Soccer Athletes of the Week: September 20-21, 2025

Congratulations to Mary Huggill and Charlie Smith: VIU soccer athletes of the week for September 20 and 21!

Mary has emerged as a steadying and dynamic presence in the VIU midfield. In Saturday's win, she scored her second goal of the season barely two minutes into the game as she caused a turnover and rocketed a left-footed shot from the top of the 18-yard box into the Capilano net. Mary demonstrated determination to win duels consistently and dribbled confidently through pressure, leading head coach Bobbie Taylor to credit Mary's consistent play throughout both games. Mary was also named PACWEST conference soccer athlete of the week and a CCAA athlete of the week.

Charlie was a constant threat for the Mariners over two home games versus the Capilano Blues. His two goals in Saturday's matchup propelled the Mariners to their first win of the season and were scored in very different ways: an early header where he out-jumped the Capilano goalkeeper to open the scoring, and a penalty kick with 12 minutes remaining to put VIU ahead. On Sunday, he made a deft deflection from a throw-in to Maxwell Dadzie that immediately led to an assist on Brian Bland's tying goal.

Head coach Kevin Lindo credited Charlie's effort in both games, saying he "worked incredibly hard" and was duly rewarded with those two important goals.