TORONTO - Every team is optimistic heading into a new season. Some are just hungrier than others.

Take the case of the Humber Hawks women’s soccer team. This is a group that went undefeated in Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) regular season play in 2009, outscoring the competition 42-4 en route to a 12-0-0 record.

Humber looked on its way to a second-straight OCAA title when it hit a speed bump in the semifinal against Durham. The Hawks gave up just their fifth goal of the 2009 campaign, but were held off the scoreboard themselves in a 1-0 loss to the Lords.

While this would have been disastrous in other years, the Hawks were given an instant reprieve. As host of the national championship, Humber was given an automatic berth to the tournament, and an immediate shot at redemption.

And true to their form, the Hawks did not give up a goal on home turf. But Humber ended up finishing in fifth place due to unusual circumstances.

In its opening game against Kwantlen Polytechnic University from B.C., the two teams finished in a scoreless draw after regulation and overtime. Faced with penalty kicks for the first time all year, the Hawks saw their national championship aspirations evaporate as Kwantlen pulled out the win.

Facing Concordia University College of Alberta, once again, the Hawks battled to a scoreless draw after regulation and overtime and again, lost the game on penalty kicks. They stayed out of a penalty kick situation in their final game, a 2-0 win over Mount Saint Vincent University from Halifax to secure fifth place.

“From a results perspective, we were definitely disappointed at the Ontario and national level because we didn’t get the results that we needed,” says Humber co-head coach Vince Pileggi. “From a developmental and performance perspective, we played extremely well, a very exciting brand of soccer. But we just didn’t get it done.”

“I think a lot of our returning players are definitely using that as motivation. Nowadays at practice and at training, it’s very easy to get the girls going because everybody still remembers what happened at last year’s championship. There’s no question we’re using that as motivation and fuel this upcoming season.”

If the Achilles’ heel of the Humber Hawks is penalty kicks, they can be relieved knowing that there is no overtime during the regular season. But they may not be able to avoid sudden death forever.

“It is very difficult to simulate that situation because when you are playing at the Ontario or national championship, a lot of the pressure you can’t duplicate,” explains Pileggi. “But what we’ve been trying to teach the girls since last year is the physical aspect, being able to strike the ball extremely well, to pick their spots and to be confident.”

“We have spent some extra time training. We’re doing it at the beginning, middle and end of practice so the girls are stepping up to the penalty spot in different situations so that when it does come time when a game may be decided on PKs, our girls would have gone through all of the scenarios mentally, they’ll understand and hopefully they’ll be able to replicate that when it really matters.”

Humber has a key trio of players returning this year, including OCAA goalkeeper of the year Rose Mary Ormeno (Toronto), team captain and all-Canadian Joanna Alexopulos (Mississauga, Ont.) and OCAA player of the year Keyla Moreno (Toronto).

“Humber College has had a tradition of excellence both athletically and academically, says Pileggi. “I’d be lying to you if I didn’t say our goal was to win a national championship. We don’t really talk about it, we don’t have anything on our message board that says it, but it’s the implied expectation.”

“Our team is built and designed to win the Ontario and national championship, and we are going to work extremely hard to try and achieve that goal.”

Humber begins its quest for the title Wednesday when it travels to Mohawk for a 4:30 p.m. start.

The OCAA women’s soccer championship will take place at the Ontario Soccer Centre in Vaughn, Ont. on Friday, Oct. 29 and Saturday, Oct. 30. The national championship will take place at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology in Edmonton Nov. 10 to 13.

- OCAA -

ABOUT ONTARIO COLLEGES ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION

The Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) is a recognized leader in intercollegiate athletics in the province, dedicated to student athlete and sport development. The OCAA has 30 members sponsoring 16 league and tournament championships.

For additional information please contact:

Josh Bell-Webster
Marketing and Communications
Ontario Colleges Athletic Association
Tel: 416-426-7041
Fax: 416-426-7308
E-mail: bell-webster@ocaa.com