Photo credit Rich Lam
VANCOUVER (CIS) – The Sherbrooke Vert et Or outlasted the Queen’s Gaels in a six-round shootout on Thursday night, claiming a spot in the CIS women’s soccer semifinals after the two sides battled to a 1-1 stalemate through 120 minutes of regulation and extra time in a driving rainstorm at UBC’s Thunderbird Stadium.
The penalty kicks featured some excellent goaltending, as the Gaels’ Madison Tyrell stopped two of the six attempts she faced, while her Sherbrooke counterpart Alexandra Girouard stopped three, including a diving, game-clinching stop on Queen’s forward Bella Jacot.
“We are happy with the result and the game,” said Sherbrooke head coach Alfred Picariello. “The players left it all on the field tonight. I think we have a chance go to far in the competition.”
A two-minute stretch in midway through the second half provided all the game’s non-penalty kick scoring, as fourth-year midfielder Brittany Almeida drew first blood in the 59th minute for Queen’s, before rookie forward Gaelle Duplessis-Lebel responded in the 61st minute for Sherbrooke.
Both Sherbrooke and Queen’s played an excellent defensive first half, as the majority of the opening 45 minutes was played in the middle third of the field. For the most part, the Vert et Or had the run of the play, as they managed 11 shots to the Gaels’ two.
However, execution proved the stumbling block for Sherbrooke in the first half, as, of their 11 shot attempts, only one reached Queen’s Tyrell.
Between the two sides, the best chance of the half came in the 39th minute, as third-year Queen’s defender Micah Vermeer turned over the ball deep in her own territory. Marie-Eve Jacques was in the right place to take advantage, and the fourth-year Sherbrooke forward let go of a screamer from 15 yards out that Tyrell did well to reach out and deflect over the bar.
The Vert et Or continued to press coming out of the halftime break. Jacques, five minutes into the frame, broke down the left flank, cut in on the goal line, and put a great cross into the Queen’s box. Duplessis-Lebel was on the spot, but the first-year forward directed the ball just wide of the Gaels’ net.
Off of a corner just three minutes later, Sherbrooke pressed again, as third-year attacking midfielder Audrey Lagarde took a second ball about 20 yards out, and delivered a curling strike that just missed over top of the net, grazing the crossbar.
After the two sides struggled to find the back of the net for 59 minutes, both the Gaels and Vert et Or accomplished the feat less than two minutes apart.
First, Queen’s veteran Almeida took a great feed from fifth-year forward Jessie de Boer, and raced down the left flank. Almeida fired, and her shot just squeaked through Sherbrooke netminder Alexandra Girouard.
In the 61st minute, Duplessis-Lebel responded, as she bullied her way down the right wing, in alone on Tyrell. The rookie made no mistake, putting a quick chip shot past the keeper and evening up the score.
At the 74-minute mark, Lagarde nearly broke the 1-1 deadlock on a free kick. After Vermeer hauled down Sherbrooke captain Anne Gauthier-Dussureault, Lagarde delivered a brilliant ball directly on goal, labelling it for just under the crossbar. Tyrell was up to the challenge, making a leaping, fully extended stop.
There were some valiant efforts on either side late in regulation, but neither the Gaels nor the Vert et Or managed to pull ahead, and the two teams went into extra time still deadlocked at 1-1.
Rookie forward Sarah Nixon nearly got the Gaels ahead as the first 15-minute extra session wound down, as she got an opportunity from in close, but her attempt hit the side of Girouard’s net.
Queen’s seemed to ride the momentum from that late chance into the second extra period, as they dominated possession for the early portion of the final 15-minute period. However, Sherbrooke did well to box them out of any quality scoring chances, keeping the draw intact.
Still tied, Tyrell got a late chance to make an impact in the extra session, as a Sherbrooke free kick flew into the 18-yard box, but the Queen’s keeper stormed out and snagged the ball before anything could come of the opportunity.
“A pretty miserable day,” remarked Queen’s head coach Dave McDowell. “You give full marks to Sherbrooke, who I thought did really well in dealing with the conditions so tip your hats to them and say, ‘Well done.’ A difficult day for us.
“I think it is hard to find any words of wisdom right now. We’ll try and get them ready for tomorrow. Obviously when we reflect back on the conditions, hopefully, they’ll be able to pull it together and play tomorrow.”
The Vert et Or are now in wait-and-see mode, as they will face the winner of the fourth quarterfinal match between the UBC Thunderbirds and the Calgary Dinos in the semifinal on Saturday, with kickoff scheduled for 4:30 p.m. PST. Queen’s will move into the consolation round, where they’ll next play the losing side between the Thunderbirds and Dinos, a match that is set to begin at 1:30 p.m. PST on Friday.
SCORING SUMMARY:
SHE 0-1-0-0: 1 (4-3 kicks)
QNS: 0-1-0-0: 1
First Half
(no scoring)
Second Half
1. QNS Brittany Almeida (1), (Jessie de Boer) 59th minute
2. SHE Gaelle Duplessis-Lebel (1) 61st
Extra Time (2 x 15 mins - no golden goal)
(no scoring)
Kicks
SHE Audrey Lagarde, goal
QNS Brittany Almeida, saved (Alexandra Girouard)
SHE Amelie Tremblay, saved (Madison Tyrell)
QNS Laura Callendar, goal
SHE Laurence Desrosiers, goal
QNS Tara Bartram, goal
SHE Anne Gauthier-Dussureault, saved (Madison Tyrell)
QNS Jessie de Boer saved (Alexandra Girouard)
SHE Marie-Eve Jacques, goal
QNS Micah Vermeer, goal
SHE Audrey Marcoux, goal
QNS Bella Jacot, saved (Alexandra Girouard)
Goalkeepers:
SHE: Alexandra Girouard (W, 1 GA, 4 saves, 120:00, 1-0)
QNS: Madison Tyrell (L, 1 GA, 7 saves, 120:00, 0-1)
Team Stats
Shots: SHE 23, QNS 9
Shots on net: SHE 8, QNS 5
Corners: SHE 6, QNS 4
Offsides: SHE 1, QNS 4
Fouls: SHE 11, QNS 14
Yellow cards: SHE (Anne Gauthier-Dussureault, Marie-Eve Jacques, Florence Morin) QNS (Bella Jacot, Micah Vermeer)
Red cards: None
Players of the game:
SHE: Amelie Tremblay
QNS: Madison Tyrell
SCHEDULE & RESULTS (all times PACIFIC TIME)
Thursday, Nov. 12
11:00 Quarter-final 1: Laval 1, Wilfrid Laurier 0
13:30 Quarter-final 2: Trinity Western 2, Cape Breton 0
16:30 Quarter-final 3: Sherbrooke 2, Queen’s 1 (4-3 kicks)
19:00 Quarter-final 4: Calgary vs. UBC (CIS-SIC.tv)
Friday, Nov. 13
11:00 Consolation 1: Wilfrid Laurier vs. Cape Breton (CIS-SIC.tv)
13:30 Consolation 2: Queen’s vs. Loser QF 4 (CIS-SIC.tv)
Saturday, Nov. 14
11:00 5th-place game (CIS-SIC.tv)
13:30 Semifinal 1: Laval vs. Trinity Western (CIS-SIC.tv)
16:30 Semifinal 2: Sherbrooke vs. Winner QF 4 (CIS-SIC.tv)
Sunday, Nov. 15
13:30 Bronze medal (CIS-SIC.tv)
16:30 Championship final (CIS-SIC.tv)