CALGARY - The University of Calgary Dinos men's soccer team's season came to an end on Saturday after a narrow 1-0 defeat to the visiting Trinity Western University Spartans in the first match of the Canada West playoffs.
This season marks the fourth consecutive year the Dinos have been eliminated in the first round of playoffs, which is proving a formidable hurdle. Also, this is the third time the Spartans have knocked out the Dinos since 2011.
Spurred on by a season-high attendance of 380, the Dinos controlled much of the game and outshot the Spartans 8-5. But the home side couldn't come up with an equalizer after an early Spartan goal off a corner kick.
"We're disappointed, obviously. We felt we were the right team to go on," said Dinos head coach Brendan O'Connell. "We're disappointed to fall short, but we've had a great season and there are some great pluses to come out from it."
As the game began, the Spartans came out of the gate hard. Showing more intensity than the Dinos, the Spartans pulled ahead after just three minutes. A corner kick from winger Mitchell Urzinger was volleyed in first-time by forward Leighton Johnson at the back post.
The Spartans continued to hold the momentum for the next 10 minutes, winning balls in the air and keeping possession for longer stretches.
Gradually, the Dinos began to come back into the game. On 15 minutes, midfielder Cristiano de Carvalho shot wide following a lay-off from forward Dominic Russo.
The next big chance for the Dinos came in the 25th minute. Right back Christian Genee fired a long-distance shot that was heading toward the Spartans' bottom left corner, but keeper Andrew Hicks managed to keep out the effort with a diving save.
"If you don't take your chances in games like this, where the margins are tight, you're always going to be up against it," said O'Connell.
The teams continued to cancel each other out in an intense, hard-fought first half that ended 1-0.
The Dinos pressed hard as the second half began, desperate to snatch an equalizer. Their best chance of the game came in the 49th minute. Midfielder James Gourlay played in a cross to the back post, which Lindon Fedorik hit off the underside of the cross bar.
A few minutes later, Russo had his best chance to grab a goal. The conference scoring leader picked up the ball on the right side of the Spartans' 18-yard box, but shot wide.
The Spartans almost killed off the game in the 86th minute. Forward Jarvis Ambaka had a chance to score off a break away, but Dinos keeper Colin Hasick rushed out of his net to make the save with his legs.
After a nail-biting end to the game, with almost seven minutes of added time, the whistle finally blew to end the game and the Dinos' season.
Saturday is the first home loss of the season for the Dinos, and also the first game the Dinos failed to get on the scoreboard.
"We always felt we would get chances but just didn't have that luck today," said O'Connell. "They did come at us, but we had 80 per cent of the play."
With the Mount Royal University Cougars and University of Alberta Golden Bears also losing on Saturday, the Canada West final four will feature only teams from the Pacific Division of Canada West.
