ROUGH START TO REGULAR SEASON FOR VOYAGEURS

FORT MCMURRAY & LAC LA BICHE – The official start of the soccer season arrived with a bit of a thud for the Portage College Voyageurs this past weekend. After a strong showing in games that didn't count in the standings (winning twice, tying once, and losing a close one during the pre-season), the Voyageurs kicked off their regular season with a pair of 8-0 losses.

On Saturday at Keyano College, the visitors played a strong first half against a perennial contender, but couldn't sustain it for 90 minutes, giving up five goals in 25 minutes in the second half. Nathalie Andersson potted three goals for the Huskies in the win.

On Sunday at home against The King's University (TKU), the Voyageurs again played a strong first 25-30 minutes but found themselves down 3-0 at half. In the second half, the Eagles really started to soar, scoring in bunches and peppering Portage goalkeeper Lilly Mangan with shots. Kahlan McDonald led the way for TKU, scoring three times and adding two assists. A couple of potentially serious injuries to Ella Boucher and Brooklyn MacGillivary really hurt the Voyageurs on Sunday, noted Head Coach Macky Singh.

"We kind of lost our momentum but then in the second half, we kind of dropped off but then also picked it up in places," he said. "I think those are the key moments that we need to reflect on and say, ok, can we put those pieces together?"

With key players potentially out for an extended period of time, Singh knows the rest of the season will be challenging for his young, rebuilding squad. While the results may not be there yet, he is pleased with his players' effort and their drive to continue to learn and get better. He singled out Mangan and midfield Lola Letendre for special praise on Sunday.

"Every game she's played has been 110 per cent and that's something we want our players to really reflect on," said Singh. "And then Lilly in goal, she made some splendid saves but we need to protect her as well."

As they prepare to travel to Grande Prairie for a pair of contests against Northwestern Polytechnic Sept. 13-14, the Voyageurs are under no illusions about the difficult road ahead – but they are going to give it their all, noted their head coach.

"It's going to be tough; it's going to be challenging…but we'll try and get the results," said Singh. "We know it will take time but we're working on it!"

Players of the Game (Sunday, Sept. 7)
TKU Eagles: Zoe Gerein

Portage College Voyageurs: Keela Jones