Men’s Soccer: Cascades blanked by Heat in Kelowna
The University of the Fraser Valley men’s soccer team saw its momentum stall on the road, as they dropped a 3-0 decision to the UBC Okanagan Heat on Sunday afternoon in Kelowna.
The Cascades were undefeated in their previous three games, and were coming off a thrilling 2-1 comeback win over the Thompson Rivers WolfPack on Saturday.
But on Sunday, the Heat scored a pair of first-half goals off set pieces, courtesy Sam McDonald and Hamish Walde, and Andrei Stalfort scored against the run of play in the 84th minute to seal the result.
The Cascades fell to 3-5-2 on the season, while the Heat improved to 5-3-1.
Afterward, UFV head coach Tom Lowndes noted his team’s tendency to start games slowly stung them
“Two poor goals off two set pieces have cost us,” he said. “We were lethargic, and we were our own worst enemy at times. The mistakes and frailties we saw yesterday in the first half (vs. TRU) were evident again. It was a poor start to the game.”
Both of the Heat’s first-half goals came on headers off Nikhil Reddy free kicks – McDonald nodding one into the top right corner in the 22nd minute, and Walde connecting in the 28th.
The Cascades were more dangerous going forward in the second half, amassing a 5-0 edge in corner kicks over the final 45 minutes, but came up empty. Elijah Sampson came the closest to scoring, sending a shot off the post in the 82nd minute.
Stalfort put the game away on the counterattack, slotting the ball into the bottom right corner behind UFV keeper David Hicks.
The Cascades soccer teams take on the Trinity Western Spartans in a home-and-home set next weekend – Friday at Trinity Western (women 5 p.m., men 7:15 p.m.), and Sunday at MRC Sports Complex (women 2 p.m., men 4 p.m.).
GOLF: Cascades women’s and men’s teams sweep to victory in Victoria
The University of the Fraser Valley women’s and men’s golf teams were both victorious at the Camosun Invitational on the weekend in Victoria, highlighted by outstanding individual performances from Hannah Dirksen and Ben Whiton.
At Highland Pacific Golf Course, the Cascades women won the team title for the third time in three PACWEST tournaments – their combined total of 305 was good for a 21-stroke victory as they easily outdistanced the UBC Okanagan Heat (326) and the host VIU Mariners (382).
The No. 4-ranked women’s team in the nation has finished one-two-three individually each of the past two weekends, and each of their three competitors has earned a tourney win. Emery Bardock won the UBCO Invitational, Maddie Kapchinsky won the VIU Invitational, and it was Dirksen’s turn at Highland Pacific. The two-time CCAA All-Canadian from Mission, B.C. fired rounds of 78 and 75 for a two-stroke margin ahead of teammates Kapchinsky (75-80=155) and Bardock (75-81=156).
In the overall standings, the Cascades women (934 cumulative strokes) own a massive 90-stroke cushion on UBCO (1,024) heading into the fourth and final event of the PACWEST season – the UFV Invitational, which runs this Saturday and Sunday at Abbotsford’s Ledgeview Golf Club.
The women’s individual race is more compelling, as Bardock (471), Kapchinsky (478) and Dirksen (479) are battling for the conference’s two CCAA All-Canadian spots.
CAMOSUN INVITATIONAL – COMPLETE WOMEN’S RESULTS
CAMOSUN INVITATIONAL – COMPLETE MEN’S RESULTS
On the men’s side, Cascades rookie Ben Whiton continued his stellar debut campaign, firing a 69 on Saturday and a 68 on Sunday to finish second individually, one stroke back of VIU’s Wyatt Brook. In the overall standings, the Langley, B.C. product sits second with 427 total strokes through three tourneys – one back of UBCO’s James Casorso, and two ahead of Brook in the race for All-Canadian status.
With Whiton setting the pace, the Cascades turned in their best team performance of the season, picking up their first outright win after tying UBCO last week. UFV, ranked No. 7 in the nation, posted a cumulative score of 573 (five over par), four strokes better than the Heat.
Daniel Campbell (T-6th, 71-72=143), Zach Olson (9th, 72-73=145), Kyle Claggett (13th, 73-75=148) and Jacob Lucki (80-77=157) comprised the Cascades’ five-player roster for the team competition, and Halen Davis (70-75=145) and Kai Ji (74-78=152) participated as individuals.
In the team race, UBCO (1,737 cumulative strokes) and UFV (1,740) have separated themselves from the pack, and the three-stroke differential sets up a fascinating duel this weekend at Ledgeview.
The UFV Invitational features a 10 a.m. shotgun start on Saturday, and tee times starting at 8:27 a.m. on Sunday.
