VANCOUVER, B.C. – The UBC Thunderbirds (9-1-3) head into the last week of the Canada West regular season with a narrow two-point lead at the top of the Pacific Division, after they drew 0-0 with the Victoria Vikes (8-1-4) on Saturday to keep the possibility of securing the top seed firmly within their own hands.
The Vikes' 1-0 victory in Victoria on Thursday had set up an enthralling encounter between the top two teams in the Pacific at Thunderbird Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Further adding to the emotion of the rematch, it was Senior Day for UBC with seven graduating players honoured for their contributions to the program. This was the final regular season home game for
Stefan Colbow,
Patrick Braun,
Manmeet Jhutty,
Jordano Pinto,
Bennett McKay,
Chris Lee, and
Connor Mrazek.
UBC had the better of the first half, but the game turned in the 53rd minute when
Eric Lajeunesse was sent off for a last man challenge. The Thunderbirds found themselves initially under the cosh but soon regrouped and saw out the match with the clean sheet and huge point.
"Credit to the whole group for their resiliency in the last 30 plus minutes to defend the tie and not concede," UBC head coach
Mike Mosher said after the match. "We've come out with a two-point lead going into the last weekend. It's not what we wanted, but we're still ahead and given the circumstances of being down a man, we'll take it. I'm really proud of the group and how they defended."
The first half saw both teams defend resolutely, with clear cut goalscoring opportunities at a minimum.
Henri Godbout had the first real chance of the game 19 minutes in, firing over from close range, with
Bennett McKay standing tall to keep out a Matthew Pearse effort 10 minutes later.
Vikes goalkeeper Callum Weir produced a superb diving save to turn away an
Oliver Herbert shot in the 38th minute. The rebound fell to
Joven Mann, but he couldn't keep his effort down.
Weir did well to hold onto a Godbout attempt in the closing minutes of the half, before a dipping cross-come-shot from Harry Ritter-West came close for the Vikes.
UBC started the second half on the front foot but the momentum of the match quickly shifted when Lajeunesse was shown a straight red card for a last man challenge on the streaking Javier Sagaste, who had been played in on goal from a superb Jack Napier-Ganley through ball.
Sagaste saw the resultant free kick turned around the post by McKay, sparking some intense Vikes pressure.
Yassin Guitouni, Fin Tugwell, and Archie Tugwell all had chances to give the Vikes the lead, but the Thunderbirds held strong, with
Markus Kaiser forcing a good save out of Weir.
UBC managed the final minutes to perfection, and although a point wasn't what the Thunderbirds had been looking for heading into the match, the way the game played out brought relief all round.
With all still to play for in terms of playoff seeding, UBC heads on the road for their final two matches of the regular season, with a visit to Abbotsford first up on Friday evening when they take on the University of Fraser Valley Cascades, followed by a trip to Langley on Saturday to take on the Trinity Western Spartans. Victoria also finishes their season on the road, taking on the same two opponents on Friday and Sunday.
Mosher is confident heading into these matches, and pleased at the tests his side have faced so far this season, all of which he feels sets them up nicely for the playoffs to come.
"We've got a lot of players who are used to playing in important games," concluded Mosher. "There's been a lot of different ways that we've gotten results and gone through some adversity and that's what good teams do. In the end, you want your teams to have faced some adversity and we have, so that gives me comfort and belief."
