Keyano Huskies Weekend Preview: Soccer Huskies kick-off 2024 outdoor season
Women's Soccer Preview
Games: Saturday at 2:00pm vs. The King's University Eagles (0-1-0) at GLC Field at The King's University, 9125 - 50 St., Edmonton, Alta.
Sunday at 12:00pm vs. Concordia University of Edmonton Thunder (0-0-0) at Strathcona Athletic Park, 1100 Cloverbar Road, Sherwood Park, Alta.
A new Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) campaign with new hopes and a new coach begins for the Keyano Huskies Women's Soccer team in Edmonton Saturday afternoon.
"Just as I told the girls at the end of practice today, the goal is to go in and play a full 90 minutes from start-to-finish to leave it all on the field so that we have no regrets, no matter what the outcome of the weekend is," Head Coach Tiffany Fontaine said. "They're looking good, healthy, which is always a great way to start your season."
The Huskies took down the Medicine Hat College Rattlers and Lakeland Rustlers in their preseason competition but will face two quality North Division sides looking for positive early results in their season as well.
The Huskies are 6-0-1 in the last seven regular season meetings dating back to October 2019 against the Eagles.
They'll face a stiff test Sunday as well against the Concordia Thunder, last year's ACAC Bronze Medalist and top finisher in the ACAC's North Division.
"It's been discussed within the coaching staff and what kind of moves we might be able to make depending how the game goes with King's," Fontaine added. "We're focusing on game one first.
"As much as there's my mind that doesn't stop and the tactics going of how we might have to manage that game, depending on the outcome of King's the goal is first to take care of King's."
Player to watch:
Natalie Orellana (Pinole, California, USA) is entering her fifth and final season of eligibility. With 23 goals across four outdoor regular seasons, she's already etched her name in the history books of the Women's Soccer program at Keyano College. There's still a full 12-game regular season and what Orellana and the team is hoping is a long playoff run ahead of them.
Men's Soccer Preview
Games: Saturday at 4:00pm vs. The King's University Eagles (0-1-0) at GLC Field at The King's University, 9125 - 50 St., Edmonton, Alta.
Sunday at 2:00pm vs. Concordia University of Edmonton Thunder (0-0-0) at Strathcona Athletic Park, 1100 Cloverbar Road, Sherwood Park, Alta.
The Keyano Huskies Men's Soccer/Futsal program will begin their journey towards a fourth-straight ACAC Championship this weekend in Edmonton with games against The King's University Eagles and Concordia University of Edmonton Thunder.
With only two open spots for the ACAC Championship this year, the third occupied by the host Northwestern Polytechnic Wolves, every game will have an increased importance, which isn't lost on Head Coach Niels Slotboom and his group.
"We've got to start well," he said. "The start of our season has been something that we've struggled with last season and the year before that as well.
"It's something that we've got to change, and we've got to make sure we do better, so we don't dig ourselves a hole that are then forced to play out of."
The Huskies will go to work on Saturday hoping to improve one of their negative statistics; one win in their last five season-opening games.
That one win came in a 4-0 result against the Eagles two years ago. With only six remaining players from that lineup today. The two sides played an intense ACAC semi-final last October at the Edmonton Soccer Dome, going the Huskies way on penalty kicks.
Acknowledging the roster changes on both sides this year, Slotboom was looking forward to how things would play out on the field.
"It's hard to tell," he said of the roster turnover. "We look significantly different; they also have a lot of new players.
"I'm sure it's going to be a tight game, but it'll probably be slightly different than previous years."
Player to watch:
Corbin Cyprien (Fort McMurray, Alta.) claimed ACAC All-Conference honours in the North Division as the best goalkeeper in 2022. With 13 career regular season wins in his Huskies career, he sits six shy of tying the legendary Luke Arthur for the Huskies' all-time record. After back-to-back seasons with four clean sheets, Cyprien is now five away from tying Arthur for that Huskies record as well.