A late rally by UNBC's women's soccer squad fell short Friday morning as the visiting Thompson River University WolfPack edged the Timberwolves 2-1 in CIS Canada West exhibition play.
With the WolfPack holding onto a 2-0 lead, the Timberwolves kicked it up a notch in the final 10 minutes of the game.
Freshman defender Taylor Samuelson slotted a cross kick over to second-year midfielder Madison Emmond who was in the box and scored from 10 yards out to beat TRU keeper Shalayna Isakson in the 83rd minute.
That sparked UNBC for the remainder of the match, but they couldn't score the equalizer at North Cariboo Senior Soccer League Field.
UNBC stumbled out of the gate to open the match which Thompson Rivers took advantage of when Brianna Powrie gave the WolfPack a 1-0 lead in the fifth minute.
Powrie set up Jaydene Radu in the 11th minute to put the WolfPack up two going into halftime.
UNBC's best chance of the first half came in the 23rd minute. The Timberwolves thought they had scored, but Ashley Anderson was just offside on an attempted cross from Tianna Rossi.
Neither side really established themselves for the majority of the second half, and chances were few and far between.
The match was the first of a three-team exhibition series on the weekend.
TRU and Edmonton's Grant MacEwan Griffins battle today at 11 a.m. while UNBC tackle the Griffins Sunday at 11 a.m.
Meanwhile, UNBC's men's soccer squad has returned from a successful road trip to Calgary and Kamloops where they posted an overall record of 3-1-1 in five friendly matches.
The Timberwolves blanked Mount Royal 2-0 Wednesday in Calgary after earning a 2-2 draw against the University of Calgary on Aug. 24.
During a five-day stop in Kamloops last week, UNBC beat Langara 6-1 and MacEwan 2-1. Their only loss was against TRU, a 2-0 decision on Aug. 26.
The men open their season on the road against the University of Victoria in a two-game series on Sept. 11-12.
