OUA Women's Soccer Roundup (Oct. 23)
October 18, 2017
Guelph 2 Waterloo 0
WATERLOO – The Guelph Gryphons women's soccer team appears to be over a recent goal-scoring drought that easily could have led to frustration. But the Gryphon players have had belief all season and they leaned on a couple local products to help find the back of the net Wednesday night in Waterloo. Guelph natives Sydney Johnson and Victoria Hinchliffe each scored to lift the Gryphons to an important 2-0 away win over the Warriors.
It was a complete effort on the road, and a galvanizing result for a side enjoying a strong season. The Gryphons (9-3-2) have now scored five goals in their last two matches, both wins. They had earned just one point from three previous games with zero goals scored prior to the consecutive victories.
"Waterloo doesn't make things easy," said Guelph head coach Shayne Campbell. "We knew we had to work hard and match their intensity. We were committed from the get go and competed hard.
"Our players knew how much this game meant."
Campbell said that the three-game goal-scoring drought didn't negatively impact the team. The attitude never changed and it showed in a 3-0 win over McMaster last week. They have been "all in."
Guelph maintained that momentum against Waterloo. The Gryphons took control of the match midway through the first half. Johnson, a rookie who went to John F. Ross Collegiate Vocational Institute, got the visitors on the scoreboard when she was sprung for a breakaway about 30 yards from the net. Rookie midfielder Sayan Ladhani did well to win a battle in the middle of the pitch and sent a through ball to Johnson, who raced in and finished across the keeper into the left side of the net for her third goal of the season. Hinchliffe would add another just minutes later to extend the Gryphon lead. Ladhani again did the work to get a ball to the byline and Hinchliffe saved it from going out for a goal kick. She then surprised Waterloo with a strike from an incredibly tight angle that put the match away.
Hinchliffe is a highly-decorated local player. She won an OFSAA AA soccer gold medal with the Bishop Macdonell Celtics in 2014 and showed her nose for the net as a 16-year-old among older players in the Ontario Women's Soccer League before arriving at the University of Guelph. Hinchliffe got off to a slow start in her second season after scoring nine times en route to taking OUA Rookie of the Year honours in 2016.
But the talented striker has been coming alive in recent weeks and much like the team, refused to get frustrated when the ball didn't find the net. She finally opened her account on Sept. 20 in a 2-0 win over York and then added another in Guelph's victory over McMaster last week, giving her three goals in the past six matches. That ties Hinchliffe with Johnson for the team lead.
"We've never stopped believing in her and she's found new life," said Campbell, who also coached Hinchliffe when she led the Western Ontario Youth Soccer League in goals as a member of the U-17 Guelph Royals. "The work she did off the ball tonight was incredible. She has gotten herself back into form."
Guelph goalkeeper Libby Brenneman kept another clean sheet. Brenneman wasn't too busy overall but her and the stout back line had a lot of work to do in the second half as Waterloo played directly down the middle of the pitch in trying to find a goal.
"The back four were just stellar," Campbell said of their gritty defensive work snuffing out Waterloo attacks.
Guelph's regular season schedule comes to an end after hosting back-to-back matches against Western and Windsor on Saturday and Sunday at the Gryphon Soccer Complex. Each game begins at 1 pm.
Source: gryphons.ca
October 20, 2017
RMC 0 Toronto 4
Under the lights of Varsity Stadium, the University of Toronto Varsity Blues secured their place in the OUA playoffs with a 4-0 victory over the visiting RMC Paladins on Friday night (Oct. 20).
The win for the Blue and White improves their regular season record to 7-6-2 (W-L-D) on the season, while the Paladins drop to 0-15-0.
With the Paladins playing a strong defensive game, the match began in a stalemate for the first 30 minutes. However, in the 39th minute of action a Daniella Cipriano corner was converted by fifth-year defender Christine Mulligan with a perfectly placed header to open the scoring. U of T led 1-0 at the halftime whistle.
The scoring continued for the Blues in the second half with striker Natasha Klasios finishing a clean opportunity on net in the 58th minute, before Anna Crone and Cipriano each added markers of their own to seal the convincing victory.
Toronto goalkeeper Stephania Turyk made one save with RMC keeper Claudia Rusu recording five.
U of T will look to ride the wave of momentum into a big match tomorrow evening (Oct. 21) versus the visiting Queen's Gaels. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:15 p.m. under the lights of Varsity Stadium.
Source: varsityblues.ca
Queen’s 1 Ryerson 0
TORONTO (October 20, 2017) – The Queen's Gaels (11-3-1) took down the Ryerson Rams (6-6-3) in a 1-0 score in Toronto under the lights on Friday night.
GAME FLOW
With the victory today, the Gaels need just one more win against the Toronto Varsity Blues tomorrow to clinch the second spot in the OUA East standings. With a second place finish, the Gaels would secure a first round bye-week and play host to an OUA quarterfinal match at Richardson Stadium.GAME FLOW
With 14 goals in their last two matches, the Queen's Gaels offense got off to a slower start than accustomed to in Rams territory.
It was in the closing minutes of the first half that the Gaels would notch the lone goal of the match to secure their third consecutive win. Queen's captain Laura Callender (Ottawa) would find the back of the net for the 12th time this season. Callendar's goals keeps her in the top spot of the conference, three ahead of the second top-scorer.
The score would stand for the rest of the game, with a late red card for the Ryerson side coming in the 85th minute.
BY THE NUMBERS
5 - shots on goal from the Gaels
0.87 - Callendar's scoring percentage per game
1 - Tomorrow is the last regular season game for the Gaels
Source: gogaelsgo.com
October 21, 2017
Trent 3 Nipissing 2
An impressive second half comeback fell short for the Nipissing Lakers women's soccer team, as a late goal by the Trent Excalibur gave them a 3-2 victory over Nipissing.
After trailing 2-0 for 54 minutes, the Lakers stormed back with two goals in 20 minutes to tie the game, but Kaitlyn Steffler's third goal of the game for Trent spoiled the Lakers effort and had them on the wrong side of the one goal decision.
Trent opened up the scoring 12 minutes into the game and added their second tally at the 35-minute mark to seemingly take control of the game, but after a pep-talk at halftime, Nipissing came out strong in the second.
Andrea Young cut into the lead, scoring her team-leading ninth of the season.
Fellow forward Madison Logan, who trails Young by just one goal for the team lead, tied the game 20 minutes later with a rocket of a free-kick to the top corner of the net.
With momentum, the Lakers continued to push and press, but were unable to find the back of the net.
Looking like they would gain one point, a lose ball ended up on the foot of Steffler, who had already scored twice and she made no mistake, scoring her third with just minutes to go in injury time.
Trent peppered the Lakers' net, finishing with 21 shots as they took home the three points.
Jess Moran was busy and solid, ended up with 18 saves.
Source: nulakers.ca
Windsor 1 York 1
The York University Lions women's soccer team faced off with the visiting Windsor Lancers Saturday in their last regular season game. The Lions had a four-game winning streak heading into this match and needed a point to secure a playoff spot, and they got it with a 1-1 draw.
The first half remained scoreless until the last two minutes of play, when Cassie Chretien of the Lancers scored a goal on a shot that went well above the head of Lions' goalkeeper Taylor Grant.
The Lions stepped up their offensive game in the second half, and it paid off. They were awarded a free kick in the 62ndminute that was taken by Ashley Nater, and she easily sent it to the lower left corner of Windsor's net. Nater has been the Lions' top scorer this season with five goals.
The Lancers remained scoreless in the second half, and the game finished in a 1-1 tie.
The Lions wrapped up the regular season with a 5-6-5 record for 20 points. They will hit the road Wednesday to begin their playoff season, with details on the game and their opponent to be determined after action concludes on Sunday.
Source: yorkulions.ca
Western 5 Guelph 2
LONDON, Ont. – Julia Crnjac and Giulia Geraci each scored two goals to power the Western Mustangs to a 5-2 win over the Guelph Gryphons on Saturday afternoon at the Gryphon Soccer Complex.
With the win, the Mustangs will end the regular season with a dominant 14-1-1 record as they sit atop the OUA West division standings. The victory also extends Western's unbeaten streak to 14 games, with the team's last loss coming in their second game of the season. The Gryphons loss will drop them to a 9-4-2 record as they head into the playoffs sitting in second place in the OUA West division.
Both Crnjac and Geraci scored their 10th and 11th goals of the season in the win and finish the year tied for the Mustangs scoring lead.
The Mustangs found their offence early in their matchup against the Gyrphons, as Crnjac netted her first goal of the day off of an assist from midfielder Jess Viera in only the 12th minute of play. Rookie midfielder Giulia Geraci would find the back of the net soon after for the purple and white to help Western cruise to a 2-0 halftime lead.
The second half began on an equally high note for the Mustangs as Crnjac quickly netted her second goal of the day along with another strike from Geraci, extending the Western advantage.
Kaylin Twardowski put the Gryphons on the board in the 62nd minute before Geraci responded just two minutes later to re-establish the Mustangs three goal lead. Kendra Marlatt extended the lead to 5-1 with a goal in the 86th minute of play before Jacqueline Goulart answered back shortly thereafter to make it a 5-2 final for the Mustangs.
The Mustangs will be back in action on October 28 after receiving a by through the first round, where they will meet an undetermined opponent in the OUA quarter-finals at Mustang Field.
Source: westernmustangs.ca
Algoma 1 McMaster 8
Putting the result beyond doubt within the first 20 minutes, the Marauders were ruthless in a match that needed to be won Saturday.
McMaster (4-6-5) blasted eight goals past the winless Algoma Thunderbirds (0-15-0), and enjoyed hat tricks from the forward pair of Jessie Faber of Lindsay Bosveld, in an 8-1 romp at Ron Joyce Stadium.
The veteran Faber completed her hat trick within 23 minutes of the opening whistle, and was removed as part of wholesale lineup changes to begin the second half.
Bosveld scored four times in her 45 minutes of second-half action, coming into the match as one of the aforementioned changes.
Ally Riganelli also found the back of the net for the Marauders in the rout, completing Mac's four-goal first half by scoring in the 30th minute.
The only blemish in the win came in the 64th minute, when Bailee Malmloff denied McMaster goalkeeper Deanna Persico the clean sheet with Algoma's lone goal.
With the win, McMaster kept pace in the sixth and final playoff position in the OUA West, level with the Windsor Lancers on points, but with the tiebreaker in hand.
A win in Sunday's regular season finale would clinch that spot for the Marauders, earning them a first round playoff on the road.
Source: marauders.ca
RMC 1 Ryerson 2
Having secured their first playoff berth in six years, the fourth in the program’s history, the Rams came into Saturday night’s season closer looking to cap off the OUA regular season. Not only would they be celebrating their winningest season with seven victories, but the university careers of their senior players.
A header goal in the 20th minute of play would see BreAnah Webster (Pickering, Ont.) put the Rams ahead early. Jalen Simms (Toronto, Ont.), in her last game as a Ram, would score her second career goal to see the Rams hold a comfortable two point lead. Ryerson would hold this until the 67th minute, as RMC’s Reina Cho (Coquitlam, BC) found the back of the net to reduce the lead to one. However, the Rams defence would stay strong and limit RMC’s chances to conclude the season with the victory.
“[Simms] had a great game tonight,” associate coach Tina Cook said on the senior’s scoring performance. “It’s nice on senior night, her last regular season game of her career, to come out with a goal and do really well.”
The match also provided a goalkeeping show as Elisa Lapadula (Brampton, Ont.) continued to impress in net in place of injured senior Brittney Clendenan (Ottawa, Ont.). In RMC’s net, Claudia Rusu (Toronto, Ont.) would stop eight of 10 shots in a performance that included two spectacular diving saves.
Now, the Rams turn their attention to the postseason for the first time in six seasons. For such a young core team, this poses it’s own challenges. However, this Ryerson Rams squad has proven that they can take on the best of them time and time again.
“We’ve been a little inconsistent at times this season. With a young team, that’s to be expected,” Cook explained. “We’ve shown that we can play with the best teams, and I think we’ve got a strong team coming into the playoffs. I think we’ve got great chances, we’re confident, and we’re excited.”
Source: ryersonrams.ca
Queen’s 3 Toronto 2
TORONTO (October 21, 2017) - The Queen's Gaels (12-3-1) defeated the Toronto Varsity Blues (7-7-2) 3-2 on Saturday evening in Toronto and secured themselves not only a six point weekend but the second overall spot in the OUA East. With that comes a first round bye, the Gaels will host an East semifinal game on Saturday October 28 at 1pm.
GAME FLOW
The Gaels, needing a win to secure a bye in the first round of the OUA playoffs, got off to a quick start on the road in Toronto.
Alexandra Doane (Brookside, N.S.) struck first for Queen's in the 23rd minute to put the Gaels ahead early 1-0. The Gaels added another in the 45th minute as Jenny Wolever (Toronto) was able to get on the board with her OUA leading 19th point of the season.
In the second half, the OUA goal scoring leader Laura Callender (Ottawa) padded her lead striking her 13th of the season to put the Gaels ahead 3-0.
The Varsity Blues were quick to respond as Kristin Parkes scored two minutes later beating Queen's netminder Anna Stephenson (Vancouver).
Toronto made it a game in the 76th minute as they scored their second of the game.
The Gaels were able to stave off Toronto from there and take the 3-2 win.
BY THE NUMBERS
12 - The key stat in any tie-breaker with Ottawa, Queen's finished with more wins and gets the second spot in the East
13 - Goals for Callender this season to lead the OUA
19 - Points for Wolever this season to lead the OUA
Source: gogaelsgo.com
Other Scores
UOIT 2 Laurentian 0
Brock 0 Waterloo 0
October 22, 2017
UOIT 5 Nipissing 1
NORTH BAY, Ont. – The No. 2 ranked UOIT women's soccer team finished up their 2017 regular season without suffering a loss after beating the Nipissing Lakers 5-1 on Sunday afternoon.
The defending OUA champions finished conference play with a 14-0-2 record, setting program highs for points (44) and wins (14) in a season. Ottawa and York in 2015 were the last schools in the OUA to go through the regular season without a loss.
UOIT is now in line to host an OUA quarter-final match that will take place at the Oshawa Civic on either Saturday or Sunday. Their opponent will be determined after the conclusion of the first round of the playoffs that will take place midweek with Ottawa hosting Toronto and Laurentian hosting Ryerson.
Coming off a year where the Ridgebacks won the OUA championship and had four starters graduating, head coach Peyvand Mossavat wasn't expecting to have the success that they have had so far this season.
"The reality is that we thought it would be a transition year with a lot of rookies on the field and for them to perform the way they did is incredible," said Mossavat. "We are also quite excited for the seniors to be able to accomplish another program first in finishing the regular season without a loss. We are hoping to carry this momentum into the playoffs and perform well in order to get back to nationals."
In Sunday's game against Nipissing, UOIT got off to a quick start with Cassandra Sribny(Pickering, Ont.) scoring goals in the second and ninth minute. Andrea Young of Nipissing would get one back in the 18th minute, but Taijah Henderson (Ajax, Ont.) and Shynice Williams(Mississauga, Ont.) would find the back of the net to give UOIT a 4-1 lead at the half.
Henderson and Sribny end the year with 10 and nine goals respectively, sitting fourth and ninth in OUA scoring.
In the second half, Julia Listro (Toronto, Ont.) would score her first career OUA goal in the 69thminute, drilling the ball off the crossbar and in off a free kick.
Victoria Savage (Woodbridge, Ont.) and Olivia Tierney (King City, Ont.) would split time in net for the win. This was Tierney's first appearance in net this season.
Last year, UOIT defeated Laurentian 2-0 in the quarter-finals to advance to their second OUA championship in three years.
Source: uoitridgebacks.com
Trent 0 Laurentian 1
The Voyageurs women's soccer were vying for an illusive home playoff game today as they welcomed the Trent Excalibur to the LU soccer field in a "win and host" matchup.
Both teams were on the offensive early generating several scoring chances at each end. Trent got off a few shots in the first ten minutes, but Voyageurs goalkeeper, Caitlin McNamara, was on the ball early as she denied five Excalibur shots in the first half. The Voyageurs generated their own chances in the 20th minute when Brianne Rodrigue sent Sarah Sanford a nice ball into the box but was stopped by the Trent keeper. Eight minutes later, Megan Chiovitti sent Rodrigue on a run who made a few nice touches to beat the defenders but couldn't put it past the keeper. Just two minutes later, the duo were at it again after Alison Pilon sent a long throw into the box that found Chiovitti who knocked it to Rodrigue who made no mistake on her second chance in the half.
The Excalibur turned the pressure up late in the half but McNamara stood strong in goal sending both teams into the break with the Voyageurs up 1-0.
The second half saw a lot of back and forth action, with each team creating scoring chances but finding posts and keepers who shut the door at both ends. The 1-0 win nets McNamara her eighth shutout of the season, good for 2nd among all OUA goalkeepers.
The win secures a home playoff game for the Voyageurs who will welcome the Ryerson Rams to town this Wednesday. Stay tuned to luvoyageurs.com and @luvoyageurs for more playoff information.
Source: luvoyageurs.com
Algoma 0 McMaster 7
The Marauders arrived at the final weekend of the OUA season with a simple mission, and on Sunday, they achieved it.
McMaster successfully took six points from two games against the Algoma Thunderbirds, capping their regular season with a 7-0 thumping of their winless visitors, to clinch the sixth and final playoff spot in the OUA West on the last day of the conference schedule.
The result cemented Mac's regular season record at 5-6-5, with their final total of 20 points level with the York Lions in a tie for the fifth and sixth positions. McMaster falls to sixth as a result of the tiebreaker, having lost and drawn in the teams' two meetings this season.
Advancing to the playoffs as the last seed in the West, the Marauders will travel to Waterloo to take on the Laurier Golden Hawks on Wednesday, Oct. 25.
Rookie forward Lindsay Bosveld took her weekend scoring total to an astounding seven goals, completing her second hat trick in as many days in Sunday's win. With her haul on the final weekend, Bosveld finished the season as Mac's leading scorer with nine goals.
In her first appearance of the season, defender Yasmine Lyons netted twice, while Faye Stavropoulos and Jade Smith each added a goal apiece.
Source: marauders.ca
Carleton 0 Ottawa 0
Fans from across the Ottawa region packed the stands as the Gee-Gees women’s soccer team faced off against the Carleton Ravens this Sunday for the final regular season game of the year. Gee-Gees goalkeeper Julie-Anne Lamarche was a standout player in the game, making an impressive 8 saves that included one penalty kick. Offensively, Carleton made a total of 22 shots to score, while uOttawa made 13 shots. Ultimately, however, the game resulted in a 0-0 tie.
“I think the game had a little bit more meaning because it was my last [regular season] game,” said team captain Vanessa El-Asmar, who is in her fifth and final year. El-Asmar as well as five of her teammates were honoured prior to the start of the game with plaques to commemorate five years of dedication to the team. El-Asmar’s fellow graduating seniors are Kayla Da Costa-Pacheco, Faythe Lou, Sophie Curtis, Anika Littlemore, and Hannah Landry and all started the match on Sunday.
El-Asmar also stated that while this game did not impact Ottawa's playoff positioning, there were still high expectations for this game. “Our mindset was definitely to go for the win, and to go out there and be the hardest working team—as I think we’ve been doing all season.”
Two wins by Queen’s on the final weekend of the season edged the Gaels past Ottawa into second place in the OUA East standings with a record of 12-3-1. The Gee-Gees (10-1-5) are set to host the Toronto Varsity Blues (7-7-2) on Wednesday, October 25 at 6 p.m as part of Round One of the OUA playoffs. Tickets are on sale now at tickets.geegees.ca.
Source: geegees.ca
Windsor 2 Guelph 4
GUELPH – The OUA post-season hasn't officially started. But that's not how the Guelph Gryphons women's soccer team approached their final weekend of the regular season schedule. The dialed-in Gryphons put their worst loss of the year behind them and finished the year with an important 4-2 win over the Windsor Lancers on Senior Day at the Gryphon Soccer Complex.
The hosts would need every bit of that focus after conceding a goal less than two minutes after the start. They would ultimately pass a big test before the elimination matches begin next week. Second-year midfielder Danielle Sauve scored twice, while third-year striker Hayley Howes and rookie striker Venessa Mazur had a goal each.
"We said for us the playoffs start today and we wanted to make sure that the spirit, the effort, the approach to the game was correct," said head coach Shayne Campbell. "And the girls had the right approach today."
Guelph finishes the season in second place in the OUA West at 10-4-2, good enough for a first-round playoff bye.
After losing 5-2 to the first-place Western Mustangs at home on Saturday, the Gryphons got off to a horror start Sunday afternoon. Windsor's Giulia Barile produced a beautiful free kick that went in just inside the right post of Libby Brenneman's net in the second minute, putting the Lancers up immediately.
It was appropriate that on Senior Day, the Gryphons would show the poise required to move on from giving one up so early. Moments after Guelph missed a penalty, Howes equalized in the 13thminute when she got loose down the right side, attacked the Lancers' net and unleashed a shot high past goalkeeper Kristina Brooks.
"We got behind early and that's a hard mountain to climb sometimes at the beginning of the game and all of a sudden it kind of shocks you," said Campbell. "The response is really important and that's what the playoffs are all about. When things don't go your way and you really hope it makes a turn. I thought they responded so well today and it was their playoff mentality."
Guelph grabbed control of the match when Sauve netted her first, a high finish after taking a great feed from Victoria Hinchliffe in the 51st minute. Mazur's goal, the eventual match winner, came shortly after in the 58th minute. The Mississauga, ON native was fed inside the area and she slotted a low, left-footed strike in to extend the lead to two.
Jazmin Martin scored for Windsor in the 70th minute but the response from Guelph was immediate, as Sauve secured the three points with an amazing chip of the goalkeeper in the 72nd minute.
Brenneman, one of Guelph's nine seniors, was busy. The Baden, ON native had to make eight saves on the afternoon.
The match was a good way to bounce back after the Gryphons were beaten 5-2 by Western the previous day. The Mustangs stormed out to a 2-0 lead by the half on goals from Julia Crnjac and Giulia Geraci. Crnjac added her second of the day minutes after the restart and though Kaylin Twardowski finally got one back for Guelph in the 63rd minute, Geraci would net her second and Western's fourth just two minutes later.
With the Mustangs up 5-1, Jacqueline Goulart scored in the 88th minute.
The five goals were the most conceded by the Gryphons this year and an anomaly given the side's sound defensive structure. It was also a lesson with the playoffs on the horizon. And the response on Sunday was telling.
Campbell mentioned how his seniors – Brenneman, Goulart, AC Lang, Sara Van Den Akker, Andrea Cimino, Sydney Holden, Allison Clouse, Nicole Brown-Shaw, Stephanie Moore, and former player and current trainer Elise Dedecker – have been leaders on and off the pitch, with a commitment to both the community and their academics. When Guelph hosts a playoff game next weekend, Campbell expects his players to be up for it.
"We're ready for this moment," he said. "We've been working hard for three months and we want to keep this thing going."
Source: gryphons.ca
Other Scores
Brock 1 Laurier 0