CW three stars: Yli-Hietanen, Kashima named first stars

EDMONTON – ​ After being named the conference's second stars last week, UBC's Kristian Yli-Hietanen and Trinity Western's Seina Kashima moved up one spot this week, as the pair were named Canada West first stars of the week for the period ending October 7. 

Highlights:

Yli-Hietanen posted a trio of goals in UBC's sweep of the Victoria Vikes, as the North Vancouver, B.C. product scored both game-winners for the Pacific Division leaders.

Meanwhile, Kashima registered a goal and an assist in both of TWU's wins over the weekend, as the fifth-year forward moved within a point of the Spartans' program record of 55 points.

Yli-Hietanen and Kashima now move forward as the conference nominees for the U SPORTS athletes of the week.

Game log: Thursday, Oct. 4 – two goals, including game-winner, in 5-0 home win over Victoria / Saturday, Oct. 6 – game-winning goal in 3-2 road win over Victoria.

Picking up where he left off last week, Kristian Yli-Hietanen put up a combined three goals, including both game-winners in a pair of UBC victories over the Victoria Vikes.

In addition to his three goals, the fourth-year from North Vancouver led all players in shots on goal in both games and has now managed seven goals in his last three games. 

Yli-Hietanen is tied with fellow Thunderbird Caleb Clarke for the team lead with eight goals on the campaign. The pair are tied for third most in the Canada West.

Still undefeated on the season, the 10-0-2 Thunderbirds are the first team in the Pacific division to clinch a post-season berth. UBC leads the Canada West with 36 goals scored, an average of three per game, while also boasting the best goal differential at plus-29. 

Riding a three-game win streak, Yli-Hietanen and the ‘Birds face a pair of fellow Pacific Division rivals this weekend, as they host the Fraser Valley Cascades Friday, followed by a visit to Langley to play the Trinity Western Spartans on Saturday.

Game log: Friday, Oct. 5 – goal and an assist in 3-1 home win over UFV / Sunday, Oct. 7 – game-winning goal and an assist in a 3-2 win at UFV.

Fifth-year forward Seina Kashima had four points (2G-2A) over the weekend, as the No. 3 Trinity Western Spartans swept the University of the Fraser Valley Cascades. 

The Burnaby, B.C. native scored once and had one assist in the Spartans 3-1 home win over the UFV Cascades in Langley, B.C. on Friday evening. Then on Sunday afternoon in Abbotsford, B.C., Kashima added another assist and scored the game-winning goal in TWU’s 3-2 win.

With her weekend performance, Kashima now sits atop the Canada West leader board in points (16), and assists (9). She also continues to extend her Canada West career record for total assists, which currently sits at 36.

Kashima’s nine assists on the season move her into a tie for seventh spot for the most in a single Canada West season. With four regular season games remaining, she sits two assists off the Canada West single-season record of 11. 

Her four-point weekend also moved her into sixth place on the all-time Canada West points list with 54, and one point off the TWU record of 55 held by Krista Gommeringer. 

Trinity Western sits atop the Canada West Pacific Division in Canada West with a 9-1-0 record.

The Spartans are back in action this weekend at home, facing the Alberta Pandas on Friday, before a Saturday matchup with the Mount Royal Cougars.

Game log: Saturday, Oct. 6 – goal and an assist in 3-1 home win over UNBC / Sunday, Oct. 7 – goal and an assist in 3-3 home draw vs. UNBC.

The TRU WolfPack hung around the Pacific Division playoff hunt thanks in part to the contributions of Justin Donaldson this past weekend. ​

The WolfPack got back into the win column taking four of a possible six points thanks largely to Donaldson, who had two points and 12 shots on goal over two matches against the UNBC Timberwolves. 

Donaldson had a particularly entertaining and dramatic strike Sunday when he took a pass from teammate James Fraser, roared down the left side, beat a defender, and rocketed a laser shot over the left shoulder of UNBC keeper Rob Goodey to give the WolfPack a 3-2 lead with less than a minute of regulation time remaining.

TRU and Donaldson are off next week to prepare for their final two regular season matches on Oct. 20 and 21 against Victoria and UBC.

Game log: Friday, Oct. 5 – two goals in 3-2 home loss to MacEwan / Saturday, Oct. 6 – goal in 2-1 home loss to MacEwan.

 Paige Payne had a record-setting weekend for the UNBC Timberwolves, becoming UNBC’s all-time single-season record holder for goals in a season. She scored her sixth, seventh, and eighth goals of the year, the last of which placed her alone atop the Canada West leaderboard.

Despite a pair of hard-fought losses to the MacEwan Griffins, Payne was electric, scoring all of the Timberwolves goals over the weekend. Two of the goals were highlight reel efforts that saw her run the entire length of the pitch before scoring. In a pair of games where she was responsible for all the offence, it was her ascension up the UNBC record books, and the CW leaderboard that truly stood out.

The Kitimat native also sits top five in the conference in points (10) and shots (35).

 UNBC is back in action this weekend, as they travel to take on the Calgary Dinos (Oct. 13) and Lethbridge Pronghorns (Oct. 14).

Game log: Friday, Oct. 5 – goal in 2-1 home win over UFV / Sunday, Oct. 7 – goal and an assist in 3-2 road win vs. UFV.

Trinity Western fourth-year forward Domenic Poletto had a three-point weekend to lead the No. 10 Spartans to back-to-back wins in a home-and-home series with the University of the Fraser Valley Cascades.

On Friday night at Trinity Western the Calgary native had a goal in the Spartans 2-1 win over the Cascades. 

Then on Sunday afternoon in Abbotsford, B.C. the business student had one assist and the game-winning goal in Trinity Western’s 3-2 win. 

Poletto currently sits tied for seventh spot in Canada West in points (8) and goals (6).

TWU enters this weekend with a record of 7-1-4 and are in second spot in the Canada West Pacific Division standings. 

The Spartans are back in action this weekend with a road game against Victoria Friday, before a home match with UBC Saturday.

Game log: Friday, Oct. 5 – goal and three assists in 6-1 home win over Victoria.

After missing the previous week’s road trip, Danielle Steer returned to UBC's lineup effective as ever, scoring her seventh goal of the year while matching a season-high with three assists in a dominant performance over the visiting Victoria Vikes Friday night. 

Now with seven goals and eight assists on the season, Steer’s 15 points is second highest in the conference, while leading the Canada West in points per game at 1.9.

The second-year forward has scored in each of her last three games and has at least a point in all but one of her starts this season. 

The Thunderbirds have won five games in a row and will look to inch closer to locking up a home playoff berth when they visit the Saskatchewan Huskies and Regina Cougars this weekend.