Rolling through the rough > MSOC prepare for tough week ahead Davie Wong Sports Editor ast week’s thrilling win over the Capilano Blues is still fresh in the minds of many. It may have been the spark that lights the a fire in the belly of many, or it could be the inspiration that complacency thrives off of. Week three of the PACWEST soccer season will help answer that question. For the most part, the Royals have been a pretty messy team. Their youth has definitely shown, and problems have been a common occurrence. But for their young team, those sorts of learning pains are good signs. Defensively, the line has begun to click. The back four, under the organization of captain Nawaf Binsaleh, has looked better and better each game. Against the PACWEST’s most potent one-two punch offence, they shined. Now they have the chance to face up against the PACWEST’s strongest overall offence in the VIU Mariners. Their role is vital if they want to beat the Mariners at home. Another factor for the Royals this weekend is Race Williams. After bagging his first goal of the season off a penalty against Capilano, Williams will be looking to turn the jets on. So far, he’s struggled to be the prolific goal scorer that his team has needed him to be. The “Sophomore Struggle” is a reason that comes to mind but I think it’s a bigger problem that alludes to a lack of leadership up top. Last year, with Issac Kyei running the offence, Williams just had to be in the right position to shoot and the ball would get there to him. This year, he has no set-up man. It’ll be interesting to see if time will help the problem, or make it worse as the situation gets more and more frustrating. Looking on the other side, it’s easy to see how this week could be intimidating. The Quest Kermodes have been a mixed bag so far this season. When they’re good, they play avery possession heavy game that suffocates their opponent. When they’re bad, they get torn apart on the field. It’s really depends on which team shows up on Saturday. The VIU Mariners, on the other hand, have been the team to beat this season. Three straight dominant wins to start the season, including a 7-0 thrashing of the Langara Falcons, has been the story so far. Though they were just handed a 2-0 loss by the Capilano Blues, I can’t imagine it’s made them any softer. If anything, they’re going to be hungry to bounce back when they play the Royals on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. on Cunnings Field. It’s going to be a tight one. The Royals could finish the week with two hard earned points. They could end up with three. Or they could end up with zero in the worst situation. It’s actually too close to make an estimate. Guess you'll have to come out and see what happens! WOMEN'S SOCCER INSTITUTION CONF PTS VIU 1-1-2 5 LANGARA 0-0-3 3 CAPILANO 1-0-2 5 DOUGLAS 1-1-1 4 QUEST 0-1-2 2 MEN'S SOCCER INSTITUTION CONF PTS VIU 3-1 9 LANGARA 0-3 oO CAPILANO 2-1 6 DOUGLAS 1-1-1 4 QUEST 1-1-1 4 Deja vu? > Royals WSOC ready to bounce back Davie Wong Sports Editor TT" Douglas College Royals are set for a week one rematch when they take on the Quest Kermodes and the VIU Mariners in week three of PACWEST action. The Royals are just coming off of a tough loss to Capilano Blues, while their opponents are coming into the game with positive results under their belt. While the Royals did lose out to the Blues, they still looked good in a lot of areas. Certainly there will have to be some defensive tightening and some work done on the front end, but overall there is still a ton of quality on that roster. In particular, Mikayla Hamilton will be a player worth watching. Last year she struggled to get going early but exploded once she did. It’s a similar situation this year, and it'll be interesting to see if she can find her form now that the first quarter of the season is over. Another player worth watching is Royals captain Samantha Kell. Kell is ona scoring bonanza, netting three in her last two games. If she can keep her form up, the Royals will be all the better for it. She will also have a very real shot of contesting for PACWEST'’s top goal-scorer. . Switching gears, let’s take a look at the Royals’ opponents this week. The Quest Photo by Davie Wong Kermodes have yet to pick up their first win of the season, tying two out three games for two points. They have a real chance to do it at home when they host the Royals on Saturday. Last time these two met, it fizzled into a1-1 draw. This time around, the Royals will be hoping they can pick up three points,. bBut it wi’ll be against stiff competition. VIU have a record of 1-1-2 and have struggled much more than expected to start the year. Losing former head coach Anup Kang has really hit the team hard. Even when they did win, they managed to barely squeeze the victory, 3-2 against the Quest Kermodes. The last time the Royals played the Mariners, they blew them out at home 3-0. Now the Mariners will surely be looking to enact revenge and do the same to the Royals when the two clash on Sunday. It wi'll be an interesting match, that’s for sure. The game kicks off at 12 p.m.PM on Sunday at Cunnings Field. Overall, it should be a 4-6 point4-6- point weekend for the Royals with either matches possible go either way. If it’s a poor week, it could be a two- point weekend. Obviously the worse scenario is a zero- point weekend, but I think the Royals are too good to let that happen. Either way, it’s going to be a good week of PACWEST soccer.