Lufo’s brace and complete team effort sees WolfPack topple No. 5 TWU

QUICK FIRE

• Two outstanding goals from Esi Lufo and heroic defending from the whole squad saw the Thompson Rivers WolfPack women's soccer team claim one of the biggest victories in program history with a 2-1 win over the No. 5 nationally-ranked TWU Spartans.
   

DIFFERENCE MAKERS

• Lufo supplied the offence for the 'Pack, scoring on either side of the halftime whistle. Bridget Baird and Mackenzie Lalonde picked the assists for TRU and Floor Ursem was rock-solid in net with four saves. The entire WolfPack backline was monumental on the night, keeping the prolific TWU offence quiet for much of the night.
• Holland Stiel tallied for TWU with Sophie Crowther supplying the assist.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Lufo needed just five minutes to open the scoring.
• Bridget Baird received the ball in midfield and sprayed a perfect pass to Lufo on the wing. The Albanian forward sprinted down the wing before cutting the ball back onto her right foot and curling a perfectly placed ball around Yasmine Pahal in the Spartan's net.
• The WolfPack continued to hold the run of play for much of the first half before the Spartans came on late. A corner kick in the 44th minute was played into the WolfPack box where Luciana Andrews rose highest, but her powerful header thumped off the crossbar and out.
• That Spartans pressure continued to mount in the second half and only a pair of stops courtesy of Ursem kept the 'Pack in front.
• First the goalkeeper from the Netherlands did well to tip a blistering Lianna Holz strike onto the crossbar before then denying Destiny Omair from in-tight just minutes later.
• A long-range blast from Lufo provided the insurance marker in the 81st minute.
• Lufo gathered a ball from Lalonde near the halfway line before driving back a Spartans' defender and unleashing a shot from 25-yards out that went off the post and in.
• That second Lufo goal would prove to be the winner after the Spartans struck late.
• With just one minute left before stoppage time Crowther played a free-kick to the back-post where an onrushing Stiel powered a strike into the net to break up the WolfPack clean sheet.
• TRU wasn't going to be denied victory on the night however as the WolfPack were able to see out the remainder of the game to earn the monumental victory.

NOTABLE

• Lufo's brace gives her five goals through the opening six games of the season, good enough for second in the conference.
• The win moves TRU to 4-2 on the season where they hold sole possession of second place in the Pacific Division.
• After starting their Canada West tenure with a record of 0-13-1 against the Spartans, TRU has now won back-to-back games against the team from Langley.

 
QUOTABLE (WolfPack head coach Mark Pennington)
 

• "TWU is ranked number five in the country and deservedly so. We've not only gone toe-to-toe with them but were good value for the win. We bent a bit in the second half but we didn't break. I couldn't be more proud of the girls and the effort and energy they've put in all weekend but especially today, it was top class."
• ON THE PLAY OF ESI LUFO "It's a good thing Esi doesn't listen to me, because I was telling her to pass on the second goal. She scored two great goals, unbelievable finishes. She got off to a great start and to cap it off with that finish at the end was special. She's a really difficult player for defence's to handle and we are really fortunate that she's putting the ball into the net for us."
• ON THE DEFENSIVE EFFORT "It would be really difficult to select an MVP for us tonight. We have a hardest-worker award and there's not one individual you could pick for that, because everyone deserves it. It's not even just the 18 players that dressed for the game, the players in the stands are working their hardest cheering us on too."
• "The back four were spectacular, I thought Paige Dwane was unbelievably solid, Sara Kuusimaki was at a different level, Alexis Virgo and Allie Shiyuk were great. They are playing against some top players and I'm really proud of how resilient they were and how well they played against some great players."

(WolfPack forward Esi Lufo)

• "It was a tough night but we worked hard on the field with a complete team effort to get the win."
• ON HER SECOND GOAL OF THE GAME "I saw the goalkeeper was one or two steps out of her net and knew I had to try to beat her and I scored."
• "I love this team, you can see it on the field the effort that we put in for each other. I'm really proud."

UP NEXT

• TRU will hit the road next weekend for a rare single game when they take on the UBC Thunderbirds at 6:00 p.m. in Vancouver. That game can be watched live on canadawest.tv.