EAGLES SOAR TO VICTORY OVER VOYAGEURS

LAC LA BICHE – Charles Dickens wrote A Tale of Two Cities in 1859. The Portage College Voyageurs Women's Soccer Team wrote A Tale of Two Halves on October 15, 2022.

On a cold and cloudy Saturday afternoon at the Bold Center Soccer Field, the Voyageurs didn't get off to the best start against The King's University (TKU) Eagles, finding themselves down 2-0 by the 22 minute mark. By half time, TKU's lead had ballooned to 5-0. It was the worst of times. That's when Voyageurs' Head Coach Kika Mukuninwa and Assistant Coach Glenda Bouvier decided to step in with some words of encouragement to help their players change the narrative.

"We told them, you can play with anybody but you have to improve on the little things, the fundamentals – passing the ball, controlling the ball and then shooting," said Mukuninwa. "To their credit, they took it to heart, they took it well and you saw in the second half we passed the ball well and we moved the ball well."

 
Indeed, with Ashley Tweedy switching from first-half goalkeeper to second-half striker, the Voyageurs wrote a much more invigorating second chapter,  generating some scoring changes and holding the visitors to a single second-half tally. By the end of the game, the squad was feeling good about themselves, despite the 6-0 final score. It was the best of times.

"The ladies definitely stepped up," said Mukuninwa. "The first half was a bit difficult, of course, but definitely the second half they came together and they rallied around each other. You saw that they ran hard. It was only 1-0 in the second half."

Aimee Tiemstra led the way for the Eagles, potting three goals and claiming Player of the Game honours for her squad. Michaella Freiha scored two and Isabella Rocque added a marker for TKU. Lexis Roy played a strong defensive game and was named Player of the Game for the Voyageurs.

As they prepare to travel to Lloydminster on Sunday to face off against Lakeland College Rustlers, Mukuninwa is hoping his players game build off their strong second half.

"You see that the ladies are improving as a unit every week," he said. "They're getting back to good fitness and health. We also had a couple of new ladies that we had to integrate into the lineup. But they put in an effort and it was a good game."