The Douglas College Royals women’s soccer team were one win away from repeating as PacWest provincial champion.
But the VIU Mariners had other ideas.
A goal from Madeline Dawson scored in the 29th minute was all the Vancouver Island squad needed to knock off the defending champions in the finals on Saturday, punching their ticket to the national championships.
Douglas College will also head to the national tournament as a wild card team.
The Royals had a lot of momentum heading into Saturday’s game and the club moved the ball well.
When they fell behind in the first half, they came out of the intermission determined to find the equalizing goal, pinning the Mariners in their own end for much of the match.
However, the team never found an equalizer thanks in large part to the play of Emily Rowbotham, who earned all-star honours with VIU as the top goalkeeper in the tournament.
Despite the loss, two Douglas College players received individual honours, with Sam Kell named top defender and Michelle Wessa named top midfielder.
The tournament got off to a strong start for the Royals.
The club downed the Capilano Blues 2-1 in a thrilling extra-time victory on Friday afternoon to earn their spot in the championship finals.
Andrea Perrotta, a Royals player and PacWest women’s player of the year, scored in the first half before the Blues responded with a marker of their own in the 40th minute.
The game stayed knotted at 1-1 until Taylor Wetting scored the game winner in extra time.
Douglas College’s men’s soccer team wasn’t able to win a provincial championship either.
After downing VIU in the opening match 3-2, the team fell 4-2 in the finals to the Capilano Blues, who took their second straight title.
Royals player Miley Dhilion was named top defender in the tournament for his work in the Douglas College end.
