Name: Desiree Scott Position: Midfielder Year: 3rd

Name: Caley Miskimmin Position: Forward Year: 3rd

November 14

Final Blog for outdoor season...

To everyone who read our blog on a regular basis, let us apologize now for leaving you hanging. The team got extremely busy towards the end of the season. We were on the road for three weekends in a row, which was really exhausting and took a lot out of us. This season marked the first ever appearance of the Manitoba Bisons in the Canada West playoffs for soccer. It was a huge accomplishment and a goal that we set from the beginning of the season. It seemed as if everything had fallen into place. The Bisons headed to BC on October 31 for the Canada West championships. Let us take the time to reflect on our journey...

The quarter final game was against the University of Alberta. It was a game that went back and forth. Both teams had a number of opportunities to put the ball in the net. After the 90 minute regulation time the score was tied 2-2, which meant two periods of 15 minute overtime. For those of you who don't know...the game remained tied after double overtime, taking us into penalty shots. The Bisons were shaking, as we have never been placed in this kind of position before. But, the Herd came out on top. Ashley Forbes stopped two of the shots the Pandas took which proved why she is our MVP of the season. Steph, Caley, Dana and Desiree put the ball in the net to help secure the win over the Pandas. The team supported one another through the entire game, which we felt is what made us successful. The victory was exciting, but our job was not over.

The semi final game was played against the University of Victoria. Once again, both teams had a few opportunities to put the ball in the net, but neither was successful. The game after regulation time was tied 0-0, taking us into yet another double over time. Unfortunately, this time the Bisons fell short in the last minute of play. We have no reason to doubt that we should have been in the final with UBC. The Vikes got an unlucky goal on us, which we are sure the Herd wish they could take back. But, someone had to lose and unfortunately it was us. We will use this as revenge for next season.

Each and everyone member of the women's soccer team deserves a pat on the back. No one in the league expected us to do this well this season. We were very successful and accomplished something unbelievable in three short years. We learned that as long as you stick together, work hard and give 100% at all times, your goals could be accomplished.

To the girls who are graduating this season, we will miss you. Your experience and hard work helped lead us to victory! Thank you for representing the Bisons so well. For the returning players, reflect on what we have accomplished this year and look forward to doing some more damage in the league next season. The journey we have ahead will be an exciting one, but it will take a lot of hard work and determination, which is something the Herd showed all season!

Over & Out!

Any comments or feeback please Email: bison_sports@umanitoba.ca

October 12 & 13

The first game will be played at 10 a.m. vs. the Alberta Pandas. We look to redeem ourselves on home turf, and we will give everything we have in order to win the game in front of our home crowd. And since we know that all the fans for the Bison football game will be out cheering them on, why not come a little bit early to support us, ha!

Every game from here on out is huge because it ensures a spot in the Canada West playoffs.

The second game will be against the Saskatchewan Huskies at 12 noon. We hope to see a big crowd.

Over & Out!

Any comments or feeback please Email: bison_sports@umanitoba.ca

Heading into these games we were ranked number one, and knew that winning was a must in order to maintain our position at the top. Travelling to the opponents’ home turf and stealing points away from them is always a challenge, yet we went into the games with a sense of confidence. However, the first game vs. the Alberta Pandas was a major let down. Despite our few opportunities in the opening minutes, we were on the defence the entire game and did not receive many chances to put the ball in the net. In the 85th minute, Alberta scored and the team suffered our first loss on the road. With the unexpected adventures to follow, going into Saskatchewan, we have put this game behind us.

About six of our players are suffering from minor injuries due to bad driving abilities by our wonderful coaching staff. And we cannot forget to mention that our tardiness to the hotel was due to the fact that we were following the wrong van (Gary, we love ya!). Farm animals and "ayy baby" were common themes from the weekend. Being on the road is always crazy times because we follow the famous saying of “expect the unexpected.” DP's, also known as dance parties, are a great way for our team to stay connected off the field. This year we have a ton of team unity, which is shown on the field and helps drive our success.

The second game of the weekend was against the rivals, known as the Saskatchewan Huskies. The battle of the prairies begins! After a hard loss, we planned on taking our frustrations into the next game, to prove how we can truly play. We dominated the game and the final score was Bisons 3-1. This match gave some of our rookies the opportunity to get a taste of Canada West action. We feel it is important to note that they did indeed show that they are capable of playing at this level. Ashley Forbes, our goal keeper, has been having an outstanding season showing nothing but confidence and has played a major role in our success.

We head into the next weekend with a bye, giving us the opportunity to recuperate from a tough start to the season. Some of the girls will be celebrating birthdays, relaxing and hanging out with each another. The rest of the team will be representing the province at club nationals, so best of luck to all competitors. We look forward to the conference games commencing in a week.

Over & Out!

Any comments or feeback please Email: bison_sports@umanitoba.ca

September 26

The Bison women’s soccer team who have been unranked for the past two seasons have come flying out of the gates with an outstanding start. We are currently ranked number eight in the CIS standings and number one in the Canada West Conference.

Although some of you Bison supporters may not be aware of the fact that our team actually exists (we have about approximately 30 people attending our games), we do in fact have some of the best athletes in the province. We feel it is important to note that our record is 5-1-0 when last season we only had six wins in total! Our goal of making the playoffs is suddenly becoming more of a reality.

This weekend we played two games, which both were against stiff competition (Lethbridge and Calgary). So if any team is feeling the "aches and pains" (no offense football boys), it is most definitely us! With the deadly strikers up front, creative midfielders and tough defenders at the back, our team has come together as a unit to get the wins and really look forward to hopefully shocking the competitors with a successful season.

The ending to a “perfect” season would be for us to host the Canada West playoffs on our home turf. With temperatures of 40 below (wind chills up to -50) and winds that are strong enough to knock your socks off, if given the opportunity to host we are almost guaranteed to have an advantage!

This weekend we travel to Alberta and Saskatchewan and look to get a few more "W's" under our belts! Our next home games are October 13 and 14 at University Stadium both played at 12 p.m. (noon). We hope to have a few more spectators cheering us on, now that you know a little bit more about us!

Over and Out!

Any comments or feeback please Email: bison_sports@umanitoba.ca