The University of the Fraser Valley men's soccer team's playoff run ended one step shy of the Canada West podium, as they dropped a 1-0 decision to the Thompson Rivers WolfPack in the conference bronze medal match.
 
Justin Donaldson's goal in the 24th minute stood up as the game-winner, and playing in driving wind and rain throughout the second half at UBC's Ken Woods Field, the Cascades were unable to generate an equalizer despite owning the lion's share of possession.
 
"I can't put into words how proud I am of the boys," said UFV head coach Tom Lowndes, whose team's hopes of qualifying for the U SPORTS national championship were snuffed in a 7-0 semifinal loss to UBC on Friday. "It would have been very easy for us after last night's game to hang our heads and be down on ourselves. But our response was fantastic. As a coach, when your players respond that way, show you how much they want it and come off the field in tears, you can't be anything but proud. I'm gutted for them, but the season as a whole was really good. I'm excited for their future."
 
The Cascades had defeated the WolfPack in both prior meetings this season – 1-0 in Kamloops on Aug. 27, and 3-1 in Abbotsford on Sept. 29 – but the third time was a charm for TRU. Donaldson's goal came from a set piece – he got on the end of Mitchell Popadynetz's free kick.
 
The Cascades pushed forward in the second half, and had some threatening moments in the dying minutes off free kicks from Gurmaan Jhaj, but were not able to connect on a clean look.
 
"I thought in the second half, it was one-way traffic," Lowndes said. "We were knocking on the door for a good 35 or 40 minutes. We dominated possession, but we didn't create many great chances. Unfortunately we just didn't get a little bounce here or there where we could put one in."
 
The result closed the book on a strong bounce-back campaign for the Cascades. After missing the playoffs last season for the first time in five years, the UFV side finished third in the Pacific Division and defeated the Saskatchewan Huskies on the road in their playoff opener to advance to the Canada West Final Four for the third time in program history. All of that despite the fact that Lowndes's roster was among the youngest in Canada West. On Saturday, five first-year players saw significant playing time, and two other rookie starters – Sahib Sidhu and Rajan Bains – were sidelined due to injury.
 
At the other end of the experience spectrum, a trio of fifth-year Cascades – centre back Tammer Byrne and goalkeepers David Hicks and Alex Skrzeta –  marked the conclusion of their highly accomplished university soccer careers.
 
"I can't put into words how much they've contributed to this program," Lowndes said. "They've been fantastic, all three of them. They were gutted tonight. It's a killer as a coach, but to see how much it means to them, they left it all out there tonight and they can hold their heads high in the same way that the whole team can. We gave it everything, and I was really proud of the effort today."