AMHERSTBURG, Ont. - Algonquin College (Ottawa) proved why they are the nation's No. 2-ranked team with a 5-0 victory over Mohawk College (Hamilton) Thursday afternoon at the belairdirect OCAA Women's Soccer Championship being hosted by St. Clair College at Amherstburg's Libro Centre. Algonquin is the East Division's regular season champion with a perfect 12-0 record while Mohawk entered the game as the West Division's third place team at 5-4-1.
Cool and breezy conditions prevailed throughout the match but Algonquin used superior passing and ball control to gain an early advantage. Eleven minutes into the contest fifth-year Algonquin Thunder player Melissa Harrison (Burlington, Ont.) opened the scoring with a left foot play while falling down as the Mohawk defender was draped all over her. Vanessa Macmillan (Ottawa, Ont.) put the Thunder up 2-0 with a header in the 22nd minute after a corner kick. Algonquin must have had a comfortable break at halftime with a 2-0 lead after carrying the play to that point and they didn't relent to start the second half.
Two minutes into the new half Sylvie Avedessian (Ottawa, Ont.) put Algonquin up 3-0. Algonquin then tacked on two more goals with Darby Perry (Ottawa, Ont.) scoring in the 56th minute and Harrison adding her second tally of the game in the 57th minute. The Thunder were able to get some substitutions off the bench and Mohawk did start to mount an offence trading some chances the remainder of the match.
Harrison's two goals earned her the Player of the Game award for Algonquin with Mohawk's Alyssa O'Brien (Fort Erie, Ont.) taking home that prize for the Mountaineers.
Algonquin will move on to Friday's 3 p.m. semifinal match against Cambrian while Mohawk will move to the consolation side of the bracket to play Fanshawe at 9 a.m. on Friday.
Source: St. Clair College
AMHERSTBURG, Ont. - The powerful Algonquin Thunder of Ottawa defeated the Mohawk Mountaineers 5-0 in the quarter-finals of the belairdirect OCAA Women's Soccer Championship in Amherstburg, Ont., just outside of Windsor on Thursday.
Melissa Harrison scored twice to lead the Thunder.
Mohawk co-head coach, Michael Castellani, said the Mountaineers played a very good team in Algonquin, ranked No. 2 in Canada.
"We held our own in the first half, despite the score (2-0). We just couldn't maintain our pressure. We had chances, we couldn't finish, especially early on," noted Castellani, who said he was proud of his players.
The Mountaineers will now have to go to a consolation semifinal. They play Fanshawe Friday morning at 9 a.m. The Falcons were upset 2-1 by the Cambrian Golden Shield of Sudbury, Ont., in their quarter-final.
Source: Mohawk College