CW three stars: Sarkaria sets Alberta record, earns first star

EDMONTON – Ajeej Sarkaria has been named the Canada West men’s first star of the week for the period ending Sept. 3 after his record-breaking weekend for the Alberta Golden Bears.

Sarkaria earned the conference honour after netting a trio of goals for Alberta, as he became the program leader in career points with 47. The third-year forward helped the Bears improve their CW record to 3-0-0, to sit atop the Canada West’s Prairie Division.

Highlights:

  • Alberta’s Ajeej Sarkaria is the CW men’s first star of the week after netting a trio of goals to set the Alberta program record for career points
  • Trinity Western’s Domenic Poletto, and UBC’s Caleb Clarke are the other men’s stars, while UBC’s Danielle Steer moves forward as the CW nominee for U SPORTS women’s athlete of the week

Sarkaria now moves forward as the conference nominee for the U SPORTS athlete of the week.

The first CW women’s three stars of the season will be unveiled next week, following the first full weekend of women’s regular season action in soccer, and the conference’s women’s rugby openers.

This week, UBC Thunderbird women’s soccer forward Danielle Steer moves on as the conference’s nominee for the U SPORTS award. Steer scored the lone goal in UBC’s 1-0 win over Victoria on Saturday, as the pair of West Coast rivals played the only CW women’s soccer game of the weekend.

 

Men’s first star – Ajeej Sarkaria

Alberta Golden Bears soccer

Forward

3rd-year

Edmonton, Alta.

Business

Game log: Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018 – two goals and three shots in 2-1 road win vs. Saskatchewan / Sunday Sept. 2 – game-winning goal and five shots in 2-1 road win vs. Lethbridge.

Third-year Golden Bear striker Ajeej Sarkaria paced the Alberta attack with a record-setting weekend, leading Alberta to a pair of road victories.

The 2016 CW Player of the Year set numerous records during a three-point weekend, as the Bears improved to 3-0-0 in conference play with wins over Saskatchewan and Lethbridge.

Sarkaria broke the Alberta program scoring record with the first of his two goals on Saturday, eclipsing the mark of 44 points set by former Bear Brett Colvin (2007-2011).

The third-year business student was also paramount in the Bears’ thrilling comeback win on Sunday over Lethbridge, scoring the game-winner in the 89th minute. The game-winner was the 11th of his career, which also set a new conference record.

Following his dominant weekend, Sarkaria is now fourth all-time in Canada West scoring with 47 points (30 goals, 17 assists) in 31 career conference games. The Bears will host both Calgary and Mount Royal in their first two games at home this weekend.

 

Men’s second star – Domenic Poletto

Trinity Western Spartans soccer

Forward

4th-year

Calgary, Alta.

Business

Game log: Friday, Aug. 31 – three goals in 7-1 home win vs. Victoria / Saturday, Sept. 1 – 84 minutes played in 3-0 road loss vs. UBC.

Trinity Western fourth-year forward Domenic Poletto led the Spartans to a record breaking 7-1 victory over the Victoria Vikes by notching his first hat-trick of his TWU career. The Calgary native made good on his three shot attempts by finding the back of the net on each strike.

Poletto becomes the sixth Spartan to record a hat-trick in Canada West play.

The Spartans have previously scored six goals twice, including last year's 6-2 playoff victory over Calgary and a 6-1 win over Lethbridge in 2003.

In Sunday’s match against No. 7 UBC, Polleto was held in check by the T-Birds in TWU’s 3-0 loss in a rematch of last year’s Canada West final.

TWU currently has a record of 1-1-1 and sit third in the CW Pacific Division standings.

The Spartans suit up this Friday and Saturday in Prince George, B.C., where they’ll take on the UNBC Timberwolves.

 

Men’s third star – Caleb Clarke

UBC Thunderbirds soccer

Forward

5th-year

Richmond, B.C.

Arts

Game log: Friday, Aug. 31 – goal and four shots in 1-1 road draw vs. UFV / Sunday, Sept. 2 – goal and two assists in 3-0 home win vs. TWU.

One of UBC’s biggest recruits came through big time for his new team in the opening weekend of the 2018 Canada West season as Clarke scored twice and added a pair of assists.

The former Vancouver Whitecap scored the Thunderbirds’ lone goal in their season opener Friday night in Abbotsford to secure a 1-1 draw with the Fraser Valley Cascades. Clarke’s first goal in the blue and gold came in the 23rd minute as he made good on one of his two shots on goal in the game.

For the ‘Birds’ home opener against the Spartans on Sunday afternoon, Clarke was the driving force for a convincing UBC victory. The 6-foot-1 forward set up the first two T-Bird goals before adding his second of the season in the 80th minute to provide some added insurance.

Clarke’s four points puts him in the conference lead for points per game while tied for fourth overall in scoring.

The T-Birds are alone in first place in the Pacific division with a pair of homes games this Friday and Saturday against the Thompson Rivers WolfPack and UBC Okanagan Heat.

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Since 1972, Canada West (CW) has been a leader in Canadian university sport, working to provide our student-athletes the opportunities to excel in sport, the classroom, and their communities. CW and our 17 members from across British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba collectively carry on a legacy of competitive excellence, as our champions proudly go on to represent the conference at U SPORTS national championships.

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