OSHAWA, Ont. – The No. 2 ranked UOIT women's soccer team defeated the Trent Excalibur by a 2-1 score in their home opener at Vaso's Field.
Trent had UOIT up against the ropes for the entire match but the Ridgebacks scored two second half goals including one by
Katherine Koehler-Grassau (Greely, Ont.) in the 88
th minute to pick up their third straight win to start the season.
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UOIT outscored Trent 17-0 last season but despite a winless record so far in three games, the Excalibur have shown they cannot be taken lightly.
"The game is changing, we talked about this before the game," said head coach
Peyvand Mossavat. "Along with better coaching, there are better players staying in Canada. I think this is a clear testament that Stu's done a great job with Trent. It's not the same team anymore. They're much better and all the credit to them."
UOIT came into the match with the best start in program history and ranked number two in the nation. Koehler-Grassau, head coach
Peyvand Mossavat and exercise physiologist and performance analyst
Farzad Yousefian were back on the pitch for UOIT after returning from the Summer Universiade in Taipei.
The match was eventful early on as Trent opened the scoring three minutes in and
Lauren Rea (Burnaby, B.C.) was booked with a yellow card in the 12th minute. The visitors would go into the halftime break with a one goal lead.
The Ridgebacks came out flying in the second half and
Alyssa Nikkel (Toronto, Ont.) equalized with her second goal of the year.
UOIT remained the stronger side for the majority of the half and took the lead in the 88th minute as Koehler-Grassau scored the game winning goal in her season debut. The winner came assisted from defender
Julia Listro (Toronto, Ont.) who provided a beautiful set-up for Koehler-Grassau to finish.
Despite the close score line, the Ridgebacks dominated the game with possession. UOIT outshot Trent 15-7, with seven of their 15 shots making it on target.
"I thought we controlled the game well but couldn't finish," said Mossavat. "The sign of a good team is one that can find those moments to be able to win a game when losing."
The Ridgebacks will next play in the Campus Cup against the Durham Lords on Sept. 6 at 7 p.m. before returning to OUA action on the road against Ryerson on Sept. 9.
QUICK LOOK AT THE RIDGEBACKS
Overall Record: 3-1-1
Conference Record: 3-0-0
Next Game: Wednesday, Sept. 6 vs. Durham (7 p.m.)
