CALGARY, Alta. - The Mount Royal University Cougars hosted the University of Victoria Vikes to a heated game on Sunday afternoon. The Vikes came away with a 3-0 victory.
The Victoria players were fresh from their victory over the Pronghorns on Saturday in Lethbridge. The Cougars were determined to take back their opening weekend after a defeat against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds.
For the first five minutes of the game, Victoria maintained control of the field until the Cougars swept the ball away to the visitor's zone. Mount Royal's Jullien Ramirez snuck a shot on net without success as the Vikes keeper Puck Louwes made the first save of the game.
The two teams vied for control for the better part of the first half. Victoria worked some quick passes into the home territory allowing Kiara Kilbey to make her first goal of the season, bringing the Vikes into a 1-0 lead.
Mount Royal worked hard to keep the play out of their zone, but were unable to stave off another swift maneuver. Cougars keeper Katrina Greenley was lured out of her net, unable to return in time to prevent a goal from Victoria's forward Georgia Bignold.
Just after the 40 minute mark, Mount Royal's Quinn Hardstaff accidentally headed the ball into the home net after it was kicked by Victoria's Rachel Baird who was then credited with the goal. Their 3-0 lead was sustained into the halftime.
Mount Royal was determined to make a difference in the second half, pulling some fierce offensive moves that awarded four shots on Victoria's net in less than five minutes. However, Victoria was able to swiftly regain control of the ball for a few shots of their own. Both teams were pushing hard against defenses to gain the upper hand.
With just over ten minutes remaining, tensions were running high. Two Cougars went down in a tangle, resulting in Hardstaff being substituted for Alexi Watson. Victoria's Baird went down soon after but quickly recovered as the game neared its final whistle. The Cougars were unable to narrow the gap as the game came to an end.
The Mount Royal Cougars women's team will be hosted by the University of Calgary's Dinos on Friday, September 20th. It will be broadcasted live on CanadaWest.tv, presented by Co-op.
