The Carleton Ravens women’s soccer team put forth a valiant effort, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Queen’s Golden Gaels in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) quarter-final Oct. 30 in Kingston, Ont.
Queen’s, the defending Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) champions, shut out the Ravens 3-0, ending their season in the process.
“We were disappointed with the loss, but there were certainly lots of good things in there that we’re going to take confidence from and build for the future,” said Ravens head coach Alex McNutt.
“I think we had a good effort, but I just think that technically we weren’t quite on the same level as Queen’s,” said third-year midfielder Alexandria Druggett. “They were a better team than we were, and that’s what it pretty much came down to.”
Coming into the match as underdogs, the Ravens, the lowest remaining seed in the OUA East division, couldn’t recover after surrendering an early goal.
“I thought we played well and executed the game plan that we had,” McNutt said. “You have to give credit to Queen’s, they are one of the best teams in the country. At the end of the day, they were stronger and they deserved to win.”
Jacqueline Tessier scored an early goal in the 10th minute to give Queen’s a quick 1-0 lead.
In the second half, Tessier struck again in the 47th minute, and OUA East MVP Riley Filion added another goal in the 84th to make the final score 3-0.
“You never want to concede early goals to a team like Queen’s,” McNutt said. “That being said, in terms of the performance level, we actually performed very well for the whole 90 minutes.”
The loss marked the final time Shayla LaVecchia, Diane Jodoin, and Erika Battistella would play for the Ravens, as all three veteran players will be graduating this year.
“Honestly, it’s probably the most memorable experience ever,” LaVecchia said. “I’m able to say that I’ve been a Raven for the past five years, and I wish we had more than five years of eligibility because I’d probably stick around here for a while to keep playing.”
“Just the experience of having older girls makes it sad when they graduate, and they played a big role on the team,” Druggett said. “I’m really going to miss them.”
While filling the gaps these players leave will be a challenge, LaVecchia said she thinks the younger players will be able to hold their own.
“I wasn’t expecting to go as far as we did this season,” LaVecchia said. “It was supposed to be a rebuilding year. With the amount of skill and talent that each girl on this team has, they’re going to go far in the next few years.”
The Ravens have improved their record in each of the three seasons McNutt has coached. With McNutt at the helm of a program looking to take off, the Ravens are optimistic about the coming seasons.
“With a young team like this and having so much success, along with the experience, I expect to have a team that’s getting better and better over the next few years,” McNutt said. “It’s very exciting. We’re not a million miles off, and we’re hoping to be challenging for a spot in the CIS Final Four playoffs next season.”