VANCOUVER – After a gritty and closely contested affair the No. 2-ranked TWU Spartans women's soccer team (0-0-1) settled for a 0-0 draw against the No. 10 UBC Thunderbirds (0-0-1) to open their Canada West season at Thunderbird Stadium.

TWU netminder Hannah Miller (Langley) made six saves to earn the clean sheet in her her first-ever start with the Spartans.

UBC had a great opportunity to open the scoring with a flurry of chances in the eighth minute as defender Sophie Damian played a great ball into the TWU area. Following a Danielle Steer flick on the T-Birds collapsed on the bouncing ball three-yards off the Spartans goal line, but the two-time defending Canada West champions did well to block the multiple UBC scoring attempts.

The Spartans earned a chance in the 40th minute after a through ball from the backline bounced through a pair of UBC defenders and sent forward Kathryn Harvey (Coquitlam, B.C.) in alone, but she sent her shot high prior to halftime.

The second half was similar to the first in that UBC came out flying in the first 10 minutes but were unable to get much going forward.

In the 67th minute, a TWU free kick found the head of centre back Elizabeth Hicks (Surrey, B.C.) whose chance was stopped by Emily Moore.

In the 76th minute the home side would counter as forward Danielle Steer did well to work down the sidelines and play a great ball in to Michelle Jang, whose header was saved by Miller to keep it scoreless. Both teams would not have much more offensive opportunities to finish off the game as both defences held strong.

QUOTABLE
TWU Head Coach Graham Roxburgh
"Today was a really hard-fought battle with good chances on both sides. UBC played a bit more direct than I thought they would have, but our back four stayed strong and did really well. Hannah Miller was excellent in goal making two or three crucial saves, while Liz and Brooklyn in the back also did an excellent job. Any time you can come and play a strong opponent on the road and come out with a point you take it. Lots of work to do and some wounds to heal, but in the end a good hard-fought battle."

NOTABLE
•    It was the first time ever TWU and UBC were held to a draw at Thunderbird Stadium, with the teams' only other draw a 1-1 tie in Langley Sep. 17, 2016.
•    The Spartans have now recorded a point in four straight matches against UBC (3-0-1).

NEXT UP
The Spartans continue on the road Saturday at the University of Victoria, with kickoff set for 5 p.m. PT.

-TW-