QUEEN'S KNOCKS OFF DEFENDING CHAMPS AND BROCK MAKES HISTORY AS FINAL FOUR IS SET

There will be no repeat champion in OUA women’s soccer this season as the Queen’s Golden Gaels, Ottawa Gee-Gees, York Lions and host Brock Badgers have advanced to the Final Four. Queen’s went to penalty kicks with the defending OUA champion Western Mustangs and pulled off a dramatic 2-1 road win to book their spot in the semi-finals. The Golden Gaels silenced the home crowd with a goal by Laura Barker in the eighth minute and held on to the slim lead for the remainder of the game. But Western equalized in the 7tth minute on a goal by Jessica Tasios. The overtime solved nothing, sending the match to kicks, where the Golden Gaels dominated. Eilish McConville, Janine Clarke and Alexandra Skinner all found the back of the net, while Queen’s keeper Kate Chambers came up with two big saves to help the unbeaten Gaels earn the semi-final berth. Queen’s had advanced to the quarter-final with a decisive 4-1 win over the Windsor Lancers four days earlier.

The North Division champion Lions will meet the Golden Gaels in the other Final Four match-up. York had a satisfying road to the semi-final, receiving a bye in the opening round as a result of their top spot in the North. The Lions then beat their arch-rival, the Toronto Varsity Blues, 3-1 in the quarter-finals, thanks to a late strike in the 86th minute from midfielder Kyla Jones. Jones’s goal actually made it 2-0 but Erin Osborne scored moments later to give Toronto hope. Nicole Burling added a third for the Lions in the 90th minute to secure the victory. Kristy de Vries had opened the scoring in the 37th minute for York.

One of the two Final Four games features a heavyweight match-up of division champions as the Ottawa take on the host Badgers. Ottawa’s offensive prowess was on display in their quarter-final match-up with Waterloo, as the East champion Gee-Gee’s downed the Warriors 4-0. OUA scoring leader Val May put her stamp on the match early, scoring twice in the opening half. Dominik Bertrand and Sarah D’Apollonia added strikes in the second half to cement a Final Four return for the 2003/04 OUA champs. Katarina Vulic had the shut-out in the Ottawa net. Waterloo had edged the Carleton Ravens in the opening round, while the Gee-Gees took advantage of a bye.

Brock’s 1-0 quarter-final win over the Laurentian Lady Vees ensured the South Division champion Badgers would host the Final Four but the result also made school history. The match marked Brock’s first ever post-season victory in the 21-years the women’s soccer program has been in existence. Freshman Tracy Wilson was the hero, as she notched the lone goal of the match with a glancing header in the 53rd minute to send the Badgers to the semi-final round. The Lady Vees, who had advanced with a 1-0 win over the Guelph Gryphons, tried to rally with a flurry of late chances but they were denied by goalkeeper Tiffany Scriver. Scriver’s clean sheet was her third, and most important, shut-out of the season.