EDMONTON, Alberta –The Trinity Western Spartans were overmatched late in the game as the Alberta Golden Bears scored three third-period goals to defeat the Spartans 5-1 Saturday night at Clare Drake Arena in Edmonton, Alta.
 
Scoring for the Spartans was first-year forward James Swan (Ville Saint-Laurent, Que.)
Scoring for the Golden Bears were Adam Hall, Ryan Duguay, Mason Ward, Noah Boyko, and Marcus Pacheco.
 
Third-year goalie Leon Sommer (Linz, Austria) made 46 saves in the Spartans' loss. Alberta's Drew Sim made 26 saves in the Golden Bears' win.
 
UP NEXT
The Spartans will now have a home-and-home series with the UBC Thunderbirds next week. On Thursday, October 9, the Spartans will play at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre in Vancouver, B.C, and then will host the Thunderbirds on Saturday, October 11. Both games have 7 p.m. (PT) starts and can be seen live on CanadaWest.TV.
 
QUOTABLE
Ben Walter, TWU Head Coach
"I really liked our first 40 minutes; we played hard and stuck with our game plan. We didn't have enough of a push in the third to give ourselves a chance to win, and we took some unnecessary penalties as well.  I thought that James Swan had a very strong game at both ends of the ice.  It was great to see him get his first goal as well. We will learn from this game and have a great week of practice ahead of a big weekend against UBC.
 
AS IT HAPPENED
Trinity Western struck first midway through the opening frame. James Swan finished off a setup from Matthias Bessey and McLaren Paulsen at 12:51 to give the Spartans a 1–0 lead. Alberta responded minutes later on the power play, as Adam Hall buried a feed from Tyson Laventure and Dawson Davidson at 15:23 to even the game at one after 20 minutes.
 
The Bears took control in the second period. At 7:49, Ryan Duguay netted his first of the season, finishing a quick passing play from Davidson and Aiden Yakimchuk to put Alberta in front 2–1. Despite four Trinity Western power plays through the first two periods, Alberta's penalty kill held firm, keeping the visitors from generating sustained pressure.
 
In the third, the Golden Bears pulled away. Mason Ward made it 3–1 just 3:50 into the frame, assisted by Gleb Tkach and Laventure. Noah Boyko added to the lead at 13:34, converting a setup from Alex Thacker and Hall, before Marcus Pacheco capped the scoring at 18:19 on another feed from Yakimchuk and Davidson.
 
NOTABLE

• The Golden Bears outshot the Spartans 51-27.
• The Spartans were 0-4 on the power play, while the Bears were 1-5.
• TWU was ranked No. 9 in the Canada West preseason coaches poll, while Alberta was ranked No. 4, with Saskatchewan ranked No. 1, Mount Royal No. 2, and UBC No. 3.
• The Spartans finished preseason at 4-2. Alberta finished 3-3 in preseason play.
• TWU is currently 1-13 lifetime against Alberta.
• Trinity Western's lone win against Alberta was 4-3 on February 9, 2024, in Langley, B.C.
• TWU finished the 2024-25 season 3-22-0-0-2-1 and in fourth place in the West Division. Alberta finished last season with a record of 21-6-1-0-1-0, placing them in second place in the East Division.
• Alberta is the defending Canada West champion, defeating UBC 2-1 in OT.

 
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.  
 
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