EDMONTON - On the shoulders of sophomore forward Dana Morch’s two-goal performance, the University of Alberta Pandas clinched the final Canada West playoff berth to nationals with a 2-0 victory over the University of Calgary Dinos, Saturday afternoon at Foote Field.
Before the game, only one point separated the two teams in the standings but the win gives the Pandas a four-point cushion on their provincial rivals with one game left to go in the season and, more importantly, a trip to the CIS National tournament in Victoria that’s only two weeks away..
Two minutes into today’s game, Alberta senior forward Bunny Hughes rushed down the sideline and passed into the middle to junior forward Toni Almhjell who parked herself right in front of the Calgary goal. Her shot deflected off of a Dino defender but right to Morch, whose first shot got denied by netminder
Stephanie Petrowitsch, but Morch chipped the rebound through the five-hole for the 1-0 score.
Rookie Dino
Keara Chicquen had a chance to tie the game late in the first half, but second-year goalkeeper Tory Spencer was equal to the task and made a point-blank save to preserve the one-goal lead.
Morch would double it in the second half, again two minutes into the frame, when the Victoria, BC native took a waist-level pass from fellow sophomore forward Kinch Santha and knocked it into the open cage.
The Dinos would try for the rest of the game to equalize the score, but despite a number of penalty corners as well as a great opportunity by last year’s leading goal-scorer for Calgary,
Kaitlin Longworth, who hit the outside of the net, Spencer and her defenders held firm.
The 3-6-2 Pandas and 2-8-1 Dinos close out the regular season tomorrow at 1:00 PM at Foote Field.
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