By Bryan Scott
SFU splits first two games of the season despite missing players
The Simon Fraser University Women’s Soccer team opened their season with a 3–0 loss to the 25th ranked Cal State Stanislaus Warriors. After the game, Clan head coach Shelley Howieson said, “We were missing some starters out there and I thought the players that were in the lineup turned in a solid effort.” Freshman Goalkeeper Amanda Gilliland (Delta, B.C.) made a strong effort in her first game ever for the Clan. She finished with nine saves on the day, which kept the Clan within reach throughout the game, but unfortunately they were unable to produce offensively.
The clan moved on quickly from their opening loss, by beating Hawaii Pacific University 1–0 at a neutral site in Washington. The score was indicative of the teams’ defense, which played magnificently, with only five shots making it to the target for either team. Again, Gilliland was good in net, recording her first collegiate shutout with three saves, all came late in the game. The game was scoreless until the 44th minute when Aja Choy-Halo (Nanaimo, B.C.) found the back of the net to give the Clan the only goal they would need to win.
The Clan will aim to improve to 2–1 on Saturday, Sept. 8 on Terry Fox Field against the Urban Knights from San Francisco’s Academy of Art. It will be the first time the Urban Knights have played an international match.
