KAMLOOPS – The Thompson Rivers WolfPack women's soccer team fought back from a first half deficit en route to a 2-1 victory over the Fraser Valley Cascades Saturday night.
 
Anika Black and Emily Clark both tallied in the second half for the WolfPack while Luciana Andrews scored for UFV.
 
"It just goes to show our character," said WolfPack head coach Mark Pennington on his team battling from behind. "The last thing I heard from our players at half was 'this is about character now' they had to go and dig deep. It shows that this team doesn't go away, there's a belief about our players."
 
Marissa Young made five saves on the night to earn her fourth win of the season and Joven Sandhu made eight stops in the losing effort.
 
The win continues a remarkable run for the WolfPack. Since losing their first two games of the year the team has four wins and two ties to go on the longest undefeated streak in program history. This win over the the Cascades is the first time the 'Pack have defeated Fraser Valley in their ten Canada West meetings
 
TRU now holds a record of 4-2-2 and occupy fourth place in the Pacific Division. For Fraser Valley the loss continues a frustrating season as they fall to 0-3-5 and slip to last place in the division.
 
The game was a tale of two halves, with the Cascades dominating the opening 45 minutes before the WolfPack came to life late.
 
Andrews and Jenna Mele in particular were causing troubles all over the field in the first half for Fraser Valley.
 
In the 28th minute a great run from Mele ended with the ball being cut into the box for Andrews, but Young made the stop.
 
Right before halftime the Cascades got the goal that they had been threatening to score all half.
 
Jiya Kaila got the ball on the wing and played a pass into the middle of the box that Andrews powered into the back of the net.
 
It was all WolfPack to start the second half. TRU made four subs at the break, and they almost paid off immediately when Kamloops product Anika Black got onto a set piece in the box, but her header was stopped by a diving Sandhu.
 
Perseverance paid off for Black in the 57th minute. Fellow substitute Madeline Trozzo made a nice run and played the ball across the top of the 18-yard box where Black struck a curling effort first time that found the back of the net. The goal was the first goal of Black's WolfPack career.
 
"We made some substitutions at half time and we injected some quality and it was the two substitutes that got us back into the game straight away," said Pennington. "Trozzo got in behind and whipped a ball in and Anika's finish was top class."
 
TRU kept the pressure up. After hitting a crossbar and being stymied by Sandhu on a penalty kick, they finally found the winning goal with six minutes left to play.
 
Rookie Bridget Baird nodded a ball into the box and Clark fought off a pair of Cascades defenders before spinning and putting the ball into the back of the net with authority.
 
"I don't know what else to say about Emily Clark, she works so hard," said Pennington. "The way she turns and gets stuck into tackles is phenomenal. She was unlucky with a crossbar earlier, but she was there to finish."
 
TRU is out on the road next weekend when they take on the UVic Vikes Friday night and the UBC Thunderbirds on Saturday.
 
"All the girls that came into the game were great. We are really happy with a four-point weekend, that was our goal coming into it and it was probably a bit lofty," said Pennington. "We'll celebrate the points tonight and then get ready for another set of tough games tomorrow."
 
Fraser Valley meanwhile will return to Abbotsford to take on the UNBC Timberwolves and Calgary Dinos.