BOX SCORE CALGARY – Dan Lowen's stoppage time goal put the dagger in the hearts of the Calgary Dinos as he lifted the Trinity Western Spartans to a 1-0 win and the final playoff berth in the 2011 Canada West season.

BOX SCORE

The Spartans came into the contest with a three-point lead over the Dinos for fourth place. A win or a tie for TWU would mean they'd head to Victoria for the Canada West Final Four next week, while the Dinos needed a victory to qualify for the post-season. As such, with the score knotted at 0-0 and the 90th minute reached, the Dinos pulled out all the stops in a last-ditch attempt to score the game winner.

With Calgary pressing and the defence pinching up, a loose ball made its way back toward the Calgary goal. Lowen and Dinos 'keeper Jordan Unreiner raced for the ball and arrived at virtually the same time, but Lowen was able to gain the advantage and the ball rolled leisurely, excruciatingly toward the goal line and snuck inside the corner for the game's only score. Officially an unassisted tally in the 90th minute, it was Lowen's third goal of the season – and easily the biggest.

As Lowen and the Spartans erupted in celebration, the Dinos stood shellshocked. Calgary had the upper hand in possession for most of the second half and had myriad opportunities to score as both teams battled a brisk westerly wind on the University of Calgary campus. The Dinos put eight shots toward the Spartan goal in the second half, with all kinds of close-in opportunities. Multiple times the Dinos had pressure inside the box and sent headers inches over the crossbar, while TWU 'keeper Andrew Fink was in good position to make saves when necessary, collecting two on the afternoon.

“I'm proud of how we played,” said Dinos head coach Brian McDonnell. “In previous years this last weekend wouldn't have meant anything, and this year it meant everything – and we were that close. We're continuing to get better, and we're building a program. But it's a tough way to end for those fifth-year guys.”

Four Dinos – defender Dustin Ruddell, midfielders Ben Cole and Devin Delany, and forward Jeremy Jenkyns – played their final career CIS games in the loss – and all four were factors. Delany, the captain, was named player of the match, while Jenkyns had a team-high three shots on the day and came tantalizingly close to scoring late. But it was Izak Lawrence who had the best opportunity for Calgary, as his header off a scramble in tight got caught up in the wind and rolled harmlessly over the crossbar.

Brayden Gant was named man of the match for the Spartans. Trinity Western actually outshot the Dinos 11-10 on the day, including a 6-2 advantage in the second 45. Spencer Schmidt had three of those shots, while James Farenhorst, Mitch Rolha, and the hero Lowen had two apiece.

Unreiner made three saves in the loss for the Dinos, while Fink picked up his conference-leading fifth shutout of the season.

The win vaulted Trinity Western to an 8-4-2 record, leapfrogging the Alberta Golden Bears for third place with 26 points. They head to Victoria's Centennial Stadium for the conference tournament next week, where they will open with a semi-final against the UBC Thunderbirds (7-1-6). The other semi-final will pit fourth-place Alberta (7-3-4) against CIS championship host Victoria (10-2-2).

Calgary wraps up the 2011 season with a .500 record at 6-6-2.

-UC-