Image Credit: TRU WolfPack Athletics

By Adam Donnelly

THOMPSON RIVERS UNIVERSITY

WolfPack Women’s Soccer ready to host UVic in first-ever home playoff match

Oct 21, 2022 | 11:42 AM

KAMLOOPS — By all measures, this season has been the best in program history for the TRU WolfPack Women’s Soccer team. Last weekend, the team set a record with its sixth win, the most in any single season, and on Saturday (Oct. 22), the ‘Pack will host its first-ever home playoff date.

Ainsley Grether has been a big part of the success that the WolfPack women’s soccer team has had on the pitch this year. She and the rest of her teammates are preparing to take on the University of Victoria on Saturday night, in the first-ever home playoff date for the program.

“It’s huge. I’ve never been in this situation before — no one in this program really has,” midfielder Ainsley Grether says. “It’s nice. Our home field is our favourite field, we love to play here. And having home field advantage is something that’s going play into our game this Saturday night, for sure.”

The WolfPack defeated the University of Northern British Columbia in a tight contest last Friday, which solidified the ‘Pack’s place in the CanadaWest playoff picture. That represents the best-case scenario that coach Mark Pennington drew up at the start of the season.

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“Our objective was 21 points this year, and we finished with 20,” Pennington says. “When I say 21 points, that’s the top of our expectations.”

That total was good enough for a fourth finish in the Pacific Division standings. The three teams ahead of TRU in the standings are all ranked in the U SPORTS Top 10, so for a young WolfPack team, that finish is something be proud of.

“We’re in the toughest division in the toughest conference in the country, and we’re sitting in fourth behind three teams ranked in the top ten in Canada,” Pennington says. “We should be really really proud — as a program, the school should be proud of where we got to this year. We’re young, and we’re hopeful that we keep adding some good recruits and keep moving the program forward and being a contender.”

The ‘Pack won three, lost two, and had two draws on the turf at Hillside Stadium. You can be sure they’ll be ready to go against the Vikes, a team that the program historically hasn’t had a ton of success against.

“I don’t think the program has ever beaten UVic,” Pennington says. “The girls are excited to play them. That’s who they want to play against. We’ll bring them here, and play them on our home field, and see which way the cards lay at the end of the night.”

“There’s no better feeling than getting to come out here, play on your home field in front of your family, your friends, students,” Grether says. “It’s such an unreal feeling and I know we’re going to have a great turnout, just with other athletes, so all in all, it’s going be a great night.”