Game recap by: Kirk Jessome
(Halifax, NS) – In the second part of the Dalhousie Tigers season opening double-header, the UNB Varsity Reds visited Wickwire field for a hard-fought, physical affair on Saturday evening. In the end, the Tigers came out on top by a score of 2-0.
The first half started with a lot of fast paced action at midfield with possession moving back and forth with plenty of strong tackles.
UNB had the first shot on goal in the early minutes, coming from Ben Gorringe (Truro, NS) in the 6th minute.
The action really picked up when a scramble ensued in front of the Tigers net when a UNB corner kick delivered by Diego Padilha (Macelo, BRA) was deflected toward the goal with multiple chances coming afterward. Tigers keeper TJ Leopold (Bedford, NS) stood strong with the save.
The V-Reds were busy on the offensive end in the first half, finishing with four more shots on goal, but again Tigers keeper Leopold was solid. There was also an on-field competition between brothers Quinn Park (Calgary, AB) of the Tigers and Kalen Park (Calgary, AB) of UNB.
The Tigers finished the half with some chances of their own. Their only shot on goal of the half came from Enrico Rodriguez (Halifax, NS), and another chance came from Quinn Park on a well-placed through-ball.
The half came to a close with plenty of chances, but no scoring.
The first action of the second half came early, with the Tigers opening the scoring. A shot coming from the top of the box was tipped by V-Reds keeper Evan Barker (Winnipeg, MB) off the crossbar and rebounded out to a diving Kallen Heenan (Dartmouth, NS) who headed in the first goal of the match.
The Tigers came up with solid offensive opportunities with a shot going wide from Nyle MacLeod (Ottawa, ON) on a set play, and Freddy Bekkers (Halifax, NS) being stopped by UNB keeper Evan Barker.
UNB came back with three quick shots on goal that were stopped and held by Leopold.
The Tigers continued to take advantage of opportunities with a goal coming from Tareq Armoush (Halifax, NS) on a well-placed strike into the corner of the goal after a pass from Freddy Bekkers.
Being down didn't stop UNB from applying pressure late in the game with more shots coming from Padilha and Alex O'Bien (Charlottetown, PE), but none found the back of the net.
The Tigers controlled play to run out the clock for the win by a final score of 2-0, with Leopold earning the clean sheet.
The Subway Player of the Game was Tigers captain, Jonathan Doucett (Dartmouth, NS) who controlled the backfield all game on the defensive end.
The Tigers are back in action Sunday when they travel to Acadia for a 3:15 kick-off, while UNB takes a road trip to Cape Breton to face off against the Capers on the 16th.