Brent Mutis
CapU Blues sports information

The Capilano Blues have entered the home stretch to the postseason and earned themselves four key points in the PACWEST standings with a win and a tie against Langara.

Sophie Pather made a triumphant return to the Blues lineup on Saturday at Langara’s home park, scoring just over 12 minutes after kickoff after a nice touch pass from Maya Smith. Pather’s second of the season would stand up as the game-winner in a 3-0 result.

The Blues scored their second of the game just eight minutes after the opener when Michaela Salvino volleyed home a bouncing cross from Kaitlyn Johnson.

Smith directed traffic all afternoon, coordinating the Blues from her midfield spot. Her work led directly to CapU’s first two goals and she’d collect a tally of her own in the late going as Salvino sprung her loose with a lead pass. Smith slotted the ball between the Langara keeper’s feet for her third of the season.

Riya Gill earned her first PACWEST clean sheet for CapU, making nine saves in her season debut.

A resilient and more tightly organized Falcons side managed to keep the game scoreless in Sunday’s rematch at Capilano’s Lillooet Park, until Smith broke through in the 61st minute. The veteran midfielder outran all the Falcons defenders after a long free kick by Salvino and poked the ball into the far side of the net.

Langara responded shortly after with a goal off a corner kick in the 70th minute. Gill got her hands on the original cross from the corner but the deflection landed on the foot of Christie Wong who volleyed it top corner.

The Blues held possession in the Falcons end of the park for much of the final 20 minutes but couldn’t find the go-ahead marker.

Capilano carries a 2-3-3 mark into the final two weekends of conference play. They will visit Douglas College Saturday in a 1 p.m. start and host Langara again on Sunday in a Noon kickoff at the CapU Squamish turf field.