First-time hosts UOIT look to put exclamation point on undefeated season

BURLINGTON, Ont. – For the first time in school history, the UOIT Ridgebacks will play host to the Women’s Soccer Final Four, and they will do so as defending champs, as the province’s top four teams converge at the Oshawa Civic Centre for the OUA season’s final games.

Details surrounding the event can be found in the 2017 Women’s Soccer Final Four Fan Guide.

Entering as the top seed in the East Division in just their sixth season, the Ridgebacks put together a miraculous season on the pitch, recording points in every contest this year en route to a 14-0-2 mark for the campaign. The talented squad is led by a number of veterans across the pitch, including a potent offensive attack. UOIT brings a trio of talented scorers to the table, as striker Taijah Henderson (10 goals), striker Cassandra Sribny (nine goals), and midfielder Nicole Zajac (six goals) accounted for well over 50% of the team’s scoring this year.

Joining the talented crew is fourth-year player Katherine Koehler-Grassau, who put together yet another strong campaign patrolling the midfield for the Ridgebacks, building on her U SPORTS All-Canadian accolade last season. And while there is plenty of help up front, one of the key factors on the Ridgebacks’ roster is goalkeeper Victoria Savage, who in her fourth year between the pipes, notched the best save percentage in the OUA (.904).

All of these key ingredients have helped create a winning recipe for the host squad throughout the season; something that, after their 2-0 quarterfinal win over Laurentian, they’ll be looking to continue in their semifinal tilt with the Guelph Gryphons.

The Gryphons, who finished second in the West, should provide a tough test for the Ridgebacks, and will certainly be relying on their impeccable defence to play a role in the outcome. Guelph finished fourth in the OUA in goals against average with 0.75 and notched a second-ranked 10 clean sheets, showcasing that defence is a key strength of the squad.

A key component of this defensive prowess is goalkeeper Libby Brenneman. The fourth-year player has been as steady as they come in net, thanks to her strong, vocal presence at the back end. In her 11 games this season, Brenneman has earned seven clean sheets; something she followed up with a six-save shutout in her team’s 5-0 quarterfinal win over Laurier. But the goalkeeper isn’t the only veteran making her presence felt, as a number of fellow senior class players – including Andrea Cimino, Jacqueline Goulart, Allison Clouse, and Sydney Holden – have been critical to the success of the younger players.

One of these younger players, who will be supporting Brenneman up front, is Victoria Hinchliffe. The reigning OUA West Rookie of the Year and First-Team All-Star, similar to Brenneman, was also able to shine in the team’s quarterfinal match, scoring two goals – including the game winner – along with an assist in their 5-0 win. This performance was a reflection of her growth as a more complete player throughout the year, and despite struggling offensively at the outset, she was able to contribute in many other ways on the pitch this year.

Joining the previous pair in the other semifinal tilt are the Queen’s Gaels, who ranked second in the East Division, and the Western Mustangs, who sat atop the West Division.

Two big reasons that the Mustangs were able to capture the division crown with a sparkling 14-1-1 record were the team’s leading scorers - Giulia Geraci and Julia Crnjac. Both players finished the regular season tied for the team lead with 10 goals, including an impressive goal-scoring streak of nine games from fourth-year veteran Crnjac. Geraci, meanwhile, is in her first year and has strung together a fantastic rookie campaign, which most recently saw a pair of quarterfinal markers in the team’s 4-0 win over Waterloo.

Despite being a first-year player, Geraci is not alone on the squad in her young age, as the Western side boasts only two fifth-year players, to go along with the majority of others who are second-year or younger. This youthful team remained resilient; however, especially on the defensive end where they allowed a miniscule five goals against this season. Combined with their equally impressive ability to find the back of the net themselves – ranking third in the province with 36 tallies – and it’s no surprise why the purple reign posed such an imposing threat this season.

Looking to neutralize this threat in semifinal action will be the Gaels, in what will be a rematch of last year’s OUA Final Four fixture, wherein Queen’s blanked the Mustangs 2-0 on a pair of goals from Matija Skoko. The Gaels would go on to fall to UOIT in the OUA championship game last season, but will be striving to top the podium this time around, and will do so behind a strong 2017 season.

Queen’s finished the regular season with a 12-3-1 record and proceeded to defeat the then nationally ranked Ottawa Gee-Gees in penalty kicks (5-4) to qualify for the Final Four. Having a presence at the Final Four is not uncommon for the Tricolour, as during the last 20 seasons, Queen’s has qualified for the championship weekend 16 times; capturing four gold medals, eight silver medals, and four bronze medals during that span.

The Gaels scored 49 goals on the year to lead the OUA conference, and spearheading this prominent Queen’s scoring front is fifth-year captain Laura Callender, who sat at the top of the conference with 13 goals during regular season play. Typically a central midfielder, Callender has been a go-to player for the Gaels this season as a striker. During the Gaels quarterfinal match against Ottawa, Callender scored a spectacular goal from outside the 18-yard box in the 39th minute of play to level the Gaels 1-1.

Alongside Callender, who also represented Team Canada at the 2017 Summer Universiade in Taipei City, Chinese Taipei this year, is third year striker Jenny Wolever. Wolever has been an offensive force for Queen’s, notching nine goals and 10 assists to lead the conference with 19 points during the regular season.

Callender, Wolever, and company will lead the Gaels into their semifinal match at 4:00pm on Saturday against the Mustangs, playing for the right to play either Guelph or UOIT (who play at 1:00pm) in the gold medal match. This gold medal match, along with the preceding bronze medal game, will take place on Sunday at 1:00pm and 4:00pm, respectively.