Their 20th shot of the game did the trick, a late goal from Kiana Swift which gave the UNBC Timberwolves a hard-fought 1-1 draw with the visiting UBC-Okanagan Heat Friday night at Masich Place Stadium.
The equalizer came In the 75th minute, off a corner kick that led to a scramble deep in Heat territory. T-wolves’ Grace Gillman, Monika Johnson, and Kalista Kirkness all had chances at the loose ball. But it was the veteran Swift who found it and beat sprawling goalie Molly Race with a shot to knot it at 1-1, the first goal of Swift's Canada West career.
“I was so happy. Kiana is one of the most dedicated, hardest working players on this team,” said UNBC midfielder Morgan Holyk. “As her teammate, to see Kiana succeed like that, it givers me shivers thinking about it.”
“It meant a lot, but it is a team sport,” added Swift. “I wouldn’t work this hard if I didn’t have everyone supporting me. Brooke (Molby) is making amazing saves, Avery (Nystedt) is diving in. Every person, on and off the field, is contributing. I am just happy.”
From there, both teams traded moderate scoring opportunities, but neither could find the mark.
UNBC had the edge in shots by a 20-10 margin, while the Heat had eight shots on goal to the Timberwolves’ seven.
In the early going, it was the Heat who came out the more inspired side, pressuring the T-wolves in the defensive third. It led to some sustained possession, including a tremendous look for Stefanie Young, but Molby did well to turn away the point-blank chance.
The Timberwolves turned the tide in the final 15 minutes of the half, hemming the Heat into their own end. Swift, who was her typically impactful self throughout the half, had a good look, as did Sarah Zuccaro, who put her shot just over the crossbar.
Perhaps the best chance of the half came in the final minute when Kjera Hayman sprung dangerous T-wolves striker Johnson in on a break. The fourth-year veteran beat her defender, beat goalkeeper Race, and even managed to fool the crowd, and her shot rippled the mesh as it sailed just wide.
“If you look at our games, we are progressing - each day, it is one step further,” said UNBC midfielder Morgan Holyk. “Today, it was that attack-minded mindset. Through our games we have been getting better and better at building. Finally, we were able to capitalize on that.”
In the second half, a series of events led to an own-goal that put UBC-O on the scoresheet. A Timberwolves defender played a cross ball back towards ‘keeper Molby, popping the ball high up into the air. The fifth-year netminder, who has been tremendous all season long, mishandled the spin and the ball bounced into the UNBC net, putting the Heat up 1-0.
That seemed to further inspire the T-wolves, however, as the duo of Johnson and Claire Turner provided threat after threat to the Heat backline.
Holyk came in off the bench and provided great speed and pressure, earning a number of throw-ins and corner kicks, as did veteran substitute Hannah Emmond.
“We came out and we fought hard. We have a hard time taking points off UNBC. They are a great team and they play the same way as us,” said UBC-O midfielder Erica Lampert. “When they get going, they’re hard to defend against. Proud of my girls. Tomorrow, we have to do what we did best today, and be better at it tomorrow. We can come out and get three points.”
With the tie, the T-wolves earned their first point of the season and moved to 0-6-1, while the Heat are now 0-2-3 on the season. The two sides will clash again Saturday at 6 p.m. at Masich.
“I think every weekend, everyone is adapting to the speed of play and the competitive level is out of this world,” said Swift. “I am so grateful to be on this team. Everyone is working so hard. Pushing to 101 per cent, like Neil (coach Sedgwick) tells us to. We just keep getting better. We are going to keep pushing forward and keep getting better.”
