The Dalhousie Agricultural Campus (Dal AC) Rams women’s soccer team, currently in first place in the league, took on the UNB Saint John Seawolves, currently in last place, on Saturday, October 21st, at the Canada Games Stadium.
The match, which was played in support of UNB Saint John’s Annual Think Pink event, started out very fast paced, with both teams taking several shots on net within the first couple of minutes.
“It’s really nice to see two skilled, talented, aggressive teams come together to raise money for breast cancer awareness”, said observer Sophie Sharp about Think Pink.
The Seawolves had a few close opportunities in the 26th minute, but were unable to capitalize thanks to the Rams’ strong defense.
A shot in the 34th minute by the Rams’ Sian Rankin (Edmonton, AB) missed the net by millimeters thanks to a great save by the Seawolves’ keeper Marina Comeau (Oromocto, NB). Both teams continued with several great chances but were ultimately unable to score, and halftime came with a score of 0-0.
The second half saw more of the same from both sides, and the score at the final whistle was 0-0.
“We worked well as a team”, said Laiken Fox (Woodstock, NB), after Saturday’s draw. “There were some chances, but we definitely had some trouble connecting anything.”
Later in the day, the men’s game saw a 1-0 win for Seawolves, with Justin Leslie (St. George, NB) scoring the game winning goal in the 53rd minute.
Sunday’s game saw the Seawolves take on the Holland College Hurricanes in an afternoon double header.
The women’s game saw few shot opportunities for the Seawolves, with the majority coming in the first half.
“We weren’t composed and, after they scored a couple of goals, we really lost our momentum,” said Fox post-game about their tough loss.
The 4-0 loss was the last game of the season for the Seawolves. Midfielder Kaitlin Casey (Oxford Mills, ON) praised her team for a strong weekend, but was mainly looking forward to next season.
“We are going to be doing lots of winter training. Now is the time for us to begin thinking about what we need to work on next year.”
The men’s team fared no better, losing 5-0 in their last game of the season. Holland scored four of the five goals within the first half, and doubled the Seawolves’ shot attempts.
Leslie also has high hopes for the men’s team next season, stating that, “We came into the year knowing that we were going to have a young squad. We had a very good team dynamic on and off the field. Looking ahead, we have a solid unit of [strong] young players that will be here for a few years, and all we can do is build off that and improve in every way possible.”
UNBSJ, despite not competing, will host the ACAA’s this weekend at the Canada Games Stadium. Come out and see who will be this season’s champions!
