LANGLEY, British Columbia – First-year goalkeeper
Jakob Frank (Delta, B.C.) stopped a penalty kick on the final play of the match to complete a seven-save shutout and preserve the Trinity Western Spartans' 1-0 victory over the UNBC Timberwolves Saturday night at Chase Office Field.
Fifth-year forward
Xander Roxburgh (Langley, B.C.) provided the game's only goal, converting a penalty kick in the 71st minute.
The victory improves the Spartans to 3-4-1, while the Timberwolves fall to 0-3-3.
UNBC goalkeeper Callum Cuthbert made three saves in the loss.
QUOTABLE
Mike Shearon, TWU Head Coach
"As usual, UNBC is well coached and threw some wrinkles at us, so we had to solve and figure those out. But that's the fun part about soccer: trying to figure out all the problems and find solutions. We did a good job tonight."
"It was another one of those games where it could have gone either way at times, even though I thought we were fully deserving of the points. Then Jakob came up and made an amazing PK save, but he also made a bunch of quality saves before that."
"We managed to get one off the PK, and we almost had the best goal ever at Trinity with [Jordan] Low's side volley off the crossbar. I'm super proud of the boys for their response after last night.
"It could have been easy to pack it in when we didn't get the point we thought we deserved last night, but we came out, fought and played well. Now we move on to the Alberta trip and try to get ready for those games, which will be difficult. It was a good learning experience for us tonight."
UP NEXT
The Spartans will head to Alberta for two road matches next weekend. TWU will face the Alberta Golden Bears Saturday, September 26 at 2:15 p.m. (MT) in Edmonton before traveling south to take on the Calgary Dinos Sunday, September 27 at 6 p.m. (MT). Both matches can be seen live on Canada West TV.
AS IT HAPPENED
The opening half was a defensive battle, and neither side generated many quality opportunities.
UNBC held a 5-4 advantage in total shots through the opening 45 minutes and put three attempts on goal compared with one for the Spartans. Frank stopped all three shots he faced, sending the match into halftime scoreless.
The game opened up over the final 20 minutes. TWU was awarded a penalty kick after a UNBC foul inside the penalty area in the 71st minute. Roxburgh stepped to the spot and drove his attempt high past Cuthbert to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead with his second goal of the season. The Timberwolves nearly equalized in the 80th minute when Mehdi Bounaaja found space in the middle of the TWU penalty area, but his low attempt rolled narrowly wide of the left post. UNBC continued to press for an equalizer, producing sustained pressure over the final five minutes of regulation and five minutes of added time.
The Timberwolves earned one final opportunity following a scramble off a corner kick when TWU was called for a foul inside the penalty area. With no time remaining, Bounaaja stepped to the penalty spot looking to tie the match. Frank read the attempt, dove to make the save, and was immediately surrounded by his teammates as the Spartans celebrated the 1-0 victory.
NOTABLE
- UNBC outshot TWU 13-9 overall and 7-4 in shots on goal.
- The Spartans finished with an 8-6 advantage in corner kicks.
- TWU and UNBC played to a 2-2 draw on September 11 at Masich Place Stadium in Prince George, B.C.
- The Spartans improve to 16-3-9 all-time against the Timberwolves, with every meeting coming in Canada West conference play.
- Frank's shutout was his second of the season.
- It was Frank's second penalty-kick save in as many weekends. He also stopped a penalty in TWU's 1-0 road victory over the No. 9 Victoria Vikes on September 13.
About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country and track and field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes independently in men's rugby and women's and men's disc golf. Since joining U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 15 U SPORTS team championships and 35 Canada West team championships.
About Trinity Western University
Recognized for quality, TWU has received seven consecutive A+ rankings for Quality of Teaching and Learning and holds three Canada Research Chairs. Through its whole-person, Christ-centred approach to education, TWU offers a wide range of undergraduate, graduate and adult degree-completion programs that equip leaders of character and competence to make a positive impact in the lives of others.
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