WASHINGTON’S SUNDODGER OPEN

TWU’s Regan Yee grabbed first place in the final 100 metres claiming top spot in the open competition at the University of Washington’s Sundodger Invitational Saturday at Lincoln Park.

Yee led the way for the Spartans on a rainy morning in Seattle with a winning time of 20:29.30 over the six kilometer circuit in TWU’s first individual race of the season.

Despite the poor conditions, Yee bettered her time from last year by nearly 20 seconds. On the same course in 2015, she was sixth in the invitational event with a time of 20:48.75.

Spartans Lisa Brooking of Orillia crossed with a time of 20:52:30, while Grande Prairie’s Mirelle Martens finished fourth with a time 21:05.40 in the event.

Langley’s Meg Harradine and Campbell River’s Joanna Williams completed TWU’s top five which saw the Spartans finish first overall as a team.

Harradine was 34^th in 22:23.30 and Williams was 39^th in 22:27.10 and the team win saw TWU better fellow Canadian schools SFU (4^th) and UBC who finished 5^th overall.

The Spartans next see action Oct. 8 when they compete in the Western Washington Classic in Bellingham; that saw former Spartan Sarah Inglis (Falkirk, Scotland) win the Invitational race.

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South Surrey’s Declan White and fourth-year Spartan was aggressive on the trails, as she finished first in the University of Washington’s Sundodger Open Saturday at Lincoln Park.

White, who was competing in TWU’s first individual cross country race of the season, becomes the first Spartan male to top the open field, finishing with a time of 23:59.90 over eight kilometers.

The Spartans saw three others place in the top 11, with Joel De Schiffart (fifth) (24:27.40), Caleb de Jong (seventh) (24:34.00) and Levi Neufeld placed 11^th with a time of 24:44.90.

Langley’s Nick Colyn was TWU’s fifth finisher in 25:03.90 that saw him finish 23^rd overall..

As a team, the Spartans finished first in the open race, bettering Alaska Anchorage (2^nd), UBC (3^rd) and SFU (4^th).

The Spartans return to action Oct. 8 when they compete in the Western Washington Classic in Bellingham, Wash.

Last year, the now-graduated Blair Johnston (White Rock, B.C.) led TWU with a third place finish in the open race.

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Draw Play

Trinity Western’s Seina Kashima scored with just over 15 minutes to play, but a short five minutes later UBC’s Shayla Chorney scored the equalizer that saw the both clubs play to a nil-nil draw.

After the 70-minute deadlock; Kashima broke through in the 73^rd minute with her first goal of the season and her first since 2014.

The 78^th minute saw Chorney bury a rebound to even the score at one. Last year, Kashima had a team-leading seven assists but didn’t score herself. She scored four goals in 2014.

The 81^st minute saw Kashima move into the box sending one on target looking to take the lead; but Maracle made an impressive save to keep it tied..

TWU’s Ally Williamson made eight saves in the contest earning the draw for the Spartans; while Maracle was good on three of the four shots she faced.

The tie puts TWU’s record at 3-0-2 on the season while UBC is now 1-0-4. Both teams also picked up single points in their Friday matches.

 Kashima opened the scoring when she took a through ball from Nicole Bolder (Calgary) and stepped around charging UBC goalie Maracle before slotting it into the vacated net.

The Spartans are back on the pitch next weekend when they travel to play Thompson Rivers Sept. 24 and UBC Okanagan Sept. 25.

The T-Birds are also on the road next weekend, playing UBC Sept. 23 and Alberta Sept. 25.

Spartans Brooklyn Tidder and Elizabeth Hicks were each shown yellow card in the match that see’s TWU being unbeaten in 18 regular season games, which dates to the start of the 2015 season.

Soccer

MacEwan opened the scoring midway through the first half, but the No. 6 Trinity Western men’s soccer team responded with four goals to earn a 4-2 win over the Griffins Saturday at Chase Office Field.

Vito Poletto (Calgary) scored twice while Jacob Low (Port Moody, B.C.) and Elijah Adekugbe (Calgary) added singles as the Spartans cruised to a convincing win.

The victory puts the Spartans at 6-1-1 and keeps them atop the Pacific Division. TWU’s six wins already betters last year’s win total, when TWU finished with a 5-5-2 record.

MacEwan’s Lahai Mansaray opened the scoring in the 31^st minute and Bryce Prochnau tallied in second half stoppage time, but a late first half goal from TWU and three more in the first 20 minutes of the second half secured the win for the home side.

TWU’s Andrew Hicks earned the victory without registering a single save.

MacEwan is now 0-5-1 on the season.

“In the second half, there are a lot of guys who have been frustrated because they’re not getting the minutes and they went out there and put in a good performance.”

With the Griffins up by a goal, Low turned the game’s momentum towards the home team when he connected on a Caleb Johnson (Strathmore, Alta.) cross, sliding into the box and deflecting it past Griffins goalie Dylon Powley, who finished the night with four saves.

Early in the second half Poletto found a rebound in the box after a shot by Sebastian Wingfield and slipped it in to spark the Spartans good barrage.

Just before the hour mark, Poletto put together a brilliant solo effort as he took on his defender on the right side before placing a perfect shot over Powley to the far top corner.

In the 62^nd minute, Adekugbe rounded out the Spartans scoring with his fifth of the season, burying a penalty for the second time in as many nights after Joel Waterman had been taken down in the box.

Prochnau scored for MacEwan just before fulltime to make it a two-goal outcome.

TWU will now travel to play Saskatchewan Sept. 23 and Winnipeg Sept. 25. MacEwan returns home to host Thompson Rivers Sept. 24 and UBC Okanagan Sept. 25.

Game Notes: Saturday’s match marked the first time the two teams have faced each other in a Canada West regular season game.

TWU had a 16-3 edge in shots…the Griffins Graem White was the only player who saw yellow in the match.

Info sent over by Mark Janzen TWU Media.