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Vikes men and women secure soccer victories

The vuvuzelas favoured by many of the University of Victoria soccer fans Friday night at Centennial Stadium were so 2010. But things got updated to 2016 when the 3,000 strong broke into the Icelandic volcano chant.

The vuvuzelas favoured by many of the University of Victoria soccer fans Friday night at Centennial Stadium were so 2010. But things got updated to 2016 when the 3,000 strong broke into the Icelandic volcano chant.

The annual Thunderfest promotion night brings out hordes of students.

Both the Vikes men’s and women’s teams rewarded the faithful with Canada West victories. The UVic women blanked the MacEwan Griffins from Edmonton 2-0 in the first ever meeting between the schools.

The Vikes men, meanwhile, defeated the Fraser Valley Cascades 2-1 in the night cap for their first win of the season.

Paulo Dait, from the wide right side, scored to the short side at 23 minutes for UVic's first goal of the season after 1-0 and 4-0 losses to start the season against UBC-Okanagan and Thompson Rivers.

Justin Sekhon equalized for the previously-undefeated Cascades (2-1) at 62 minutes. Dait crossed to Sameer Grewal for the Vikes winner at 82 minutes. That was followed by a victory-preserving save at 85 minutes by Vikes goalkeeper Noah Pawlowski.

Earlier in the evening, the UVic women (1-0-1) got goals from Samantha Lee and Emily Lieuwen 45 seconds apart in the first half to secure their victory against the Griffins (0-1).

The result followed the scoreless draw to open the Vikes season last week against the defending CIS national champion and pre-season top-ranked UBC Thunderbirds.

Lee is a standout defender for UVic, who moved up field to score the winning goal Friday.

“[Vikes coach Tracy David] said she wants the defenders to move up if they get the opportunity,” said Lee, a fifth-year health and community services major, out of Claremont Secondary.

The Vikes early-season success has seen the previously unsung squad crack the CIS national top-10 poll.

“We’re like the underdog wildcard of the season,” said Lee.

A big part of that is because of the clean sheet the team has maintained through the first two conference games.

“Most of the veterans on this team are on the back line and in goal [Meaghan Storie] and we know each other so well and communicate so well,” noted Lee.

“We work as a unit.”

The Vikes teams play again tonight at Centennial Stadium with the women facing Mount Royal of Calgary (0-0 heading into Friday night) at 5 p.m. and the Vikes men meeting the CIS national No. 8-ranked Trinity Western Spartans (4-0 heading into Friday night) at 7:15 p.m.

cdheensaw@timescolonist.com