LANGLEY, British Columbia – The Trinity Western Spartans used a balanced attack and solid defence to defeat the Fraser Valley Cascades 3-0 in women's soccer action Friday night at Chase Office Field in Langley, B.C. The win improves the No. 7 Spartans to 9-3-1, while the loss drops the Cascades to 3-8-2.
 
Scoring for the Spartans were third-year forward Mansha Sidhu (Surrey, B.C.), fourth-year midfielder Sophie Crowther (New Westminster, B.C.), and third-year forward Luciana Andrews (Coquitlam, B.C.)
 
Third-year keeper Yasmine Pahal (Surrey, B.C.) made four saves in the Spartans win, while Fraser Valley's Alana Madec also made five saves in the Cascades loss.
 
UP NEXT
The Spartans and Cascades will conclude the Canada West season when they match up again tomorrow night at Chase Office Field in Langley, B.C. Match time is set for 6 p.m. (PT) and can be seen live on CanadaWest.TV.
 
QUOTABLE
Graham Roxburgh, TWU Head Coach
"Really pleased with the result and effort. I think UFV defends and are very aggressive. ?So, they made it hard for us tonight and credit to them. They turned it into a great battle, but I thought some of our special players offensively were obviously on tonight. I thought Sophie was excellent in the second half, generating really good chances for us, and was rewarded for that. ?Overall, I thought it was a good corporate effort, and we know we can still be better, so I'm pleased that we're moving in the right direction."
 
AS IT HAPPENED
Sidhu got the lone goal of the opening half in the 21st minute. Fourth-year defender Mya Bajpai (Mission, B.C.) flicked a ball into the box, where Sidhu was able to get a touch and put it into the short side corner to give TWU the 1-0 lead.  TWU dominated the play in the opening 45, outshooting UFV 9-2 in total shots.
 
Crowther doubled the score for the Spartans in the 66th minute. From the left corner, Crowther sent a curling ball just inside the far post to put TWU up 2-0. The Cascades had a better half with more even play but were unable to overcome the deficit as the Spartans prevailed 2-0. Andrews made it a three-goal win with a goal in added time. Crowther beat the left outside back and was able to send the ball across the penalty area to a wide-open Andrews who easily sent the ball into the empty Cascade net to make the final 3-0 for the Spartans
 
NOTABLE

• The Spartans outshot the Cascades 15-8 in total shots, and 9-4 in shots on goal
• TWU had a 7-6 edge in corner kicks
• With her assist, Crowther now has 12 on the season. The CW record is 13, which TWU's Seina Kashima set in 2018.
• Entering the match, the No. 7 Spartans were locked into second place in the Pacific Division at 8-3-1 and will be hosting Prairie No. 3 in the opening round of CW playoffs, the Fraser Valley Cascades were in sixth place at 3-7-2 and are out of postseason contention, trailing fourth-place UBC Okanagan by six points, with UBCO holding the tiebreaker.
• Last week, the Spartans went 0-1-1 at home at Chase Office Field. The Spartans lost 1-0 to the No. 1 UBC Thunderbirds and tied the Victoria Vikes 2-2.
• Last weekend the UFV Cascades lost 3-0 to the Victoria Vikes, and 1-0 to the UBC Thunderbirds at home at Rotary Stadium in Abbotsford, B.C.
• The Spartans are currently 38-5-7 lifetime against the Cascades. Earlier this season the Spartans defeated the Cascades 2-1 at Rotary Stadium in Abbotsford, B.C. The last time TWU lost to UFV in CW conference or postseason play was a 3-2 SO loss in the CW semifinals in Edmonton, AB on November 6, 2010.

 
About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 11 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes as in the NAIA in track and field and cross country and as an independent team in men's rugby and women's and men's disc golf. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 14 U SPORTS team championships and 33 Canada West team championships.

About Trinity Western University
Recognized for quality, TWU has received seven consecutive A+ rankings for Quality of Teaching and Learning, holds three Canada Research Chairs, and wins national championships in U SPORTS. More importantly, lives are changed at TWU through its whole-person, Christ-centred approach to education. With a wide array of undergraduate, graduate, and adult degree-completion programs, TWU equips leaders of character and competence to make a positive impact in the lives of others.  
 
-TW-