Spartans roast T-Birds

Posted by admin on Oct 6, 2009 in Sports | 0 comments

The men’s soccer team continued their unbeaten season Friday night with a victory over visiting UBC and will look to remain undefeated this weekend when they play host to Victoria and Fraser Valley.

On Friday, the boys welcomed the UBC Thunderbirds to Langley to renew their CW rivalry. The T-birds arrived with a four game winning streak while the Spartans were looking to remain undefeated and preserve their new #1 ranking in the country. Adding to the drama was that the last time these two teams met, TWU knocked UBC out of the Canada West Final Four and eliminated their chances for a spot at the CIS Championships.

The game did not disappoint, and from the first whistle the defence was tight and TWU’s strikers peppered the UBC net with shots. Just before the 20-minute mark Spartan forward Nathan Pogue took a beautiful cross and put it in the back of the net on a corner from Ioannis Tsoulouhas. Twenty minutes later, Pogue headed a crossing pass just outside the six-yard box to put the Spartans up 2-0. UBC was able to pull within one before the end of the half, setting the stage for a tense second half.

A tight defensive battle ensued, with UBC spending a good portion of time on the attack, but team captain Paul Hamilton and the rest of the TWU defence was too tough to crack. With their shut down of any ball the UBC forwards tried to put on net, the home side was able to hold on and take the game 2-1.

“I can’t explain how great this feels,” said Spartan midfielder Liam McAllistar. “We continued this great rivalry tonight with a huge win.”
Associate Head Coach Mike Shearton was also impressed with the Spartans play Friday. “It’s a great win…they are a quality side and any time we play it is a big game.”

The men now look towards a set home games against Victoria and Fraser Valley this weekend and will look to keep up their winning chemistry. “We just have to keep moving,” says McAllistar. “The atmosphere in the locker room is all positive and every guy is supporting one another whether they play or not.”

Game Notes: With his 31st and 32nd career goals, Nathan Pogue tied all-time Spartan leading scorer Adrian Kekec. The Spartans will play their next game without starting defender Jake Jorgenson due to receiving two yellow cards in the match and Rhys Vokenant as a result of his third yellow this season.