For the better part of five seasons, Julia Babicz has been booting soccer balls for the UNBC Timberwolves in the city she calls home.
This weekend, the Prince George Youth Soccer product will play the final home games of her career, as will her teammates Ashley Volk and Jenna Wild, who have years of eligibility remaining but have chosen to UNBC once they finish their academic studies.
Babicz is one of just three Prince George players on the T-wolves' roster, along with third-year midfielders Kierstin Vohar and Hannah Emmond.
The T-wolves (3-2-3, fourth in Pacific Division) will be take on the Trinity Western University Spartans (7-0-1, first in Pacific) Friday at 6 p.m. at Masich Place Stadium. Then on Seniors Day, Sunday at noon, UNBC will play host to the Fraser Valley Cascades.
The Cascades will take a 2-2-4 record (sixth in Pacific) onto the pitch with them Friday afternoon in Calgary when they play the Dinos.
“I think this is the best start to any season we've had before, which certainly makes us proud," said fourth-year T-wolves defender Mara McCleary. "That being said, there have also been some results that have left us disappointed with ourselves so we're definitely gunning to get more points before season ends. We view every weekend, every game, every minute on the field as an opportunity to grow and improve, and that's exactly what we've been doing, year in and year out.
“Seeing our seniors play their very last home game always makes for an emotion-filled weekend. Saying goodbye has only gotten harder as each year has gone by, because you know each player better than you did the year before. After being a part of senior weekend for three years I think it is safe to say this will be a weekend where we play our hearts out and leave everything on the field, not just for those on the team or for those graduating this year, but also for the Timberwolves before us on whose shoulders we stand.”
Meanwhile, in a men's soccer matchup in Langley, UNBC will continue its quest to cinch a soccer playoff spot with a two-game series against the Trinity Western Spartans. They play Friday and Saturday at 7:15 p.m. each night.
UNBC (4-5-2, sixth in Pacific) have four games left in the season and need to finish at least fourth to qualify for the playoffs. That won't be easy against the Spartans (6-4-0, who currently rank second in the Pacific.
“A this stage in the season, we are sitting right on the cusp of playoffs in the standings and we feel optimistic that we can win one, if not both games against Trinity," said UNBC midfielder Anthony Preston. "Hopefully, we then close out the season with a six-point weekend against TRU to make that last push for playoffs.
“I think that this team is one of the deepest teams I’ve ever played on. We showed that (in two games last weekend) against UBC, when some players had to miss games due to suspensions, others had to come in to replace them. Those players played absolutely phenomenal games, and really helped our team get a very important point.”
The T-wolves men wrap up their season next weekend at Masich with two games against Thompson Rivers University WolfPack of Kamloops.
