SASKATOON, Sask. — The Saskatchewan Huskies struck first but could not hold off a late push from the Calgary Dinos, falling 2-1 Sunday afternoon (Oct. 18) at Griffiths Stadium in their final home match of the 2026 regular season.
The Huskies wasted little time getting on the scoreboard, opening the scoring just 4:04 into the contest after
Ethan Cabral finished off a setup from
Dante Molina giving Saskatchewan an early 1-0 advantage. Fittingly, Cabral was recognized as one of Saskatchewan graduating seniors pregame, with the fifth-year midfielder then recording his fifth of the season.
Calgary gradually tilted the field in its favour as the first half progressed, generating several dangerous opportunities. Huskies goalkeeper
Jaron Slopinski came up with key saves on attempts from Efe Udolu-Joshua and Jacob Hunter, but the Dinos eventually found an equalizer in the 21st minute. Udolu-Joshua converted a chance created by Josral Frederick at 20:50 to pull Calgary level at 1-1.
Despite being outshot 7-3 in the opening half, Saskatchewan carried the draw into the break thanks in part to three first-half saves from Slopinski.
The second half proved to be a tense, tightly contested affair. Saskatchewan earned an early corner kick and looked to regain momentum, but Calgary continued to create the more dangerous chances. The Dinos missed a golden opportunity in the 59th minute when Udolu-Joshua sent a penalty kick wide of the target, keeping the match tied.
Calgary kept pressing, however, and nearly took the lead when Frederick struck the post in the 76th minute. Less than two minutes later, the breakthrough finally arrived. Udolu-Joshua collected his second goal of the afternoon at the 77:23 mark, finishing a play that also involved Frederick to put the visitors ahead 2-1.
The Huskies searched for an equalizer over the final stages but were unable to generate sustained attacking pressure. Saskatchewan managed just one second-half shot on goal, a saved effort from
Tao Hein, while Calgary controlled much of possession and territory down the stretch.
Calgary finished with a 12-4 advantage in total shots and a 5-3 edge in shots on target. Udolu-Joshua led all players with seven shots and both Dino goals, while Slopinski made three saves in defeat. Hany Shafie turned aside two shots for Calgary as the Dinos improved to 8-3-1 on the season. Saskatchewan dropped to 5-7-0 despite receiving goalscoring contributions from Cabral and assists from Molina and Lee.
The Huskies will head the road to close out the 2026 regular season, with matches against the Alberta Golden Bears and MacEwan Griffins set as the team looks to keep their playoff hopes alive.
