VIU women clinch playoff spot; men fall to Falcons

Women: VIU Mariners 4, Langara Falcons 1

NANAIMO, B.C. – Captain Cara Dunlop stepped up with two goals to lead VIU to a 4-1 victory over the visiting Langara Falcons.

With the win, the Mariners (2-3-1) clinch at least third spot in the conference and a spot in the PACWEST provincial championships in Coquitlam, October 30-31. The Falcons (0-6-1) will finish fourth.

Dunlop, who scored both VIU goals against Langara in a 2-2 tie on October 2nd, scored in the 9th and 23rd minutes. Both goals were headers from Mariner corner kicks launched in by fifth-year forward Karen Battie.

Battie, playing in her last official home game, continued to make it a game to remember by stripping the ball from a Falcons defender after a short goal kick in the 33rd minute. It took her only two seconds to fire the ball into the back corner of the Langara net and VIU took a 3-0 lead into the half.

VIU earned one more goal in the second half in spectacular fashion from Shea Battie. After midfielder Olivia Mazurenko won possession deep in the Langara half, Battie took the ball and started a give-and-go with Madisen Cruz on the left wing. Battie took the return pass, split between two Falcon defenders to get to the middle of the pitch, and roofed a hard shot past the Langara keeper.

The Falcons got on the board in the 83rd minute when first-year striker Cassidy Kwan deflected in a cross from Megan Macfarlane. However, the Falcons would not breach the Mariner defence the rest of the way.

The Mariners out-shot the Falcons 26-6 (16-5 shots on target). VIU goalkeeper Melanie Osborne was active and aggressive in clearing out any long-range Falcon attacks and was credited with four saves.

VIU took the upper hand in the three games versus the Falcons in 2021 with two wins and a tie.

Men: Langara Falcons 3, VIU Mariners 0

NANAIMO, B.C. – The Langara Falcons (3-3-1) moved into a second-place tie with VIU (3-2-1) in the PACWEST after a 3-0 win over the host Mariners.

While the first half was largely an even affair, the Falcons were able to get on board in the 22nd minute when defender Moheealdeen Alyousef knocked in a rebound after a in-tight save from Mariners goalkeeper Ben Chamberlin.

The VIU netminder responded with a airborne reaction save off of a Langara chip shot in the 35th minute, matching Falcons goalkeeper Aleks Kalajdzic's diving save on a low blast from Shun Takano.

As the temperature dipped in the second half, it felt like the Mariners were literally facing an uphill battle, as strong winds and Langara pressure negated every Mariner attempt at generating offensive pressure. While shots in the first half were even at five apiece, The Falcons outshot the Mariners 9-2 in the second half and earned 5 corner kicks to VIU's 1.

Late goals from Wizaso Chavula (83rd minute) and Yuto Kimura (90+ added time) put the game away for the visitors.

VIU and Langara end their three-game season series with one win, one loss, and one tie each.

Fifth-year and graduating student-athletes were recognized between games for their contributions to the Mariners soccer program.

(L-R) Cole Senchar, Larry Stefanek (men's soccer head coach), Westlee Bischoff, Douglas Mtatabikwa, Shun Takano (kneeling), Grant Hooper, Taylor Arbour, Karen Battie, Kevin Lindo (women's soccer head coach).

Up Next

While the women's squad is locked into the semi-final match (#2 vs #3) at the PACWEST provincial championships later this month, the men need to earn points to clinch a playoff spot. Two games against fourth-place Capilano will go a long way to deciding the final conference standings for men's soccer.

The Mariners have three games remaining in the 2021 PACWEST regular season, including two makeup games resulting from weather-related postponements.

• Wednesday, October 20th versus Capilano Blues @ Forrest Field, Ladysmith (Makeup game for October 16). Women 1 PM, Men 3:30 PM
• Saturday, October 23rd at Douglas Royals @ Cunnings Field, Coquitlam. Women 1 PM, Men 3:30 PM
• Sunday, October 24th at Capilano Blues (Makeup game for September 18). Women 1:30 PM, Men 3:45 PM

Games are streamed live at PACWEST.TV.