KAMLOOPS – The Thompson Rivers WolfPack men's soccer team is playoff bound for the sixth-straight season after a they earned a 2-0 victory over the MacEwan Griffins in Edmonton.
 
"It means a lot, especially this year after the way we started," said WolfPack head coach John Antulov, referring to the team's 0-5 start to the season. "A lot of doubt could have crept in but our leadership group really stepped up to the plate and drove us to finish off the season strong. That I'm very, very proud of."
 
Alesandro Comita and Dylan Hooper both finished the game with a pair of points as they each scored while also assisting on the other's goal. Svyatik Artemenko and Olivier Jumeau combined for the shutout which marked the sixth time in the last eight games that the team has kept a clean sheet.
 
The tally for Hooper was the 11th of his WolfPack career, moving him into sole possession of fifth in the program record books.
 
Comita's goal meanwhile, was his first of the season after the attacking midfielder from Kamloops found himself snake-bitten throughout much of the year.
 
"It was massive for him, he's been outstanding all season and has barely come off the park," said Antulov. "He's near the top of the conference in shots but he's just been really unlucky, so for him to get that goal is big and hopefully he can carry that into the playoffs."
 
The win moves TRU to 7-7-1 on the season and fourth place in the Pacific Division of Canada West soccer. They will now face a Mount Royal Cougars squad in the playoffs that won the Prairie Division with a record of 11-2-1.
 
TRU entered the game with one eye on the scoreboard of the UNBC vs. UBC Okanagan matchup in Kelonwa. A UNBC victory would turn the game into a must-win affair, if UNBC tied or lost then the WolfPack would qualify regardless of the result in Edmonton.
 
With MacEwan also needing a victory to get themselves into the playoffs, the first half was a cagey affair with both teams testing each other's defence while not committing too many forward in the attack themselves.
 
That all changed at halftime when the final result came in from Kelowna with a UBCO victory, meaning that TRU had clinched the postseason. The 'Pack made a number of substitutions and ensured that they went into the postseason on a winning note with a pair of goals.
 
"We are very happy with our group, we have a lot of good players that we can interchange so we knew the substitutions that we made those guys were going to come in with fresh legs and help carry us," said Antulov. "I'm happy with the way that group came in and played in that second half to deliver us the win."
 
TRU found the breakthrough in the 74th minute when Hooper got the ball inside the 18-yard box before twisting and turning his way around a defender and sending the ball into Comita who made no mistake for his first of the season. Hooper, a fifth-year from Winnipeg, added the insurance marker in the 88th minute to send the 'Pack to victory.
 
The 'Pack will now travel to Calgary next weekend for a quarter-final match with the aforementioned Cougars. The exact time of that game will be announced at a later date.