OLDS — The Battle of Alberta, college soccer edition, begins this Saturday, Oct. 1 as the Olds College of Agriculture & Technology (OCAT) Broncos soccer teams host the Red Deer Polytechnic squads.
Kickoff is scheduled for noon for the women, and 2 p.m. for the men.
The matches will also serve as Orange Shirt Day for the Broncos soccer program as an extension of ongoing Truth and Reconciliation observance.
The women’s soccer Broncos (2-1-1) are looking to win their third straight match, before heading into a Sunday tilt in Camrose with the University of Alberta-Augustana Vikings.
The Vikings (3-2-0), currently hold the final Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) South playoff spot, though the Broncos have a game in hand.
Second-year forward Tiona Paton is tied for second in the ACAC with eight goals, including seven in her last two matches, while Mirtalem Vriend scored her first two career ACAC goals in last Saturday’s 6-0 win over Ambrose University.
Meanwhile, rookie keeper Kaia Galuska picked up her first ACAC clean sheet while posting the ACAC’s second-best save percentage at .882.
Turning to the men’s side of the ball, the Broncos are coming off their first win of the season, a 2-0 victory over Ambrose at home last Saturday.
In that game, captain Valentin Kirchner put the Broncos up just before halftime before an own goal in the 90th minute solidified the match.
Meanwhile, in his ACAC debut, keeper Dylan Campbell was solid in preserving a clean sheet.
At 1-1-2, OCAT presently holds the final playoff spot in the ACAC South.
A victory would see them jump over the Kings (2-1-1) in the standings, with the Lethbridge College Kodiaks (1-1-3) currently sandwiched in between.
This story, written by Geordie Carragher, the Olds College of Agriculture & Technology sports information and esports coordinator for Broncos Athletics, was edited by the Albertan.
