Jefferson Hagen
MacEwan Athletics
WINNIPEG, Man. – When forced to play a man down, most teams sit back and play for the tie.
Not the defending U SPORTS champion MacEwan Griffins.
After losing captain Hannah Supina to a straight red card in the 72nd minute of Saturday's match at Manitoba, they pushed forward and broke open a scoreless draw with the winner in the first minute of extra time to spike the Bisons 1-0 in Canada West women's soccer action.
"We left it late, but at least we left two minutes on the board," joked head coach Dean Cordeiro of the two minutes of extra time they needed to kill to salt away their fifth-straight victory.
MacEwan is now 7-2-0 and comfortably atop the Prairie Division standings, while Manitoba falls to 3-5-1 into fifth place.
Cordeiro couldn't say enough of how proud he was of his 10-woman team besting the Bisons' 11 in the final moments.
"We went down a man, but it gave us life," said Cordeiro. "We played the last 20 minutes like we were up a man, not down a man, which is pretty incredible. We made a couple changes, and we got what we needed."
That would be Griffins' player of the game Anneke Odinga, who made an inspired run up the sideline and sent a ball into Maya Morrell, who found the winner in extra time.
"Anneke was just all over the pitch today, rounding corners and causing havoc for opponents up the wide channel," said Cordeiro. "She played a perfect ball in and found Maya Morrell. Maya took her time and great first-time finish to find the side netting and eventual match winner."
Earlier, Morrell put one from a similar spot just over the crossbar, but she wouldn't be denied again, scoring her third of the season.
Griffins goalkeeper Bianca Castillo made six saves for her fourth shutout of the season (Dave Mahussier photo).
It was the happy conclusion of an attack plan Griffins' coaches had when Supina was ejected in the 72ndminute.
"I think oftentimes coaches get a bit conservative when they get down a man – let's lock it down and take the point," said Cordeiro. "But our staff had a different approach. We felt we deserved better in the match, and we actually went for it. We went to a 4-3-2 with twin strikers and we were pushing people on. We weren't worried about conceding. We wanted to get the full point and it worked out for us.
"I'm glad the team stepped up because it is a slippery slope when you're down a man. If you get caught forward, it can turn into a loss. We were confident we were going to get the job done and it came late. I'm proud of the efforts of the side today."
MacEwan goalkeeper Bianca Castillo earned her fourth shutout of the season with a six-save effort, while Manitoba's Karina Bagi nearly stole it from the Griffins, stopping 10 of 11.
"Credit Manitoba, they had a good plan for us," said Cordeiro. "They kept us in front of them. They frustrated us. We dominated the possession arrow, but that doesn't always translate into the scoreboard
"We had some golden opportunities," he added. "It wasn't there, but it came when it mattered most."
The Griffins will continue their Manitoba road trip with a visit to Winnipeg on Sunday (10 a.m. MT, Canada West TV).
