice to see the celebrations too."
 

WFH | @ubcwfieldhockey defeat @DinosFHC 3-0 at Wright Field!

The two teams play again tomorrow at 11am PT #GoBirdsGo pic.twitter.com/5DNlNxUakj

— UBC Thunderbirds (@ubctbirds) October 14, 2023

The Thunderbirds broke the stalemate in the last minutes of the first half when Mikayla Stelling broke through the Dinos defence and placed the ball perfectly into the opposing goal.
 
Fueled by their first goal, the 'Birds entered the second half with confidence and pace. In the 42^nd minute, Danielle McBean found the net for UBC's second. The Dinos got close to putting up points on the board with back-to-back short corners but could not convert.


 
With just minutes left in the game, Kenzie Girgis scored in a penalty corner sequence to cushion UBC's lead to 3-0.
 
"Our organization is getting better each week. When we are emotionally and mentally ready to go, we are quite strong. We are going to focus on having a good start and a good first quarter, and then we'll build from there," said Hildreth looking ahead to Sunday's game.


 
Both teams return to Wright Field on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. (PT) in what will be UBC's final home game of the regular season.
 
 
SCORING SUMMARY
UBC – Mikayla Stelling, FG, 24', 1-0 UBC
UBC – Danielle McBean, FG, 42', 2-0 UBC
UBC – Kenzie Girgis, PC, 58', 3-0 UBC
 
GOALKEEPERS
UBC – Hannah Rumble, 60 MP, 0 GA
CGY – Alana Madrid, 60 MP, 3 GA
 
CARDS
UBC – Kaitlyn Pennefather, GC, 26'
UBC – Sanehpreet Basra, GC, 57'