Kamloops (Dan Kinvig) –
Women’s Soccer: Gamble, Cascades blast WolfPack 3-0
The University of the Fraser Valley women’s soccer team staged a breakthrough at the expense of the Thompson Rivers WolfPack on Friday evening, rolling to a 3-0 win on the road in Kamloops.
Hannah Gamble scored twice, Brittany Costa added a single, and the Cascades were airtight defensively to the extent that goalkeeper Joven Sandhu was called upon for just one save en route to her second clean sheet of the season.
It was the first win of the Canada West campaign for the Cascades (1-4-2), who wrap up the weekend series with the WolfPack (0-7-2) on Saturday (7 p.m., CanadaWest.tv presented by Co-op).
“I’m extremely proud of the girls,” UFV assistant coach Shelby Beck said afterward. “It was a deserved win, and it was nice to get some goals and get that winning feeling again.
“I just think we never gave up. We started the game on our front foot and went at them right away. We kept the ball, and we were obviously able to score and finish our chances in the final third. We have lots of happy faces tonight.”
Gamble broke the ice in the 15th minute – Jashan Sandhar got the ball to Jessica Fennell, who dashed into the box down the right side and crossed to Gamble, who volleyed home with her right foot.
Cascades captain Costa made it 2-0 in the 33rd. Halle McCambley made a run down the left and sent the ball back to Costa at the top of the box, and she unleashed a terrific strike that found the top left corner.
Less than a minute later, Gamble notched her second of the night – Sandhar sent the ball into the box for Gamble, and while her initial shot was blocked, she stuck with it and whacked home the rebound.
The Cascades cruised from there, earning the lion’s share of possession and generating a few more dangerous chances that did not come to fruition. In the 50th, Costa linked up with Gamble who sent it ahead to Sandhar, in alone on TRU keeper Danielle Robertson. She snuck a shot through Robertson’s legs, but a WolfPack defender came through to clear the ball before it crossed the line.
Afterward, Beck lauded the finishing touch Gamble gave the squad.
“She’s had a positive mindset this entire season,” Beck said. “She constantly works and tries to get herself into great position. It was great to see her finish those chances, and hopefully she can continue that going forward.”
Men’s Soccer: Cascades, WolfPack exchange late goals, settle for 1-1 draw
The University of the Fraser Valley men’s soccer team earned a single point in Kamloops on Friday, exchanging second-half goals with the Thompson Rivers WolfPack in a 1-1 draw at Hillside Stadium.
In a carefully contested, defensive-minded clash, the Cascades were elated when, in the 75th minute, Taylor Richardson scored to give them the lead.
Yet no sooner had the UFV supporters on site settled back into their seats, than the hosts came sprinting back down the pitch and got the equalizer in the 78th minute via Dylan Hooper.
The Cascades (1-3-3) and WolfPack (3-1-5) renew hostilities on Saturday at Hillside Stadium (5 p.m., CanadaWest.tv presented by Co-op).
“It’s a tough one,” UFV head coach Tom Lowndes said afterward, alluding to the timing of the goals, “but it’s a hard place to play, and they’re a good team.
“For us, I thought we were just OK with the ball. I don’t think we did enough in possession – we were a bit sloppy, and we struggled to create our patterns of play. What we did do was, we battled hard. We showed we’re a real team. We stuck together and we battled. I’m happy for them for that, and we’ll look to take it into tomorrow and get another result.”
Chances were few and far between in the first half, with the Cascades generating some pressure around the 30-minute mark, earning a pair of corners and looking dangerous but failing to capitalize.
The WolfPack had a few looks of their own – in the 74th, Hooper came swooping in from the left wing and unleashed a high shot that glanced off the crossbar.
Just over a minute later, Richardson broke the ice. Off Mikael Mainella’s long throw-in from the sideline, Sahib Sidhu rose to flick the ball on, and Richardson shrugged off a TRU defender, pivoted, and fired a right-footed shot into the bottom left corner for his third goal of the season.
But shortly thereafter, Hooper made good on another sprint down the left. Cutting into the box from a sharp angle, his attempted cross banked off a Cascade defender and snuck inside the far post.
UFV goalkeeper Jackson Cowx was credited with four saves on the night.
