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| The Huskies celebrate. |
It was a dream finish for the University
of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s soccer team at the Canada West Final Four
tournament.
On Saturday at PotashCorp Park, the
amazing Huskies captured their first ever Canada West title downing the
University of Alberta Golden Bears 4-2. The Golden Bears led 2-1 at halftime,
but the Huskies roared back with three unanswered goals in the second half.
Jordian Farahani scored twice for
the Huskies, while Bobbi Nicholat and David Brown had singles. Michal Bandula
picked up the win in goal.
Jermele Campbell and Niko Jankovic
relied with singles for the Golden Bears, while Connor James suffered the loss
in goal.
Both the Huskies and the Golden Bears will advance to the Canadian
Interuniversity Sport championship tournament, which will be hosted by the
University of Prince Edward Island Panthers from Nov. 6-9 in Charlottetown.
Traditionally, the University of Saskatchewan
was never known as a soccer school. That reputation is changing quickly.
Last year, the Huskies men’s team
made their first appearance at the Canadian Interuniversity Sport championship
tournament with an 8-5-2 record. They bettered that make this season finishing
first in the Prairies Division with a program best 9-1-2 mark.
The Canada West title game was
played before 646 spectators, which is a large gathering for the Huskies soccer
team. The green and white ensured their home faithful didn’t go away
disappointed. A day earlier, the Huskies downed the University of Victoria
Vikes 2-0 in a semifinal contest.
Going into the CIS championship
tournament, you have to like the Huskies odds of winning it all. They return to
the national stage as an experienced team having been there before. Now the goal
is to ensure the plane ride home from Charlottetown will be a happy one.
Women’s squad captures bronze
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| Huskies defender Jennifer Miller. |
The Huskies women’s soccer squad
also carved out a piece of history claiming their first ever medal in the
Canada West Final Four tournament.
The Huskies opened this year’s
tournament in Langley, B.C., falling 1-0 in a semifinal to the host Trinity
Western University Spartans on Friday night. Natalie Arnett had the lone goal
for the Spartans, while Christina Oliverio picked up the win in the Trinity
Western net. Cara Santaga suffered the loss in goal for the Huskies.
On Saturday, the Huskies rebounded
with a 2-0 victory in the bronze medal match over the University of Alberta
Pandas. Star striker Jenelle Zapski scored both of the Huskies goals, while
Kyleigh Vause picked up the win in goal. Kelti Biggs took the loss in goal for
the Pandas.
The Huskies had a strong regular
season posting a 7-2-3 record to finish second in the Prairies Division. All
their players can potentially return next season, which likely means they will
have a good chance to improve on the bronze medal finish.
Zapski and defender Jennifer Miller, who were named Canada West second
team all-stars, are definitely players to watch as the team moves forward.
If you have any feedback on this
blog, feel free to email comments to stankssports@gmail.com.
