VANCOUVER - The UBC Okanagan Heat men's soccer team stuck with the U SPORTS No. 1-ranked UBC Thunderbirds for much of their match on Saturday night but ultimately fell 3-1 on the road.
The visitors got off to a quick start in the match courtesy of forward Malachi Emerson of Surrey, B.C. In the 10th minute, Emerson took a great feed from Matteo Bigattini of Kelowna, B.C., and buried his second of the season into an open net to give the Heat an early 1-0 lead.
However, the host Thunderbirds responded just moments later to even the match and that scoreline would hold into the second half.
The Heat's attempt at an upset was halted in the 74th minute as UBC converted a penalty kick and they would ice the game in the 84th minute to take the match 3-1.
TOP PERFORMERS
Varun Kothary- UBCO
The first-year midfielder from Burnaby, B.C., was a force for the Heat all night long on both sides of the ball.
Thomas Pena - UBC
The first year forward from Winnipeg, would excel for the Thunderbirds, firing four shots as well as scoring his team's third goal to secure the win.
WHERE THEY SIT
The loss deals a heavy blow to the Heat's playoff aspirations as they sit at 3-9-0 on the season, as they sit three games behind the Thompson Rivers WolfPack for the final playoff berth. Meanwhile the Thunderbirds bounce back from their first loss of the season to sit at 11-1-2.
UP NEXT
The Heat return to Edmonton to complete the cancelled game against the Alberta Golden Bears on Wednesday, October 18. The match will resume in the 63rd minute with the Golden Bears leading 2-1. Game time is set for 3:30 p.m. PT and can be seen live on CanadaWest.tv.
