Huskies and Reds move on to Friday's men's soccer semifinals
(Sydney, N.S.) If you missed out on today's men's match-ups, here's how the quarterfinals went.
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
0 | 0 | 0 |
|
|
1 | 1 | 2 |
Team Stats
UPEI
Saint Mary's
| Game Statistics | UPEI | Saint Mary's |
|---|---|---|
| Shots (on goal) | 3 (1) | 12 (3) |
| Saves | 1 | 1 |
| Fouls | 9 | 5 |
| Corner Kicks | 4 | 3 |
| Offsides | 5 | 0 |
Memorial
UNB
| Game Statistics | Memorial | UNB |
|---|---|---|
| Shots (on goal) | 8 (3) | 11 (6) |
| Saves | 5 | 3 |
| Fouls | 7 | 8 |
| Corner Kicks | 7 | 2 |
| Offsides | 0 | 0 |
(Sydney, N.S.) The first day of the 2021 Subway AUS Men's Soccer Championships ended with fourth-seed Saint Mary's Huskies and third-seed UNB Reds living to see another day, thanks to their wins they'll both move on to tomorrow's semifinals. If you missed out on today's men's match-ups, here's how the quarterfinals went.
QF#1: UPEI Panthers (5th) vs. SMU Huskies (4th)
The Saint Mary’s Huskies defeated the UPEI Panthers 2-0 on Thursday afternoon in the first quarterfinal matchup of the 2021 Subway AUS Men’s Soccer Championships on the CBU campus.
“We worked hard and we were able to execute our game plan,” Subway player of the game Woody Bain (Dartmouth, N.S.) said after the match.
In the first half, the Huskies garnered the first quality scoring chance, when AUS second-team all-star Sean Freeman (Halifax, N.S.) volleyed a cross from fifth-year senior Alex Black (Halifax, N.S.) over the crossbar behind Panther goalkeeper Evan Couturier (Lower Coverdale, N.B.).
In the 35th minute, off a goal-mouth scramble at the top of the UPEI box, sophomore James Spence (Hammonds Plains, N.S.) bested Couturier with a quick shot.
Saint Mary’s, who had the lion’s share of possession in a physical opening half, led 1-0 heading to the locker room.
Early in the second half, UPEI tried to notch the equalizer, but freshman Jonathan MacKenzie’s (Charlottetown, P.E.I.) header went wide and out of play.
The Panthers were only able to collect one shot on goal in the match.
Off a corner kick, Cameron Zinn’s (Bridgewater, N.S.) directed a header towards the corner, but Riad Jaha (Charlottetown, P.E.I.) cleared the ball of his team’s goal line. Saint Mary’s eventually doubled their advantage, when Bain curled in a spectacular shot—off a free kick—that tucked inside the left goal post behind Couturier to make it 2-0.
“I don’t remember what I was thinking,” he said, with a laugh, when asked what his mindset was as he prepared for that shot.
With the victory, the Huskies earned a spot in the semifinals, where they will face the top-seeded STFX X-Men on Friday afternoon.
Describing them as a “tough side,” Bain noted that STFX has “a lot of skill.”
“But, I think, we match up well with them, so it should be a great game.”
Game time is scheduled for 2 p.m. AST.
QF#2: Memorial Sea-Hawks (6th) vs. UNB Reds (3rd)
On the strength of a second-half goal from striker Grant Takacs (Woodstock, ON), the UNB Reds earned a 1-0 quarterfinal victory over the Memorial Sea-Hawks in the 2021 Subway AUS Men’s Soccer Championships on Friday night at CBU.
In a scoreless first half, Takacs notched the first scoring opportunity of the match, but he missed with his shot attempt on Memorial goalkeeper Dylan Crichton.
Emmanuel Dolo, an AUS first-team all-star, garnered the first quality chance for the Sea-Hawks, but his strike went wide behind UNB goalkeeper Joshua Doupe (Sarnia, ON).
Later in the opening 45 minutes, Dolo found Matt Davis at the top of the box, but Doupe steered aside his hard shot on a save with his right leg.
The teams were scoreless at halftime.
Early in the second half, Roan Saengmeng (Charlottetown, P.E.I.) got free for a scoring opportunity, but Crichton made the stop.
In the 60th minute, the Reds came up empty on consecutive corner kicks, while a couple minutes later the Sea-Hawks were denied on a Dolo free kick.
In the 70th minute, after Crichton corralled a corner kick, he tried to send away Dolo, but AUS second-team all-star Matthew Quigley (Chester Basin, N.S.) intercepted the pass and sailed a boot in the box that Takacs deftly volleyed with his right foot, beating the Memorial keeper inside the right post.
Over the final 20 minutes, UNB barred the door defensively, while giving Memorial few chances to tally the equalizer.
The Reds move on to face the second-ranked CBU Capers in a semi-final matchup on Friday.
Game time is 7 p.m. AST. Both semifinals will be webcast live at AUStv.ca.
Recap courtesy of Corey LeBlanc / CBU