By Jessica Kozlowski, Dinos Communications

CALGARY – The University of Calgary Dinos notched their first win over Trinity Western since 2003 Saturday, riding a two-goal performance by Maddison Fritze to a 3-0 victory.

In a fast-paced first half, Fritze stepped on the field in relief of the injured Emma Lee just eight minutes into the contest. Moments later, in the 20th, Fritze scored the Dinos' long-awaited first goal of the season on a feed from Montana Leonard.

As soon as the Dinos were able to regain their possession, Damiane Sawatzky, a newcomer to the roster, was able to drive the ball right into the keeper's hands but as the keeper couldn't hold onto the ball, Sawatzky was able to grab the rebound and was successful in scoring the goal in the 22nd minute.

Fired up to tie the match, TWU's Rachel Hutchinson was able to drive the ball up the right wing of the pitch twice, but unsuccessful to cross the ball over to another player towards the net. Leanne Verheoff, another midfielder from the Spartans, created plenty of scoring opportunities, but was trapped by three Dinos defencemen every time she approached the 10-yard box.

As the second half progressed, the Dinos and Spartans both had their fair share of goal attempts. Spartans forward Seina Kashima shot a rocket on goal but ended up hitting the outside of the net. Dinos forward Montana Leonard drove the ball up the center, unassisted towards the Spartans keeper but the was stopped as Oliverio got a hold of the ball at the 10-yard box.

As the 74th minute approached, Fritze received the ball by midfielder Carmen Lee. Fritze had no problems with getting past the keeper to shoot yet another powerful goal.

Dinos Head Coach Troye Flannery disclosed that Saturday's match "was a battle."

"Before we started playing, I told them that we have the ability and athleticism because we are young and we need to take the lessons we learned and put them into action," said Flannery. "Thanks to our grit, we were able to come out successful. Now, our job is to push the reset button and do it all again tomorrow."

In team totals, Calgary finished the day with 12 shots compared to 16 for the Trinity Western Spartans. Lauren Houghton made nine saves for the Dinos and Christina Oliverio turned away four attempts for the visitors.

Next, Trinity Western heads south to Lethbridge to face the Pronghorns Sunday afternoon. The Dinos continue their homestand Sunday when they host the Fraser Valley Cascades for a 12 p.m. kickoff.

-UC-

Photo by David Moll