Wednesday, October 31, 2007 - North Shore News - 37

GUIDE TO THE GAMES PEOPLE PLAY

Upset
special
Blues beat twotime defending
champs Langara
Andy Prest
aprest@nsnews.com

THE Capilano College
women's soccer team has a
motto on the back of their
T-shirts that says "talent
wins games, teamwork wins
championships."
True to that mantra, the Blues
showed that they were the best team in
the province when they upset Thompson
Rivers University (TRU) and two-time
defending national champion Langara
College to win the B.C. College's
Athletic Association championships held
in Langley on the weekend.
"The girls played great," said coach
Doug Abercrombie one day after the
team's triumph, adding that everybody
on the team contributed to the win.
"It was a total team effort .. .. I think
that was probably the difference . We
played so solid Saturday and Sunday as
a team."
Seeded third in the tournament, the
Blues opened the tournament with a 1-0
win over second seeded TRU in a game
Abercrombie called a battle.
"We played very, very well against
them," he said. "They're a big strong
team so it was a physical battle but I
thought the kids hung in there really
photo Paul Yates
well."
Shawna Lawson scored the game's CAPILANO midfielder Gemma Pollack is mauled by teammates after scoring a free kick
only goal in the first half and Capilano goal to give the Blues a 1-0 lead in the provincial final versus top-seeded Langara Sunday.
controlled the play and limited TRU's The Blues won 2-0 and will now head to Halifax for nationals, starting next Wednesday.
scoring chances the rest of the way.
"She made two quality saves against Langara," game, the fact that she saved that one off the
"Everybody defended really well and then
we actually finished on the chance we got," said said Abercrombie . "She made the critical saves line," said Abercrombie.
Abercrombie. "In that game we dictated the when we needed them."
Moments later a Langara defender handled
Abercrombie said his squad started to take the ball in her own box and Pollack deposited
way the game got played. We kept possession of
the ball, we moved it around like we had talked over in the second half. With a little less than half the ensuing penalty shot to seal the game at 2about trying to do. Basically I thought we played an hour left the Blues got their breakthrough 0 for the Blues. Pollack, a Rockridge grad, was
goal on a free kick from midfielder Gemma chosen the tournament's top midfielder while
our game."
In the final against top-seeded Langara, Pollack.
Sar.vi Boulton was picked as the top forward and
"She hit the ball in the top corner," said tournament MVP.
ranked number 2 in the country, it was the Blues
Abercrombie . "The goalkeeper got a hand on it
The Blues didn't have much time to celebrate
who found themselves on their heels early on.
"(Langara) dictated the way the game got but there really wasn't much she could do about as training resumed this week in preparation
played in the first half," said Abercrombie. "They it."
for next week's national tournament in Halifax.
Langara pressed to tie for the remainder of Capilano will open the tournament with a game
were running hard, they were winning most of
the loose balls. They were putting more pressure the game and almost got their goal in the last five Wednesday against host University of Kings
minutes but sweeper Faith Williams, a first year College before meeting Alberta champion
on our goal than we were on theirs."
But the Blues defence held and goalkeeper player out of Sutherland, headed a Langara free Mount Royal College on Friday. Wins in those
Meghan Best, a Windsor secondary grad, made kick off her own goal line to keep the Falcons two games would put them into the final on
saves when she needed to. Best in fact recorded off the board.
two shutouts over the weekend.
"That was probably the turning point of the
See Cap page 39