Capers defeat SeaHawks 2-1
Program honours graduating student-athletes By Corey LeBlanc
SYDNEY – The Cape Breton University (CBU) Capers (8-0-1) scored a hard fought 2-1 win over the visiting Memorial University SeaHawks (4-4-1) – in Atlantic University Sport (AUS) men's soccer action Friday night on the turf at Ness Timmons Field.
In a hotly contested and physical start, the teams traded free and corner kicks in the opening minutes, but no one could break the seal on the scoreboard.
The first quality opportunity for either side came in the 17th minute, when Colin Connors (St. John's, NL) made a nifty move to the middle of the 18-yard box before testing Daniel Clarke (Milton Keynes, England) with a hard strike, but the Caper all-star keeper made a sensational stop.
In the following couple of minutes, the SeaHawks came up with consecutive corner kicks, but they came up scoreless.
In the 23rd minute, the speed of Caper forward Owen Sheppard (St. John's, NL) created a prime scoring chance for the home side. On the free kick, first-year midfielder Sebastian Cochrane (Toronto, ON) ripped a shot off the Memorial wall.
On another free kick, in the 32nd minute, Amadou Bayo (Montreal, QC) directed a Max Piepgrass (Calgary, AB) free kick off the cross bar beyond the outstretched arm of Memorial keeper Louis-Charles Vaillancourt (Sherbrooke, QC).
A couple of minutes later, the SeaHawks threatened, but the run by Jacob Grant and Cabhan O'Keefe (Lawn, NL) was thwarted by the Caper defense.
Vaillancourt made his best stop of the half, in the 36th minute, when he charged out to smother a strike from Jacob Spizzirri (Woodbridge, ON).
Moments later, on a through ball from Jason Hartil (Carleton Place, ON), Sheppard was upended just inside the 18-yard box by Vaillancourt, who received a yellow card. On the following penalty kick, Sheppard tucked a strike just inside the right goal post for his conference-leading eighth marker of the campaign to make it 1-0 for the Capers.
In extra time, Memorial notched the equalizer on a nifty three-way passing play to knot the contest 1-1. Grant sent a through ball to O'Keefe, who made a top notch cross to Connors – the SeaHawk player of the game – whose strike found a spot between the legs of Clarke.
The sides headed to the locker room tied 1-1.
In the second half, the Capers regained their one-goal advantage in the 51st minute when Andre Beecher (Brampton, ON) soared to head a Cochrane corner kick top shelf inside the left goal post to make it 2-1.
The teams traded set pieces in the following minutes but no one could put a mark on the score sheet.
In the 70th minute, Felly Elonda (St. John's, NL) garnered a chance from close range, but a diving Clarke was able to get his leg on the shot and deflect it out of play.
A short time later, Grant tested Clarke – the Chartwells player of the match for Capers – but he used every inch to knock down the blast that was headed for the top corner.
The final scoring opportunity for Memorial came in extra time – off a corner kick – but captain Harry Carter's (St. John's, NL) header just sailed over the cross bar.
Clarke made seven stops for the victory, while Vaillancourt recorded three saves in the loss. Colin Connors took player of the game for MUN.
Prior to the action on the pitch, in the last home match of the AUS regular season, CBU Athletics and Caper men's soccer honoured the student-athletes who are graduating from the program on senior day, including Zé Cunha (Cascais, Portugal), Raine Lyn (Oakville, ON), Ben Fortuin (Maidenhead, England), Jamie Watkins (Georgetown, ON), Ousman Chan (Leeds, England) and Conor Chiasson (New Waterford, NS).
