VANCOUVER, BC - The Saskatchewan Huskies needed a penalty shoot-out to decide the match verus the University of Victoria Vikes and win the 2023 Canada West Bronze medal at Thunderbird Stadium on Friday afternoon.
 
The match headed to spot kicks after a goalless, but entertaining, 90 minutes of action, with Taryn Izsak firing home Saskatchewan's fourth straight successful penalty to come away with the 4-2 shootout win.  This win capped off a strong season for the Huskies that ended with them winning their first conference medal since claiming bronze in 2016.
 
"It's amazing," a delighted Huskies head coach Jerson Barandica-Hamilton said after the bronze medal win. "This is such a difficult conference to get to the Final Four. With this group, we're very young. The core of this group is probably going to be with us for another two to three years. So we've just been enjoying the opportunities and the experiences. We're a program on the rise. We want to be at these stages and competing and learning and keep growing.
 
"I thought yesterday we played a very good game against a tough UBC team. We couldn't have asked more from this group yesterday and then today, to be honest I don't think it was our best game. Victoria was so spot on in the first half but I really loved the response. We bent but we didn't break and it showed a lot of maturity for a young team and I think that's what's so exciting about what we're building in Sask. We're doing it our way, we playing our style of football, but we're also learning how to win in these moments."
 
Victoria dominated the first half play, outshooting Saskatchewan 9 to 2, but despite a couple of close calls they couldn't find a way past Kalin Roberts in the Huskies goal and were eventually made to rue those missed opportunities.
 
Sophie Murphy had a couple of first half efforts, the first coming 10 minutes in.
 
Alyssa D'Agnone had the Huskies first chance of the game, forcing a near post save from Kayley Lidstone in the 27th minute.
 
The Vikes best chances to break the deadlock came within a minute of each other. Ruby Nicholas brought a fantastic save from Roberts with a fierce strike in the 33rd minute, before Emma Skalik headed the subsequent corner just past the right post.
 
The second half started off at a breakneck pace, with the action flowing from end to end, but neither side were able to find the big breakthrough.
 
There were a couple of close calls, but the best chance to grab a winner in regulation fell to the Vikes when Brianne McLeish turned superbly in the box to fire off a low shot but Roberts got down quickly to turn it around the right post.
 
With neither side able to find the elusive winner, the match headed to the lottery of penalties. Victoria's Ruby Nicholas and Saskatchewan's Marie Kilcher scored their sides' opening kicks, before Roberts produced a fantastic save to deny the Vikes' Isabella Paccani. D'Agnone scored to give the Huskies the lead and they weren't to give it up. 
 
Erin Hilton hit Victoria's third penalty over the bar and although Adriana Hilton scored their fourth, Cheyenne Lehmann and Izsak converted for the Huskies to give them the 4-2 shootout win, securing Saskatchewan's first Canada West medal since 2016 and capping off a great season for a program on the rise.
 
"I think in the Prairies, we're starting to be that top program," Barandica-Hamilton feels. "I can't be more excited, more elated for these girls because they've earned it. It hasn't been easy and it's been amazing.
 
"It's been a lot of growth this season. We knew we were going to be a team that was going to grow every week and we were going to get better and better and better. We told our players our whole goal was to get to the Final Four and be a really difficult team to play against and I think we did that. We were very flexible tactically, we played in different shapes. We had a lot of different players step up in different moments and I think we weren't predictable.
 
"For us to win in the Prairies and get to this stage, we can't do what the big programs are going to do. We have to be very different in our approach and how we recruit and how we develop players. It's been exciting because a lot of the players have bought into that and we're starting to see that success translate into results. We're only getting started. It's been amazing for the growth of the program and what we're achieving in Saskatchewan where not a lot of people maybe know the province for soccer and we're putting it on the map."
 
An Evening with Kate Beirness
On Tuesday, November 7, the University of Saskatchewan and Huskie Athletics are hosting an evening with Kate Beirness. This momentous event is in support of Huskie women's athletic scholarships towards the development of future leaders. Tickets are $125 and include appetizers, cocktails, and the program with Kate. Get your tickets now at HuskieTickets.com.