Wednesday, September 10th saw the rain soaked Niagara College men's (1-1) and women's (0-2) soccer programs suffer tough road losses to the powerhouse Humber Hawks. Kick-offs for both games were at 4:00pm at Vaughn Grove Sports Park in Woodbridge.
Weather wreaked havoc on both matches, as a severe rain downpour began in the first half and did not relent until well after the final whistles.
On the women's side the Knights fell 3-1 to the 2013 OCAA Bronze medalists Hawks. The teams entered half locked in a 0-0 tie until Hawks forward Alexandria Kastanis opened the scoring in the 48th minute.
Knights' first-year midfielder Rebecca Morrison pulled the two sides even in the 52nd minute. The Erin native and sport management student scored her first ever OCAA goal off a free kick from just outside the penalty area.
The two teams traded scoring chances over the matches ensuing minutes until the Hawks' Alora Walcott (64th) and Kastanis (65th) scored in quick succession to put the home side up for good.
For the second straight match the Knights outshot their opponents but were unable to walk away with a victory.
After the match Knights' head coach Frank DeChellis commented "the girls are showing a complete lack of fear for our opponents and are looking to assert themselves on the field. They are receiving well deserved compliments from fans and coaches and I was happy they scored. But we need to start racking up points on the league table if we want to extend our season."
In the men's match, the Knights knew they had to bring their best game to achieve a repeat of last year's 1-0 win against the defending National Champions. The Knights however struggled from the opening kick-off and never found their rhythm in the contest.
Humber goals in the 9th and 35th minutes forced Niagara into a high risk offensive attack that left the team vulnerable to more damage in the second half. The final result was a tough 6-1 loss for the Knights.
"When you play against Humber, you better come out swinging. Both teams were expecting a tight match but that early goal put too much wind in their sails and it's safe to say that game got away from us" said Knights' head coach Frank DeChellis. "We'll be ready for Saturday's game versus Conestoga as the regrouping started as soon as the final whistle went. I am proud of the guys for their post-game attitude and look forward to training Thursday and Friday."
Recording the Knights' loan goal in the contest was second year forward Andy Hein. The Omenee, Ontario native was the Knights most dangerous player throughout the game.
Up next for the Niagara College men's and women's soccer programs are a pair of home games versus the visiting Conestoga Condors on Saturday, September 13th at Youngs Sportsplex. Kick-off for the women's game is set for 2:00pm, while the men will get underway at 4:00pm.
