CALGARY - Despite the snow and below zero temperatures that hit Calgary this week, both the University of Victoria and University of Lethbridge weathered the bitter conditions for an exciting game of soccer to open up the Canada West playoffs. After a tough battle, the Vikes came out on top against the Horns with a well-earned 3-1 victory.
 
Upon entering the playoff conference, Victoria finished their regular season with a 10-4-2 record, putting them in the second-ranked position in the Canada West Pacific Division, while Lethbridge ended with a 4-5-5 record, putting them in the third seat of the Prairies.
 
The Vikes attacked the field early, hungry for the win, scoring their first goal in the 18th minute. The goal started with a left corner kick from midfielder Javier Sagaste across to Alex Moody, allowing him to get a quick shot past the Horns' tough defensive line and keeper, Armaan Thawer.
 
Vikes defenseman, Jordan McKinty, scored the team's second goal in the 30th minute after receiving a beautiful pass across the net from Javier Sagaste who was an exceptional assisting force throughout the game.
 
Only 9 minutes later, the Vikes scored their third goal in the 39th minute after Matthew Pearse booted the ball in front of the net, giving Yassin Guitoni a quick set up and snipe into the box.
 
While a 3-0 score in the first half is an intimidating hurdle to overcome, the Horns were not going to go down without a fight. Lethbridge not only managed to obtain a shutout in the second half, but also got a powerful goal in the 85th minute. Danilo Morales booted the ball from the right side on a breakaway sent to Cole Jackson who sent the ball into the net bar-down to bring the score to 3-1.
 
While Lethbridge's second half performance was impressive, it wasn't enough to bring them to a comeback victory, causing them to lose their chance to continue in the playoff series.
 
Despite the loss, Horns head coach, Davin Haigh, voiced his pride in his squad after a hard-fought match.
 
"Our guys battled hard and we made the most of what we could control. I thought our guys did well," says Haigh.