VICTORIA – Maddison Fritze made the best of her opportunity, scoring in th 67th minute to lead the University of Calgary Dinos to a 1-0 win over the University of Victoria Vikes Friday night.
The Dinos improve their Canada West record to 2-1-0, while the Vikes fall to 1-3-0.
For the Vikes, keeper Puck Louwes made three saves in the game and was also forced out to clear several loose balls in the box. Kiara Kilbey, Georgia Bignold and Rachel Baird generated the majority of the Vikes' chances, while defenders Katie Carrothers and Eryn Libert-Scott did well to hold off the Calgary attack.
Dinos keeper
Lauren Houghton, a 2017 Canada West Second Team All-Star and all-rookie team member, kept her team in the game as they withstood the waves of Victoria pressure in the first half and then buried their chance in the second. Fritze generated four shots and scored the game winner in the 67th minute.
"It was a battle and it is always a tough trip to come here and play UVic," said Dinos Head Coach
Troye Flannery. "I was proud of the details today. I thought we grinded one out tonight. I have the utmost respect for the UVic program and I thought we did what we needed to do."
The Dinos' best chance of the opening half came in the 28th minute when
Kelsie MacDonald pounded a long-range shot on target and Louwes had to step back and make the save on the line. Fifth-year Calgary striker
Natalie Arnett's experience and speed was the only spark for the visitors in the first half, particularly in the 31st minute when she raced past Vikes defender Katie Carrothers to nearly create an opportunity for herself at the top of the box.
The Dinos had a near deflection in the box from
Taylor Wells that curled wide of the net as Louwes was forced to make just one save in the half, relative to Houghton's three. The Vikes out-shot the Dinos 7-4 in the opening half but quantity wasn't measuring up to quality and the game remained scoreless at the break.
The second half saw a renewed surge for the visiting Dinos who had a near chance from the veteran Fritze in the seventh minute. Fritze worked her way through the Vikes defence and sent a thundering shot towards the goal but the ball curled just past the far post.
The Dinos nearly went up on a set piece from just outside the box in the 57th minute. Third-year midfielder
Sienna Prince-McPherson looked like she was going to put the free kick on target but a last-second shift in the box allowed
Jordan Smith to be wide open near the penalty spot. Prince-McPherson slid the ball on the ground but Smith's touch went just wide of the Vikes net.
The Dinos continued to dominate the chances in the second half and they were rewarded in the 67th minute when Prince-McPherson volleyed a nice pass up the middle of the field to Fritze. The five-foot-nine striker calmly steered the ball through three Vikes defenders and beat Louwes low on the ground for a 1-0 Calgary lead.
"She (Fritze) opened her goal scoring this year in game three, so, it took a little while for her to get going but she is on the board now," said Flannery. "She was great in pre-season and she is a handful up front and she is a big part of what we try and do."
The Dinos continued to lay on the pressure as Louwes seemed on her own in the box. In the 85thminute Dinos defender
Amy Mikuska's corner kick found the head of Fritze but the well-targeted header was saved by Louwes.
The Vikes had a free kick just outside the 18-yard-box in the 90th minute but Baird's shot was seen all the way by Houghton. In extra time Louwes slid out to challenge the speedy Arnett on one last chance for the Dinos to double their lead. Second-year Vike Aveneet Rai also had one last go from distance but Houghton's finger tips kept the Vikes at bay to keep the game 1-0 in favour of the visiting Dinos.
The Vikes will quickly turn around to host the Lethbridge Pronghorns, while the Dinos will trek across the pond to play the UBC Thunderbirds Saturday night. Both games will be broadcast on pay-per-view at canadawest.tv.
"We had some frantic moments at the end there and UVic was pressing but we managed those pretty well," said Flannery. "It is about confidence. These are young women who are juggling academics and elite sport and when you beat a team as storied as UVic there is nothing but good things to say. We like coming here and we like playing good teams."
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