CALGARY – Showing great resiliency throughout the contest, the University of Calgary women's soccer team picked up a 1-1 draw versus the Mount Royal Cougars at West Varsity Pitch on Sunday afternoon, clinching first place in the Canada West Prairie Division.

Throughout the first half, the Dinos were thwarted on several scoring opportunities, with Mount Royal's Maria Tait making saves on shots by Maddie Lee (9th minute), Amy Hockings (13th and 26th minutes), and Natalie Arnett (20th minute).

The Cougars had a pivotal moment in the 29th minute, when forward Hailey Lafave scored the first goal of the game and her first of the season. Josie Bradbury sent an outstanding ball to Lafave, who then unleashed a powerful kick that went soaring past the Dinos defense.

"At half I had to ask the girls what they were playing for, remind them what's on the line," said Head Coach Troye Flannery.  "I reminded them that part of success is momentum, and we've talked about the same things throughout the year; it's about details. We create so many chances in front of goal, and we just need to be more vocal on the field."

After a scoreless first half for the Dinos that saw Mount Royal create plenty of scoring opportunities, Calgary came out swinging in the second half, scoring a goal less than two minutes after the whistle blew.

Rookie Kelsie MacDonald gave her team the tie with a perfect ball 47 minutes into the contest, scoring near post after receiving a textbook feed from Natalie Arnett. It was MacDonald's seventh goal of the season.

Summing up the game, Flannery said, "It was a sloppy performance from us, we knew Mount Royal would be up for it; it was a "must win" for them. It was just disappointing with our attention to detail – a bit sloppy. Keeping that in mind, we are going into the playoffs with the intention of going after what we want [a win]."

The game finished with 16 shots by the Dinos and nine by the Cougars, with University of Calgary goalie Sophia Traxler making three saves and MRU's Maria Tait protecting the goal seven times.

The Dinos are next on the road for two straight matches, facing Fraser Valley and Trinity Western on Oct. 21 and 22, respectively. Mount Royal will remain at home to host the University of Alberta Pandas and UNBC Timberwolves.  

-UC-