CALGARY - The University of Calgary Dinos kicked off their season on just the right foot, getting two goals from second year forward Izak Lawrence en route to a 3-0 victory over the No. 5-ranked Victoria Vikes in Saturday afternoon in Calgary.

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With a three goal lead in hand midway through the second half courtesy of a goal from fifth year midfielder Brian Delaney (pictured), the game had to be delayed for 30 minutes due to a passing thunderstorm and heavy rain.

Neither team would create any significant offensive chances following the stoppage.

Lawrence, who led the Alberta Major Soccer League in goals over the summer with 15, kept his hot foot going on Saturday, twice beating Victoria goaltender Elliot Mitrou in a seven minute span. After being beat by a strong offensive move in space by Lawrence for the first goal, Mitrou had a hard time corralling an initial stop on the second, which the Calgarian eagerly swooped in on to make it 2-0.

Delaney would get the third goal on a scrambled play in front of the net, pounding a redirected ball from rookie Brett Howard home to give the home squad the 3-0 lead. Howard, who last played for the 2009 U-18 national champion Foothills Crew, was a constant nuisance to the Vikes, and earned game MVP honours for his efforts.

Victoria had trouble with Calgary's new-found offensive attack all afternoon, allowing the Dinos 12 shots on goal compared to only four from the Vikes. Midfielders Spencer MacKinnon and Andrew Ravenhill managed the best sparks for the visiting side, firing two shots apiece.

Mitrou had perhaps the best game for the Vikes (1-0-0) in the loss, stopping nine of 12 shots. His counterpart J.P. Crescenzi of the Dinos had a fairly quiet afternoon, making four saves in the shutout.

First year head coach Brian McDonnell seemed happy for his new-look Dinos.

“This is a drastically different team from last year, and obviously we got a great spark from that on the offensive side today,” said McDonnell.

“We've typically been a defensive-oriented team and without giving that mentality up we've had great contributions from our forwards

“It's great for confidence to open the season up with a win,” the coach continued. “Now we have to keep the momentum going and re-focus on tomorrow, where hopefully we can pull another one out.”

The Dinos (1-0-0) will battle with the University of the Fraser Valley Cascades on Sunday, who also opened their season with a 2-0 win against the Lethbridge Pronghorns on Saturday afternoon, while the Vikes will head south to face the 'Horns, with hopes of leaving Alberta with a 1-1 record.

-UC-