VICTORIA, B.C – The University of Victoria Vikes men's field hockey team took on a visiting Burnaby side this weekend and drew the visitors 2-2. The Vikes improved on their previous match-up against the Burnaby squad as the last game saw the UVic men downed 4-1.
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Within the first five minutes of the match the Burnaby men earned three consecutive penalty corners, giving the Vikes an early game wake-up call. UVic goalkeeper
Davis Robertson came up big on the first two but with a crafty play by former Team Canada stand-out
Robin D'Abreo, Burnaby put one past the line to go up by one.
Ten minutes later, the Vikes responded with a goal of their own after a counterattack opportunity by defender
Matthew Sarmento (Vancouver, BC). Running the ball past Burnaby's 25-yard line he beat the final defender with a burst of speed to fire a backhand shot past a surprised Burnaby keeper.
A noticeably more physical team than in past weeks, the Vikes continued to dominate defensively, stymying Burnaby's offense and causing much frustration for the visiting side. Upon his return from a yellow card penalty,
Connor Martin (Cobble Hill, BC) returned with a vengeance and on two separate occasions came dramatically close to giving the Vikes the lead going into halftime.
Mere minutes into the second half, Sarmento was at it again. The fourth year ran the right sideline to take the ball along the baseline straight into Burnaby's defensive circle. Dishing the ball off to a waiting
James Kirkpatrick (Victoria, BC), Kirkpatrick flipped the ball past a Burnaby defender before shooting a top shelf backhander to give the Vikes the lead.
The Vikes continued to carry the momentum but failed to capitalize on a number of opportunities and with five minutes left of play, Burnaby found the back of the net to tie the game with a final score of 2-2.
With the first half of the season over and a record of 1-7-1, the Vikes will open up the second portion of their season after the holidays.
