The UBC men’s soccer team finished their weekend with a remarkable 4–2 victory against the University of Alberta Golden Bears on Saturday evening at Thunderbird Stadium. This win came after a 1–1 draw against the University of Lethbridge on Friday, while Alberta secured a 2–0 victory over UBC Okanagan. Despite the previous night’s tie, the Thunderbirds remained composed and focused, extending their unbeaten streak to six games in this season.
The match began with high intensity as rookie Max Comsia, assisted by Chris Lee, netted UBC’s first goal just three minutes into the game. Nine minutes later, standout player Luke Norman doubled the score, making it 2–0.
However, at the 23-minute mark, a miscommunication led to an unfortunate own goal by UBC goalkeeper Bennett McKay, followed shortly after by a goal from Alberta’s Marcus Velado-Tsegaye. At 35 minutes, Thunderbird Markus Kaiser received a yellow card, but it didn’t make the team lose concentration.
In the second half, the Thunderbirds quickly regained control, not giving Alberta a break to rest and firm on leaving the field with a win. Henri Godbout, one of the season’s most promising players, scored at the 55-minute mark with an assist from Brennen Fuerst. Determined to secure the win, first-year Joven Mann added UBC’s fourth goal in the 70th minute, handing the Golden Bears their first loss of the season.
After the game, UBC head coach Mike Mosher highlighted the importance of the rookies on the team.
“Those are the kind of guys that can step into a team like ours — one of the better teams across the country — and make an impact,” said Mosher. “A few of them have come in after gap years, so they are even more set up to make an impact.”
Generally, the Thunderbirds played better than the Golden Bears, having more chances to score and using these chances wisely. UBC had 12 shotsand 7 corner kicks, while Alberta had 5 shots and 1 corner kick; teams were fairly equal with fouls, getting 12 and 13 respectively.
When asked about the team’s performance on Saturday compared to Friday’s draw, Mosher expressed confidence in his squad’s potential to continue their strong form.
“Our effort was good, our quality was decent — it was just the final act. Sometimes that is the nature of the game. We created chances, even though last night they ended up on the low block.”
The Thunderbirds will next face the University of Saskatchewan Huskies on Friday, September 20 at 6 p.m. in Saskatoon.
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