UBC women’s soccer dominated against the University of Northern British Columbia Timberwolves, winning 7–0 on both Friday and Saturday night in Prince George.
On Friday, the Thunderbirds came out strong, scoring in the third minute. After midfielder Sienna Gibson’s header was blocked by Brityn Hinsche, UNBC’s goalie, forward Jade Taylor-Ryan tapped the ball into the net. Midfielder Holly Whelan scored soon after, moving the T-Birds to 2–0.
UBC dominated possession and UNBC was unable to move the ball up. With constant pressure, the T-Birds beat the Timberwolves 32–3 in shot attempts.
UBC scored again in the 34th minute. Nisa Reehal cut into the box off a breakaway. Hinsche stepped out to face her and Reehal blasted it into the net. Right after, Taylor-Ryan had a striking ball from a UBC penalty kick, putting the ‘Birds 4–0 at halftime.
The second half played out the same as the first, as the Thunderbirds bombarded UNBC with shots. Taylor-Ryan scored her third goal with an assist by Ella Sunde, and Reehal scored in the 87th minute. Only a minute later, Vanessa Tome took a shot, but Hinsche blocked it. The ball bounced into the box and Bailey Doerksen swooped in, earning UBC’s final goal for a 7–0 win.
On Saturday, UNBC was looking for redemption — but UBC didn’t let up, playing a historic game and showing why they are ranked number one in the country.
Both teams moved the ball well, but the Thunderbirds were sharper on the attack. Whelan scored in just the fourth minute from a well-placed Taylor-Ryan pass.
Whelan and Taylor-Ryan led UBC’s offence, each scoring once more and assisting each other’s goal before the 12 minute mark. The duo had UBC up 3–0 with plenty of time left.
After some back and forth, the ‘Birds regained control when Taylor-Ryan scored in the 21st minute. Right after, Whelan placed a cross to Taylor-Ryan who struck it in for her second hat trick of the weekend.
UBC did not stop there as Doerksen and then Whelan scored. Whelan earned the first hat trick of her Thunderbird career with a phenomenal boot, finding the top right corner in the 38th minute. By halftime, UBC had matched Friday’s score of 7–0.
The second half was scoreless. UNBC looked better than Friday, getting some offensive moves, but UBC dominated. Neither team could make any plays connect as Hinsche held strong and the T-Bird’s defence was clinical.
Saturday’s game was historic for UBC. Whelan became the eighth player in Canada West (CW) history to have five first-half points. Taylor-Ryan tied for most points in a single half and became the first player to contribute to six consecutive goals in a half. The CW’s women’s soccer Player of the Week put on a show, moving into first in CW in points and tied for first in goals.
With the weekend series sweep, UBC stays undefeated now at 12–0 this season. The T-Birds' next matchup is against the University of the Fraser Valley Cascades this Friday at 5:30 p.m. in Abbotsford.
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