Burnaby (Dan Kinvig) – The University of the Fraser Valley women’s soccer team made it two Cascade wins in two nights on Burnaby Mountain, topping Simon Fraser University 1-0 on Tuesday evening.
On the heels of the Cascades men’s squad winning 2-1 on Monday at the new SFU Stadium at Terry Fox Field, the UFV women followed with an exhibition victory of their own. Jessica Fennell scored the game’s lone goal, and goalkeeper Joven Sandhu went the distance for the shutout.
“I think overall, the demeanor and the energy was a lot more positive tonight,” said Cascades head coach Niko Marcina, whose squad was coming off a 3-2 loss to UBC Okanagan on Saturday. “We started off on our front foot, and we fed off of that energy throughout the game. We pressed for 90 minutes – we’d set up triggers in training on when to press the opposition, and we applied those triggers very well, made it difficult for SFU to play out of our press and created turnovers.
“However, lots of credit to SFU. They managed to find ways to still beat our press at times. I think both teams matched up really well, and I’m excited for our next match against them.”
Fennell broke the deadlock midway through the second half. As Harneet Dadrao sent in a cross, Jiya Kaila made a decoy run to the near post, opening up space for Fennell. The sophomore midfielder took a touch before slotting a shot home.
Sandhu was confident directing traffic and contributed several key saves, and Marcina was pleased with the play of defenders Brittany Costa and Alanna Sydenham in breaking up SFU’s offensive forays. Substitutes Kaila and Simi Lehal joined forces up front to give the Cascades great energy in the attacking third.
The UFV squad has a series of scrimmages scheduled vs. local clubs in the coming weeks; their next exhibition match is a rematch at SFU on Saturday, Sept. 11 (7 p.m.). Their first Canada West conference matches come the following weekend, Sept. 17 and 19 vs. the Victoria Vikes at Rotary Stadium.
