The University of the Fraser Valley men’s soccer squad downed the Western Washington Vikings in a preseason friendly Tuesday night.
The game was played at Townsend Park.
The score was 1-0.
The Cascades had a lot of energy, considering it was their fourth game in four days.
The game’s only goal came 33 minutes in when UFV was awarded a direct free kick for a late hit.
Kamloops native Ryan Liddiard stepped into it, hitting the top right corner with his rocket shot.
WWU goalkeeper Nico Terentjev had no chance.
UFV keeper Mark Village stayed busy at the other end as the Vikings sought the equalizer. The Abbotsford native turned several shots aside to earn the clean sheet and player of the match honours.
The Cascades improved their preseason record to 4-2-0, capping off a busy week.
UFV earned road wins over the Evergreen State College Mariners and Willamette University Bearcats last weekend, and lost 2-0 to the Concordia University Cavaliers Monday night.
They have one preseason game left before the regular season starts, and head coach Alan Errington believes they’re ready.
“We played a tremendous match considering how tired we were from the four day trip to Oregon and Washington,” he said. “The Vikings are a good side and gave our team a good test as we get ready for next week’s conference opener against TWU.”
— The UFV women had less success in their game against the WWU Vikings, falling 2-0 at Townsend Park.
The game was scoreless until late, when WWU’s Jessica Bertucci and Alyssa Beauchamp scored 15 minutes apart to give the Vikings the win.
Burnaby native Kayla Klim went the distance in net for the Cascades, making several stellar stops.
Veteran striker Carly Neeson (Maple Ridge) was a bright spot for UFV.
Third year defender Jade Palm (Powell River) was UFV’s player of the match.
“Jade Palm and Carley Radomski were strong in midfield and Carly Neeson had her best game of our preseason,” said Cascades coach Rob Giesbrecht. “We struggled at matching their physical play and never really got going. There were encouraging signs as well as signs that told me we still have quite a bit to work on.”
The UFV women host UBC-Okanagan Friday night (7 p.m.) in exhibition action.