Back-to-back late-game heroics by Zach Rachynski lifted the UBC Okanagan Heat to a pair of CIS Canada West men’s soccer wins on home field on the weekend.
The Kamloops product scored in the 87th minute as the Heat earned a 1-0 win over the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns on Sunday. A day earlier the UBCO forward gave Heat a 3-2 victory over the visiting University of Calgary Dinos by converting a free kick by Spencer Young in the 90th minute at Nonis Field.
On Sunday, Kelowna’s Tyler Shalansky (Immaculata High School) had a chance to score on a long lead pass that took him just inside the penalty area, but a challenge from Lethbridge keeper Nolan French resulted in a collision. The ensuing penalty kick from Cole Kingzett was stopped by French, who made a diving save, however the rebound ended up in a scrum in the box before Rachynski got a foot on it and buried it in the bottom right corner.
Heat keeper Mitch McCaw earned his second clean sheet of the season, stopping seven shots on goal in Sunday afternoon’s contest. He was tested steadily late in the game, with a number of Lethbridge chances coming in the six minutes of stoppage time at the end of the match.
On Saturday, Calgary held a 2-1 lead from the 35th to the 90th minute, but with less than a minute remaining in regulation time, Calgary’s Lindon Fedorick blocked a shot with his arm in the box, resulting in a UBCO penalty kick. Heat midfielder, Kingzett of Penticton was chosen to take the kick and buried his first goal of the season.
Seconds after the ensuing kick-off, another foul was called against Calgary. Freshman Young (Okanagan Mission) took the free kick, putting the ball through the Dino defenders for Rachynski. Sliding to beat Calgary keeper Hunter Brett to the ball, Rachynski tipped the ball past Brett, and it trickled into the net giving the Heat the margin of victory.
UBC Okanagan's MVP of the match was freshman midfielder Nikhil Reddy. Had the game not ended in as exciting a fashion, Reddy's first goal of the season would have been the highlight of the day.
In the 19th minute, following a deflection inside the box, Reddy placed a perfect volley into the top left corner from the top of the penalty area.
With a record of 3-2-1 on the season, UBC Okanagan moved into a tie with the University of the Fraser Valley Cascades for third spot in Canada West’s Pacific Division.
The Heat men will play their next match on Saturday when they travel to play the University of Alberta to battle the Golden Bears in Edmonton. UBCO will meet the MacEwan University Griffins on Sunday.
After cruising to a 3-0 win over the visiting University of Northern B.C. Timberwolves on Saturday, the UBC Okanagan Heat’s production went dry on Sunday as the Alberta Pandas handed the hosts a 3-0 CIS Canada West defeat on Nonis Field.
Courtney Hemmerling (Kelowna Secondary School) scored twice to lead the UBCO offence on Saturday while rookie Maya Bandy of Vernon (Kalamalka) added a single marker.
Hemmerling notched her first goal 71 seconds into the game and Bandy slotted the ball into the net off a cross from Hemmerling for a 2-0 advantage midway through the first half.
Hemmerling's second goal came in the 79th minute of play, as she pressured the UNBC's keeper, Lianna Toopitsin, who fumbled the ball at her feet. The third-year Heat forward claimed the ball off of Toopitsin's pass attempt and placed it into the right back corner of the net.
It was Hemmerling’s third goal of the season, matching her total for the 2015 CIS season.
Meanwhile, Chloe Ainsworth of Manchester, England, recorded the shutout. She came to the Heat from Quest University, where she played goal last season for current UBCO coach Craig Smith.
On Sunday, Alberta scored the winning goal in the 27th minute and added a pair of tallies in the second half. The Pandas, 5-0 winners over the Thompson Rivers WolfPack the day before, held the Heat to just three shots on goal.
The Heat, with a 2-2 record after weekend play, will play host to the Fraser Valley Cascades on Saturday on home turf while they’ll meet No. 3-ranked Trinity Western Spartans on Sunday on Nonis Field.
Following a 4-under-par 68 on opening day, UBC Okanagan’s James Casorso faltered to a 75 on Sunday to finish in fourth place in the PACWEST men’s golf tournament at the Okanagan Golf Club’s Bear course.
Casorso’s 143 total was five strokes back of winner Mac Keats of Camosun College in Victoria, who also shot a 68 on Saturday and finished with a 70 on Sunday. He claimed he victory by one stroke over Langara College’s Jacob Vanderpas.
UBCO’s Jacob Stewart of Calgary finished in a tie for fifth place with a pair of par-72 rounds (144) while Derek Graham of Kelowna contributed a 154 total (75-79).
After two PACWEST tournaments, Casorso sits in seventh place among 29 golfers in the overall standings with a 294 total. Matt Matheson leads the pack at 281.
The Heat team is in fourth place overall at 1,207 points while Camosun College leads the field at 1,164.
Meanwhile, in women’s play at the OGC, the University of the Fraser Valley’s Jennifer Kell shot rounds of 82 and 85 to edge UBCO’s Lauren Siemers by one stroke.
Siemers, a Mt. Boucherie Secondary School grad, fired an 83 on Saturday and followed up with an 85 on Sunday on the Bear course. Rookie McKenna Lesiuk (Kelowna Secondary) finished another two strokes back with a pair of 85s.
Golfers are back in action on Saturday when they travel to Coquitlam and the Westwood Plateau Golf and Country Club for another 36-hole tournament.
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