Two borders away last weekend in Saskatchewan, they played some of the best soccer of their careers and a single point was their reward.
Now the UNBC Timberwolves will try to pick up where they left off when they host the Lethbridge Pronghorns in U Sports Canada West women's soccer action at Masich Place Stadium (6 p.m. start).
After winning their first two games of the season, the T-wolves traveled to Saskatoon to meet the unbeaten Huskies on Saturday and ended up losing 3-1. They followed that Sunday in Regina against the Regina Cougars and came home with a 1-1 tie.
“The games against Saskatchewan and Regina were our fastest-paced games so far," said fifth-year T-wolves defender Julia Babicz, on unbc.ca.
"It was an incredible matchup against them. Three incredible teams that utilized their strengths and looked to expose each other’s weaknesses. Our confidence hasn’t dwindled as we played our game and we played it well. We had many scoring opportunities, and how our team capitalizes on said opportunities for the upcoming matches will be the difference maker.”
Babicz, a Prince George Youth Soccer product, assisted on Paige Payne's goal Sunday, which came right after Babicz drilled the crossbar with a shot at the Regina net.
In tonight's game the T-wolves (2-1-1, fourth in Pacific Division) will be taking on a Pronghorns (0-2-2) team still looking for its first victory. Then on Sunday (noon start at Masich), UNBC hosts the other Cougars of Canada West from Mount Royal University in Calgary. Mount Royal (0-4-0) faces the first-place Calgary Dinos (3-0-1) tonight.
Despite the losing records of the Alberta teams, Babicz says there's no chance the T-wolves will be counting points before they earn them.
"We expect each of our opponents to have the best game of their life," she said. "If we prepare that way, personally and as a squad, we will be ready. The last time we played Mount Royal was two years ago. A lot can change in two years.”
The UNBC men (3-3-1, fifth in Pacific) are on the road this weekend in Edmonton. The T-wolves play Alberta (1-4-1, fifth in Prairie Division) on Saturday afternoon (1:15 p.m. PT), then take on the McEwan Griffins Sunday at 1:30 p.m. PT.
The Griffins (1-3-2) host the UBC Thunderbirds (3-1-1) Saturday afternoon.
UNBC has won its last two games. The shut out Victoria 2-0 on the road on Sept. 7, then last Friday at Masich handed Mount Royal a 3-2 defeat - the Cougars' first loss of the season.
“Our mindset going into the Alberta game should be the same as it has been all year - go out and try to put a great performance on the field," said UNBC midfielder Jonah Smith. "The results against Victoria and MRU show the strength of the team's collective mindset, and our ability to thrive in adversity.
"The results prove that we can score in big moments and defend against dangerous teams. Everyone is excited to continue to build and improve on our recent success.”
