Brian Swane, Special to Canada West
LANGLEY, B.C. – The Trinity Western Spartans look to extend an amazing streak, as the 2018 Canada West Women's Soccer Final Four goes Friday and Saturday at Chase Office Field in Langley.
TWU take to the pitch having reached seven straight gold medal games. In that stretch, the Spartans have won five conference championships, including last year, bringing their all-time total to seven.
Not only will the teams be playing for medals, they're also looking to earn one of two CW berths in the 2018 U SPORTS Women's Soccer Championship, at Gee-Gees Field in Ottawa, Nov. 8-11.
The post-season has already featured excitement and drama that entertained fans and tested the resolve of the remaining four Canada West teams, who rose to the occasion in quarter-final matches last weekend. Trinity Western needed overtime to get past Fraser Valley, Alberta scored in the 90th minute to oust MacEwan, and Calgary was level with Saskatchewan before notching the winning goal in the 83rd minute. UBC was the only team to win by multiple goals, 3-1 at home over UNBC.
Trinity Western earned the right to host Final Four by finishing atop the Pacific Division standings with a 12-2-0 record. The Spartans led Canada West in both goals scored (44) and goal differential (+30), while scoring at least three times in nine of their 14 matches, and posting five wins by three or more goals. Seina Kashima, a forward in her final season, ranked first in Canada West with 13 assists, and scored seven goals to tie third-year forward/midfielder Gabi Short for the team lead.
This is Alberta's second trip to Langley this month, following a 2-0 loss to Trinity Western on Oct. 12 in what was the only meeting between the teams this season. Alberta was otherwise undefeated on the road (3-1-2) and had a 9-2-3 record overall to place second in the Prairie Division. Goalkeeper Rebecca Reif played every minute of the season for the Pandas, who conceded just 11 goals, one of only two Canada West teams to boast a goals against average under 1.00. Midfielder Brenna Mattiello led the way offensively with 12 points.
Calgary finished first in the Prairie Division and had the best record in Canada West at 13-1-0, closing out the season on a 13-game win streak in which their average margin of victory was 2.23 goals. Backstopped by keeper Lauren Houghton, the Dinos dominate defensively, with a CW record 11 shutouts this season. Calgary scored 33 times in the regular season, with a team-high nine coming off the foot of senior forward Maddison Fritze.
It's been seven weeks since the Dinos last crossed paths with UBC, a tightly contested match in Vancouver on Sept. 15 that ended with the visitors winning 1-0. The T-Birds have only lost once since, at one point reeling off seven consecutive victories en route to a 10-3-1 record that was good enough for second in the Pacific Division. In her first year playing Canada West soccer, explosive forward Danielle Steer led all players with 10 goals, while sharing top spot with Kashima in points (20). Emily Moore started 11 of UBC's 14 matches in goal and was scored on just 11 times.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Friday, Nov. 2
- SF1: UBC vs. CGY - 3 p.m.
- SF2: ALB vs. TWU - 6 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 3
- Bronze: 2 p.m.
- Gold: 5 p.m.
NOTE: All game times are PDT at Chase Office Field. Every game can be seen live on Canada West TV.
TEAM PREVIEWS
2018 CW regular season record: 12-2-0, 1st Pacific Division
2018 record vs. Final Four teams: 2-0 vs. UBC, 1-0 vs. Alberta, 0-0 vs. Calgary
Last CW Final Four appearance: 2017 / CW champion
Last CW championship / total CW championships: 2017 / 1st
Last U SPORTS championship / total U SPORTS championships: 2013 / 5
2018 CW regular season ranks:
- Offence: 44 goals, 1st
- Defence: 14 goals against, 4th
2018 CW regular season leaders:
- Goals: 7 – Seina Kashima & Gabi Short, S
- Assists: 13 – Seina Kashima, S
- Points: 20 – Seina Kashima, S
- Wins: 12 – Rachel Sydor, G
- Shutouts: 6 – Rachel Sydor, G
Key performer:
- Seina Kashima
- Striker
- 5th-year
- Burnaby, B.C.
2018 CW Player of the Year Seina Kashima had an historic fifth and final year at Trinity Western, as she set the Canada West single-season assists record, with 13 in 14 games. Add to that the seven goals she scored and Kashima finished tied for the conference lead in points, with 20, which put her in a tie for the third best single-season points total in conference history.
With her 13-assist season, Kashima completed her university career as the all-time assists leader in Canada West history, with 40. She finished tied for third on the Canada West all-time points list, with 58.
2018 CW regular season record: 10-3-1, 2nd Pacific Division
2018 record vs. Final Four teams: 0-1-0 vs. CGY, 0-2-0 vs. TWU, N/A vs. ALB
Last CW Final Four appearance: 2017 / 3rd
Last CW championship / total CW championships: 2016 / 15
Last U SPORTS championship / total U SPORTS championships: 2015 / 7
2018 CW regular season ranks:
- Offence: 37 goals, 2nd
- Defence: 12 goals against, 3rd
2018 CW regular season leaders:
- Goals: 10 – Danielle Steer, F
- Assists: 10 – Danielle Steer, F
- Points: 20 – Danielle Steer, F
- Wins: 7 – Emily Moore, G
- Shutouts: 4.5 – Emily Moore, G
Key performer:
- Danielle Steer
- Forward
- 2nd-year
- Surrey, BC
With 20 points, Steer tied for the Canada West scoring lead and the all-time single season record set just last season by former Thunderbird Jasmin Dhanda. The 2nd year Arts student paced the Canada West in points per game during the regular season and her three points in last weekend's quarter-final victory has her atop the conference playoff scoring race.
2018 CW regular season record: 13-1-0, 1st Prairie Division
2018 record vs. Final Four teams: 1-0 vs. UBC, 1-1 vs ALB
Last CW Final Four appearance: 2015 / 3rd
Last CW championship / total CW championships: 2005 / 1
Last U SPORTS championship / total U SPORTS championships: 1998 / 1
2018 CW regular season ranks:
- Offence: 33 goals for, 3rd
- Defence: 5 goals against, 1st
2018 CW regular season leaders:
- Goals: 9 – Maddison Fritze, F
- Assists: 4 – Kayla Kreutzer, D & Amy Mikuska, M
- Points: 11 – Maddison Fritze, F
- Wins: 13– Lauren Houghton, GK
- Shutouts: 11 – Lauren Houghton, GK
Key performer:
- Lauren Houghton
- Goalkeeper
- 2nd-year
- Calgary, Alta.
Lauren Houghton's stellar season in goal for the Dinos included a slew of team and conference records, including wins (13) and shutouts (11). Houghton and the Dinos allowed just five goals in 14 games and went a span of nearly a month – 695 minutes of game time – without allowing a single tally.
The Dinos take a 14-game win streak into the Final Four.
2018 CW regular season record: 9-2-3, 2nd Prairie Division
2018 record vs. Final Four teams: 1-1-0 vs. Calgary, 0-1-0 vs. Trinity Western
Last CW Final Four appearance: 2014 / 4th
Last CW championship / total CW championships: 2013 / 8
Last U SPORTS championship / total U SPORTS championships: 2001 / 3
2018 CW regular season ranks:
- Offence: 31 goals for, 4th
- Defence: 11 goals against, 2nd
2018 CW regular season leaders:
- Goals: 6 – Anna Dunn, F
- Assists: 7 – Brenna Mattiello, M
- Points: 12 – Brenna Mattiello, M
- Wins: 9 – Rebecca Reif, G
- Shutouts: 8 – Rebecca Reif, G
Key performer:
- Brenna Mattiello
- Midfield
- 4th-year
- Edmonton, AB
After an injury-plagued third season with the Pandas, veteran midfielder Brenna Mattiello rebounded with the best season of her career. The Edmonton product led the Pandas with 12 points in 14 games, the fourth highest total in Canada West.
In games when Mattiello has recorded a point, the Pandas are 9-0-1 this season. If the Pandas are to win their first conference title since 2013, it will most likely be because of the play of their fourth-year scorer.