VANCOUVER (CIS) – For the first time since 2006, the UBC Thunderbirds will play for Gladys Bean Memorial Trophy after defeating the Sherbrooke Vert et Or 2-0 in the second semifinal of the CIS women's soccer championship Saturday evening at Thunderbird Stadium.
An all-Canada West matchup is set between UBC and the Trinity Western Spartans at Thunderbird Stadium Sunday at 4:30 p.m. Pacific for the coveted championship, which both schools have won a CIS-best five times.
Sherbrooke will battle Laval for bronze at 1:30 p.m., Sunday afternoon.
In last Sunday's conference finals, UBC edged TWU 1-0 for the Canada West title, while Laval downed Sherbrooke 5-1 for the RSEQ banner.
UBC, a team that hasn't been present at the CIS championship tournament since 2010, earned their spot by taking home the Canada West championship and moved on to the national semifinal by defeating the Calgary Dinos 1-0 in the quarter-final Thursday afternoon.
"I thought we came out focused ... we knew we wanted to come out high-tempo and high-press and that's what we did and I think we caught them off guard a little bit. I'm super proud of my girls, one step closer. I'm happy about this, but our goal was to get to the final and hopefully win it. You couldn't really write a better story line with us and Trinity [Western]," said Thunderbirds head coach Marisa Kovacs. "I think the girls really stepped it up this year, we had this goal in mind and we're finally here."
"We are very sad, but I'm very proud of my girls," said Sherbrooke head coach Alfred Picariello. "They are tough and they had very good play, but I think UBC was more ready. We had good possession, but couldn't put the ball in the net. I'm very proud of my girls and it's very good for the future."
Sherbrooke, an offensive powerhourse, scored 47 goals during the regular season and was looking for a few more to get them into the national championship. But from the opening whistle, UBC controlled possession. The Canada West champions were physical against the RSEQ finalists, making it difficult to create chances.
In the 14th minute, Sherbrooke got the first quality chance when Audrey Lagarde broke in on goalkeeper Olivia de Goede, but de Goede stood tall and grabbed the shot.
But in the 22nd minute, UBC found the back of the net when Jasmin Dhanda rushed down the right side to force Sherbrooke goalkeeper Alexandra Girouard out of her net. Dhanda passed it to Amrit Berar at the top of the box, who made no mistake and put the hosts up 1-0.
UBC had another opportunity in the 25th minute off a free kick just outside the box when a crossed ball found Berar's head, but Girouard captured it before the ball went in the bottom corner. Sherbrooke countered with multiple shots, but de Goede stood her ground.
The Thunderbirds continued to pressure in the 38th minute. Shayla Chorney made a run down the close line, sending a shot at keeper Girouard, forcing her to make a beautiful diving save. But Dhanda was waiting for the rebound and sent it into the open net to expand the Thunderbirds lead to 2-0.
Sherbrooke tried to respond when Audrey Marcoux made a run towards the net in the 39th minute and tried to beat de Goede in the corner, but the UBC netminder just got her hand on it to send the ball out of bounds. It ended 2-0 at the conclusion of first half, with shots favouring the Vert et Or 7-5. Shots on goal were even at five apiece.
The second half was much of the same, as UBC continued to press. On another through ball in the 58th minute, Janna Speed raced Girouard to the ball, but Girouard kicked it away from harm before running back to her net.
The best chance for Sherbrooke came in the 62nd minute. In an absolute scramble, multiple Vert et Or players had shots to beat de Goede including Audrey Lagarde, Éve L'Abbé and Marie-Ève Jacques, but de Goede stopped everything that came at her before UBC's defence cleared the ball.
For the remainder of the game, de Goede and UBC's defence stood tall to send them to the national final, limiting Sherbrooke's quality chances.
The Vert et Or outshot the Thunderbirds 16-9, while the shots on goal were 11-8 in favour of Sherbrooke.
UBC and Trinity Western will face off for the third time in CIS play this season. They've already met once in the regular season and once in the Canada West championship game, both of which were won by the Thunderbirds.
"We've played them quite a few times this season," Kovacs said. "I think both of us will be on our A-game. It's leave it all on the field. It's been a long season but I think the girls are ready to step up."
SCORING SUMMARY:
UBC: 2-0: 2
SHER: 0-0: 0
First Half:
1. UBC Amrit Berar (Jasmin Dhanda), 22nd minute
2. UBC Jasmin Dhanda, 39th
Second Half:
(no scoring)
Goalkeepers:
Olivia de Goede (W, 0 GA, 11 saves, 90:00, 2-0)
Alexandra Girouard (L, 2 GA, 6 saves, 90:00, 1-1)
Team Stats
Shots: SHER 16, UBC 9
Shots on net: SHER 11, UBC 8
Corners: SHER 5, UBC 2
Offsides: SHER 2, UBC 1
Fouls: UBC 15, SHER 8
Yellow cards: SHER (Marie-Ève Jacques), UBC (Jasmine Mander)
Red cards: None
Players of the game:
UBC: Olivia De Goede
SHER: Anne Gauthier-Dussureault
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: UBC 1, Calgary 0
Friday, Nov. 13
11:00 Consolation 1: Cape Breton 2, Wilfrid Laurier 0
13:30 Consolation 2: Queen's 1, Calgary 0 (4-2 kicks)
Saturday, Nov. 14
11:00 5th-place game: Queen's 2, Cape Breton 1 (4-2 kicks)
13:30 Semifinal 1: Trinity Western 2, Laval 1 (9-8 kicks)
16:30 Semifinal 2: UBC 2, Sherbrooke 0
Sunday, Nov. 15
13:30 Bronze medal: Laval vs. Sherbrooke (CIS-SIC.tv)
16:30 Championship final: UBC vs. Trinity Western (CIS-SIC.tv)