Form, finishing,
and fighting

> Royals WSOC earn six points over weekend

Davie Wong
Sports Editor

 

Here faced the Quest Kermodes
only two weeks ago, the image of
their 1-1 draw was still burned into the
minds of a hungry Royals squad. They
had a chance to correct that memory
on Saturday when they took on the
Quest Kermodes in Squamish.

Despite the home-field advantage,
the Royals manage to get off to good
start. A foul in the box earned the
team a penalty kick. Stepping up to
the mark was Madison Hendry. Her
first PK of the year turned into her
first goal of the year as she went and
ripped home the opening goal.

Following her up was the
flamboyant Mikayla Hamilton.
Hamilton struck home a shot just
three minutes after to double the
Royals’ lead and bag her first goal
of the season. All of a sudden, the
Kermodes were in some sort of
trouble. They would go down to
the other end and test the Royals
but Nicole Scott, making her first
PACWEST start, was a wall in front of
the net. She made six stops in the first
half alone to keep the Royals in front,
2-0, going into halftime.

Much like the first game, the
second half saw both teams fizzle out
into a draw with neither side able to
do too much. The Royals controlled
the pace of the game, occasionally
prodding the Quest defence to see if
there were any openings. Rikki Logan
and the Kermodes kept the game
where it was, but the Royals backline
was able to do the same. After an
exciting first half, the game drizzled
out to a 2-0 win for the Royals.

The next day, they came home
to take on the visiting VIU Mariners.

Like any game against the Mariners,
it was an exciting affair. Mikayla
Hamilton drew first blood off of a
through-ball. The speedy forward
blitzed through the defensive line and
found herself alone with VIU’s keeper,
Alex DeMille. Hamilton blasted home
the ball, celebrating emphatically

as she raced into the arms of her
teammates.

20 minutes later, the Royals
found themselves with another
opportunity to put themselves ahead.
A deadly handball in the box saw
the Royals on the mark. Captain
Sam Kell stepped up and put the ball
past a sprawling Alex DeMille. Set
to go 2-0 into halftime, the Mariners
found themselves spoiling the Royals
halftime meeting. A cannon of a shot
from fifth year Moira Brown got the
Mariners on the board with seconds
left in the half, 2-1.

After halftime, the Mariners came
out a whole new team. They pressured
the Royals the entire half, but the
Royals found their game winner off
another foul from the Mariners. A
bump from a VIU defender jumping
to contest a ball in the box sent the
Royals to the mark once again. Sam
Kell took her second penalty shot of
the game and powered home the game
insurance goal.

The Royals wouldn't need that
insurance as they would stall out the
last 45 minutes of the game to win 3-1
over the VIU Mariners. The win, as
well as the weekend, put the Royals at
a record of 3-1-1, with 10 points. They
currently sit at the top of the table, 4
points clear of the Capilano Blues and
VIU Mariners, who sit tied for second
with six points each. The Blues still
have a game in-hand over the Royals.
That match will be next week as they
take on the Blues at home.

 

i)
Photo by Falacci Johnston

Royals Soccer

Preview

> Taking a look at week 4 of PACWEST action

C C The Blues have been the sole team to defeat the

Royals this season. Now Douglas has the chance

to put one over on them on home soil”

 

Davie Wong
Sports Editor

 

ooking ahead at week 4 of the

PACWEST soccer season, the Douglas
College Royals have interesting challenges
for them on both sides of the bracket. The
women will face off against the undefeated
Langara Falcons and their North
Vancouver rivals, the Capilano Blues.

Meanwhile, the men will be preparing for a

rematch against the Capilano Blues.
Taking a look at the ladies, the Royals
had an excellent performance last week.

Two big wins are what the team is riding on

when they face the currently ‘undefeated’
Langara Falcons. But to call them winless
would also be accurate. After five games at

the helm, Rae Pelat’s Langara Falcons team

is 0-0-5 with five points in the standings.
It’s not that the Falcons haven't been good.
They've lead in numerous of their games,

they’ve just blown the lead. In games where

they are trailing, they've shown gusto and
heart, tying it with only moments left to
go. But the bottom line is that they don’t
have enough to cross the line; at least
they haven't so far. Against the Royals,
it’s unlikely that’s going to change. With
Mikayla Hamilton finding her form, this
one should be a walk in the park for the
Royals.

However, the next game they face
off against the Capilano Blues. The Blues

have been the sole team to defeat the
Royals this season. Now Douglas has the
chance to put one over on them on home
soil. As mentioned before, striker Mikayla
Hamilton has found her form. She'll be an
incredibly important asset to the Royals

as they look to find holes in a potent Blues
defense. Coming into the game against the
Royals, the Blues have only given up four
goals in five games.

The Royals will need to vigilant on the
offense to break that trend. That shouldn't
be too hard though. Midfielder and captain
Sam Kell has been the player to watch as
she continues to pour on the goals. She’s
been deadly from distance and from the
spot. With Hamilton being such threat, it’s
hard not to see Kell taking shots from the
spot anytime soon.

Moving on to the men, this weekend’s
games is going to be a challenge for them.
The Capilano Blues are always a tough
challenge. However, the last time these two
met, it was the Royals coming ahead. This
time it won't be so easy. The Royals play
the Blues after their clean 6-0 dismantling
of the Langara Falcons. That’s a position
that no team in the PACWEST envies.

However, it would seem that the men
have also found their goal scoring feet. Last
time out, the Royals potted three against
the VIU Mariners, which is no easy task.

If they bring that same ferocity with them
when they face the Capilano Blues, fans
should be in for a treat.