What had been a good season finished with a disappointing end for the Trinity Western Spartans women’s soccer team.
The Spartans went 11-0-3 during the regular season but after winning their first two playoff games, the team lost three straight games, including twice this past weekend.
They failed to score a single goal in all three defeats.
“It’s been a very good season, but obviously a disappointing end,” said TWU coach Graham Roxburgh.
The Spartans lost both their matches at the U Sports championship tournament in Wolfville, N.S.
Ranked sixth out of the eight teams, TWU lost 1-0 in overtime to the UOIT (University of Ontario Institute of Technology) Ridgebacks in the quarter-finals and then lost 1-0 in penalty kicks to the Saskatchewan Huskies.
The Huskies prevailed 5-4 in the penalty kick round.
“I’m really proud of my players and I’m really proud of how they stepped up,” Roxburgh said.
“A penalty shootout can go either way and their goalie made a really good save. I thought we had a few chances, but were just unlucky not to finish them, but that was kind of the story of our tournament.”
Saskatchewan’s victory marked the first time the Huskies had beaten their Canada West rival in program history.
In TWU’s quarter-final loss, the Ridgebacks scored the game’s lone goal in the 106th minute to prevail 1-0.
"It was a fiercely contested battle," Roxburgh said.
"It was a good goal for them, but it is disappointing because we had one or two of those chances as well and did not take them. And they took their chance that came across the box."
"Credit to them they won the battle and we knew that it always was going to be a battle that would probably be won by a half chance that someone was going to take advantage of that was going to be the difference."