On Saturday, September 5, the SFU Clan women’s soccer team squared off against the Humboldt state Jacks. In an enthralling game, the clan prevailed 3–-1 thanks to a great performance by Christina Dickson. She scored a brace, with a goal in both halves. The first was a well-taken volley, as she connected on a cross from her twin sister Allyson in the 14th minute.
Humboldt State rallied and equalized in the 20th minute thanks to a well taken goal by Bridget Daley. This led to a tense game with half chances for both teams.
It was a tough game and there was a real battle in midfield. Haley Miller, no. 12 for HSU, was injured in a challenge 22 minutes in. This set the tone for the hard-fought match. Humboldt would sustain another injury blow 10 minutes before the halftime whistle. Despite their best efforts, the teams went into the break on even terms.
After the break, SFU had renewed energy and wore down the Humboldt State defence. The Jacks held strong as attempt after attempt was thwarted. Jacks goalkeeper Caitlin Plese marshalled her troops brilliantly and was an imposing figure between the posts. But she could only do so much, as a well-worked long ball from Clan keeper Priya Sandhu made its way to the right wing and the resulting cross was controlled and finished by Christina Dickson for her second of the game.
After that, SFU dominated the midfield, taking the lion’s share of possession and keeping pressure on the Jacks. Samantha Donald had a particularly strong game, breaking up play well and putting in a good shift.
Humboldt state resorted to attacking on the counter but the SFU defence held firm. The Jacks applied high ball pressure and Marquel Love played hard as a lone striker, but a lack of support meant that not many attacks had real purpose. Frustration began to mount from HSU’s coach and that translated into a lackluster second half for his squad. SFU was able to capitalize on this in the 88th minute as Allyson Dickson connected with yet another cross from the right wing to seal the game for the Clan.
Although this was a non-conference game, it was a great start for the team as its recent recruits really performed at a high level. The Clan brought in 10 new players to the squad, to join the 11 women that returned for another year of NCAA competition. This bodes well for the rest of the season, especially after last year’s poor 0–-6 start which included a 4–-2 loss to Saturday’s opposition.
