Mikael Mainella came through in the clutch for the University of the Fraser Valley men's soccer team, scoring in injury time to lift the hosts to a 1-1 draw with the Thompson Rivers WolfPack at MRC Sports Complex.
The WolfPack had grabbed a 1-0 edge on Josh Banton's goal in the eighth minute, and carried that lead past the 90-minute mark. But off a long throw-in from
Atle Koellmel,
Manpal Brar won the ball and cut a tremendous pass back to the middle of the six-yard box, and Mainella arrived a split-second before TRU goalkeeper Jackson Gardner and a WolfPack defender and poked the ball home.
The result left the Cascades with a 1-2-3 record in Canada West play, while the WolfPack are 1-1-2.
"I just saw the ball go up, and I ran towards the net hoping to get a little poke across, and that's what happened," Mainella said with a smile afterward.
"We're a bunch of muckers, and we really want to give it our best to the end. And I think we really showed that the past two games."
The Cascades had the lion's share of possession in the first half, but it was the WolfPack striking first. Banton intercepted a UFV pass and dashed into the box down the right, before hammering a top-corner shot, near post.
The hosts had a great look in the 36th minute as
Brady Weir sent a ball across the box to
Charandeep Rangi, but he sent his shot just wide of the left post.
TRU, No. 7 in the U SPORTS national rankings, found more traction after halftime, and generated chances off the counterattack with UFV pressing forward. In the 70th minute, James Fraser had a great look from the top of the box, but his low shot ran just wide of the left post.
That opened the door for the Cascades, and Mainella took advantage.
"I thought Mikael did well – he changed the game a bit," Lowndes said. "He's so athletic, and his pace and power causes problems. Right place, right time – we put him on with 10 minutes left and told him to go create something and make something happen, and that's what he's done.
"I think it's huge to have that fight in your team that you don't stop until that final whistle. As a coach, that's what I want . . . they'll put their bodies on the line and crawl off the field, and it's fantastic. That's what I want my program to be."
The Cascades continue their homestand next weekend, hosting the Calgary Dinos on Friday and the Mount Royal Cougars on Sunday.
