CALGARY – The Calgary Dinos ended their season on a bittersweet note on Sunday afternoon, moving from seventh to fifth in Canada West after a scoreless draw with the #2 Trinity Western Spartans, but missing the postseason nonetheless. The Spartans claim second place in Canada West and will head to the playoffs next weekend.

Neither team was able to find the score-sheet on another windy Sunday afternoon in the foothills, despite both teams generating substantial offensive pressure. Calgary had six shots on goal, with midfielder Brian Delaney notching four, while the Spartans made Calgary goaltender #J.P. Crescenzi# stop 11 of their 19 total shots.

The Spartans were led by forward David Rowse, who put three shots on goal, and Ioannis Tsoulouhas, who despite registering only one shot on goal was a consistent threat throughout the match for the Langley-based club. Goaltender Andrew Fink made six saves in the shutout.

Delaney's four shot effort and solid all-around game was only matched by Crescenzi, who had his single-game season high with 11 saves on the afternoon. Hani Abdelkader was a strong spark for Calgary as well in a rare start for the third year defender, providing a good burst of energy for the young club.

Calgary head coach Ken Price was satisfied with his team's effort on Sunday afternoon.

“We had to change our structure a little bit before the game in order to stay with them better, and I thought we did that,” said the first year coach. “We played very well in the first half and we had some great chances at the end of the game, which is all you can ask for.”

The Dinos close their season out at 4-7-3, and claim fifth in the conference after placing second to last in seventh in 2008. Coach Price is proud of what his team was able to accomplish, but is already looking ahead to 2010.

“Moving up two spots in the standings to finish the year is a good feeling, even though we missed out on the playoffs,” said the coach. “Next year we'll have everyone back except for fifth year player David Bird, who is graduating, and we'll have a full off-season to prepare. So we're looking to be even better in 2010.”

After losing their grip on first place in Canada West with a shocking 2-1 loss to the Lethbridge Pronghorns on Saturday, the Spartans claim second with the tie, and watch their nemesis, the UBC T-Birds take the top spot and the subsequent home-field advantage in the Canada West playoffs.

The Spartans will take on the third place Victoria Vikes next Friday in one Canada West semifinal, while the Birds will host the Alberta Golden Bears in front of their home crowd immediately following. The final will go on Saturday, November 7th, at Thunderbird Park in Vancouver.

-UC-