Women's Soccer falls to Conestoga, 2-1

By: William Shoukri
Humber Athletics Communications

VAUGHAN - Humber women's soccer (0-3, 8^th West) dropped its third consecutive match to begin the campaign, falling to Conestoga (3-1, 2nd West) at the Ontario Soccer Centre Wednesday evening, 2-1. Doreen Anane-Bediakoh was the goal scorer for Humber off a great assist from Emily Robitaille. 

Match Recap

With the sun slowly setting over Ontario Soccer Centre, Humber and Conestoga got off to a quick but slightly sloppy start. Both squads had good opportunities to advance the ball past the midfield, but miscues and missed passes resulted in play middling around for the opening five minutes. 

The Hawks would get their best chance in the 13th minute when a great pass from Chantal Spalla sprung Rosie Nichols in the box for an excellent chance that Conestoga keeper Maddy Sloan stopped. The Hawks would get another great chance just minutes later, but Kaitlynn Russell would send it high. 

Play would go back and forth for the next ten minutes, with each team getting small chances but nothing of significance. 

Things would stay deadlocked until the 37th minute when defender Doreen Anane-Bediakoh flew through the air, finishing a beautiful header that would beat the keeper on her left to give Humber a 1-0 lead. Emily Robitaille would pick up the assist off of the free kick. 

Both teams had chances in the final minutes of the half but could not create anything significant. The half ended 1-0 for the Hawks thanks to Anane-Bediakoh's header. 

After the break, things started to open up a little. Both Humber and Conestoga had great chances, with the Condors having the better of the two. Humber keeper Angela Volpe stood tall, though, making big saves early in the second half. 

Conestoga finally broke through in the 55th minute after a Condor header tipped off Volpe's glove and into the net to tie the game at one. After the goal, momentum shifted strongly for Conestoga. They played a solid possession game, keeping the pressure on the Hawks in their own zone, with Humber struggling to clear. 

Conestoga kept the pressure high, dominating possession and forcing Humber keeper Angela Volpe to make some huge stops. Unfortunately, the pressure proved to be too much, as the Condors scored another goal in the 74th minute. The Condors scored on a rebound after a scrum in the crease and took a 2-1 lead. 

There would be no more offence for the Hawks as they would drop their third straight match this season with a final score of 2-1.

Match Notes

• Doreen Anane-Bediakoh scored her first career OCAA goal.
• The Condors picked up their first win against Humber, dating back to the first meeting in 2002. 
• This is the first time Women's soccer has started a season 0-3 since the program was created in 1996. 
• Humber is now 23-1-1 all-time against Conestoga.

What's Next?

Humber will travel to Windsor to take on St Clair (3-1, 2nd West) on Saturday, September 21. Kickoff is scheduled for noon.