CALGARY – Victor Gouttin scored in the 73rd minute to lift the University of Calgary Dinos men's soccer team to a 2-1 win over the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack in the Canada West quarter-final on Friday at McMahon Stadium.
The victory sends the Dinos into the Canada West semifinal, where they will host the Alberta Golden Bears on Sunday. It came in a game that swung on small moments. Calgary scored early, Thompson Rivers answered with a goal of its own, and the winner arrived with less than 20 minutes left.
"We have a veteran group and one of the best rookies in the league. We played with the conviction and heart our coach asks of us, and that led to a successful night," Gouttin said. "This win means a lot to us. This season has been a great success already, but we want to push on in these playoffs."
The Dinos struck first in the third minute.
William Omoreniye played a long ball from beyond midfield, and
Efe Udolu-Joshua took it on a bounce, which gave him the edge to get behind the lone defender and the goalkeeper. He then fired the ball into the empty net.
Thompson Rivers answered, and the equalizer had been coming. The WolfPack pushed for a response and outshot Calgary 8-3 in the first half. They tied it in the 29th minute on a strong individual effort from Lachlan Will, who went one-on-one with a defender and deked past him. His shot deflected off a second defender and went to the short side, and Dinos goalkeeper
Hany Shafie couldn't get back to it. Shafie made two saves in the opening 20 minutes to keep the game level, and the teams went to halftime tied 1-1.
The second half stayed tight until Gouttin broke the deadlock. Omoreniye's corner kick sailed over the heads of everyone in the box and dropped to Gouttin's feet. With plenty of time, the defender stayed patient and blasted the ball high into the back of the net over the goalkeeper. Shafie finished with four saves and made sure the lead held.
Thompson Rivers finished with a 12-7 advantage in shots and a 6-3 edge in shots on target. Calgary was more clinical, turning two of its three shots on target into goals. Udolu-Joshua led the Dinos with three shots, including an attempt in the closing seconds that WolfPack goalkeeper Toran Rutherford saved.
The Dinos will return to action Sunday, Nov. 1 at 1 p.m. when they host the Alberta Golden Bears in the Canada West semifinal at McMahon Stadium. Tickets are available at GoDinos.com/Tickets.
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