CALGARY – The Ramon Mifflin era got off to a flying start at Dinosaur Field.

Fuelled by a pair of first-half goals from the Plenzik brothers, the University of Calgary Dinos men's soccer team opened their 2024 Canada West campaign with a 3-0 victory over the Saskatchewan Huskies on Saturday.

The torrid performance sees Mifflin earn a win in his first regular season game at the helm of the Dinos – a match that nearly did not happen. The aftermath of a heavy storm on Friday night left a large tree across the pitch and needed significant contributions from the UCalgary grounds crew and operations staff to clear the debris. 

In addition to goals by Joey and Gianmarco Plenzik, Owen Antoniuk also opened his account with a late tally to round out the scoring. 

"This is a hard league; there are a lot of good teams. Saskatchewan is a good team, but we got in the right places, managed to get two early goals, and rode the momentum," said Mifflin. "Coming in, I knew I had a good group, and I wanted to ensure they embraced a change of style and philosophy. I know many of these kids and have worked with them since they were younger.

"They know me and what we are trying to do."

The season started with offensive contributions from the Plenziks – players Mifflin described as the heart of his team.

A mere four minutes into the match, Joey Plenzik got his head on a corner kick and capitalized for the first goal.

Then, 20 minutes later, team captain Gianmarco Plenzik finished a slick pass by Aidan Izadi from inside the 10-yard box.

"They play with so much heart and passion. They are very high IQ players also and tremendous leaders," commented Mifflin.

The score remained 2-0 through most of the second half despite the Huskies' attempts to break through. Their best opportunity came in the 68th minute, as they finally got a ball past Dinos goalkeeper Hany Shafie – only for it to be called offside.

Owen Antoniuk capped the evening with a goal that deflected high and past Saskatchewan goalkeeper Emmett McGillvray.

Shafie earned a clean sheet with three saves in his first Canada West start, while McGillvray stopped two of the five Calgary shots on goal.

The Dinos are back on their home field Sunday afternoon for a 2 p.m. match-up versus the Lethbridge Pronghorns.

Saskatchewan wraps up their Calgary road swing on Sunday as they visit the Mount Royal Cougars at 3 p.m.

-UC-