Graced with a balanced and talented squad, the CCHS Crusaders girls weren’t shy when it came to their aspirations. They wanted a zone soccer championship title and weren’t afraid to back up their request with dominant play.
But the CCHS girls watched their dreams dissolve in frigid October air as they finished fifth at Zones in Carstairs on Oct. 4.
“We ended up on the wrong side of the draw,” said coach Shaun McQueen. “We went into competition hoping to improve on last year’s fifth-place finish. We didn’t, but we did show the development of our team.”
CCHS dominated league play against southern schools throughout September, but faltered in the playoffs.
In their first match, CCHS lined up against Springbank. The Crusaders jumped out to a 2-1 lead by the end of the first half playing with a stiff wind at their backs. As temperatures swirled around -4 C, the Crusaders struggled to stay warm, particularly the Canmore keeper. In heartbreaking fashion, Springbank launched a successful comeback to stifle Canmore’s title aspirations.
“Springbank had a number of Tier 1 players. It was a tight game. We just didn’t get the rub of the green,” McQueen said.
With no time to recover, the Crusaders immediately took to the field against St. Anthony’s. Angered by their first loss, the Crusaders girls made quick work of their opponent and won by a 6-1 margin. But even the win was costly, as star player Rachelle Labranche suffered a severe concussion during the match.
On what looked like a harmless play, the ball glanced Labranche in the back of the head, stunning her. After the match, she said she lost her vision and sensation in her arm, and spent the night in Alberta Children’s Hospital.
McQueen said he’d like to talk to tournament organizers to eliminate back-to-back games, as players require rest.
“Playing back-to-back is not great from a safety perspective, but it gave us an opportunity to put our non-starters out there,” McQueen said.
The Crusaders then lined up for a crucial match against Holy Trinity, which would determine who moved on to the medal round. Canmore had defeated Holy Trinity handily in league play, and were confident they could do so again. But, as the saying goes, everything is different in the playoffs.
“Holy Trinity came with a different look to their roster. They had a lot of their soccer players back in the lineup. They caught us with two quick goals, and we were down 3-0 at the half,” McQueen said.
Reeling against the new-look, talent-laden Holy Trinity lineup, Canmore regrouped in the second half.
“We changed things up and were really taking it to them. It finished 5-2, but the girls played a really gutsy match,” McQueen said.
The loss relegated Canmore to the non-medal rounds on Saturday, where they faced Strathmore. The Crusaders took out their frustrations on the poor Strathmore side, winning by an 11-0 margin, and are now ready to focus on their next task: win their league championship.
They face Strathmore again on Thursday (Oct. 9) at Millennium Field and, if they beat them again, they’ll play for the Foothills Divisional Banner against Holy Trinity on Oct. 14 at Millennium Field.
Even though the results fell short, McQueen was very proud of his players.
“From a sheer team-minded perspective, Hailey Bischoff was incredible. She played left defence, left midfield, forward and even took a spell in net. She’s an awesome leader and played the entire third game injured,” McQueen said.
“Lauren Gray played with a good mixture of aggressiveness and intellect in her game. Jessica Kuzik worked tirelessly, showed enormous athleticism and stood out as an extremely gifted player. And Kennedy Howatt played every position and was just a positive force on the team.”
McQueen said the team learned a few valuable lessons at the tournament, and vow to return to Zones next year stronger than ever.
“We know we’re disappointed, but we are truly together. We have an absolute belief we will bring home a better result next season,” McQueen said.
