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NSL Vancouver Rise FC vs Calgary Wild FC
Vancouver Rise FC lit up Swangard Stadium on Saturday afternoon, putting six past Calgary Wild FC to stretch their unbeaten run to eight straight matches.
The home side looked dangerous from the start. Jessica De Filippo nearly opened the scoring early with a header over the bar, but the breakthrough came in the 15th minute. Pressing high, De Filippo forced a mistake from Calgary goalkeeper Stephanie Bukoveć, allowing Latifah Abdu to pounce and slot the ball into an empty net.
Rise nearly doubled the lead soon after through Holly Ward, whose shot was deflected into Lisa Pechersky’s path, but Bukoveć managed to deny her follow-up. Calgary’s Jorian Baucom came close to equalizing on the counter, only for Rise keeper Morgan McAslan to shut the door with a sharp save.
Ward thought she had made it 2-0 in stoppage time, but her effort rattled the post. Moments later, De Filippo made amends with the goal of the night, punishing a loose back pass from 35 yards out by lobbing Bukoveć to give Rise a two-goal cushion at the half.
Halftime featured a special moment off the pitch as the club introduced new signing Jaimie Perrault to the home crowd. Excitement then turned to waiting, as the start of the second half was pushed back 15 minutes because of lightning in the area. The delay did nothing to cool Vancouver’s momentum once play resumed.
The second half was all Vancouver. Abdu struck again in the 54th minute after a strong run and cutback from Ward. McAslan then made a brilliant double save to protect the lead before Quinn coolly converted a penalty in the 66th minute to make it 4-0.
From there, the floodgates opened. Mariah Lee powered home from a Quinn corner in the 72nd minute, and Pechersky curled in a stunning strike six minutes later to cap the scoring at 6-0. Rise nearly had a seventh late on, but Bukoveć stopped Anna Bout’s breakaway, and Ward’s follow-up trickled just wide.
The emphatic win mirrored a previous 6-0 scoreline for Rise FC and showed once again why they’re one of the league’s most dangerous sides.
Vancouver now turn their attention to a top-of-the-table clash against first-place AFC Toronto on September 13th. Kickoff is at 11 a.m. PT. Rise then return home on September 20th to host Ottawa Rapid FC in their Fan Appreciation Match at Swangard Stadium. More info on the team’s website.
Check our our favourite photos of the game or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
All Photo Credit: Caroline Charruyer
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NSL Vancouver Rise Boost Playoff Hopes with Victory Over Calgary Wild
Vancouver Rise FC have ended their season on a high note and improved their chances of
reaching the playoffs after defeating Calgary Wild FC 3-2 at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby, BC. The Rise delivered under pressure thanks to a beautiful goal from Mia Pante as well as a much-needed second-half strike from Jessica DeFilippo.
The Rise marked the scoresheet twice in the first half, leading the Wild 2 to nil at the 35-minute mark after Alex Lamontagne connected with Pante who cleared the goalkeeper and calmly hit the back of the net.
Calgary responded before halftime, however, as Josie Aulicino found the net with a strike from outside the penalty area, cutting the deficit to 2-1 and keeping halting what at times looked like a runaway train.
Calgary largely dominated the second half, forcing Vancouver onto their back feet. Vancouver was pinned in their own zone, unwillingly defending their lead as Calgary took shot after shot on goal. A quiet crowd got to their feet for their Captain Shannon Woeller who made her first appearance of the season in the 88-minute mark, leaving the bench to steady the team in the final few minutes.
Despite the early charge, Vancouver managed to record the win and take the points, if in a
somewhat anxiety-filled final 45. The three points keep the Rise in the playoff conversation, with the final result to be decided Monday as Halifax faces off against AFC Toronto.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
VANCOUVER RISE FC v CALGARY WILD FC
All Photo Credit: Jason Martin
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WWE Monday Night Raw Keeps the Momentum Rolling in Ottawa
WWE Monday Night Raw rolled into Ottawa on August 24 with plenty of moving pieces and a clear focus on building toward the next major chapters for both the men’s and women’s divisions. From LA Knight’s confrontation with Roman Reigns to Stephanie Vaquer’s return, a World Heavyweight Championship tournament, and a heated Oba Femi-Bron Breakker contract signing, the episode packed a lot into three hours without losing sight of its bigger stories.
This was a busy, storyline-heavy episode built almost entirely around momentum heading toward Sunday Night’s Main Event on September 6. LA Knight opened the show by calling out World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns, only for Solo Sikoa to interrupt and thank Knight for backing him up the previous week, before the Usos showed up and set a tag match in motion for later in the night. That opening angle paid off with a hard-hitting brawl, and the show closed with Knight, Sikoa, and both Usos left laid out while returning duo Royce Keys and OTM stood tall over the wreckage.
In the ring, the standout was Stephanie Vaquer‘s return match against Roxanne Perez, which saw Judgment Day interference from Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez met by a counter from Becky Lynch. Vaquer sealed the win by dodging a moonsault and connecting with a butterfly backbreaker into a lungblower combo, and the post-match staredown with Lynch added a nice extra layer of tension. It fed directly into the next chapter of her title chase, with Vaquer told backstage that she’ll get her shot at Liv Morgan‘s Women’s World Championship on the September 7 RAW.
The tournament for a World Heavyweight Championship shot also moved forward, with Penta defeating LA Parka and Rey Fenix defeating Dragon Lee to set up a Penta-vs-Fenix final. The Penta/Parka match got a nice reaction, as Parka survived a Penta Driver and answered with a top-rope Spanish Fly before Penta eventually got the win.
The other big story beat was the contract signing for Oba Femi vs. Bron Breakker. Breakker accused Femi of taking the spot he used to hold and vowed to make him live in his shadow, while Femi shot back that Breakker could’ve been the future of WWE in a different era, just not while he’s around. The segment boiled over into a physical confrontation, with Breakker jumping Femi before Austin Theory got involved, and Femi eventually powering back to put Theory through a table.
Overall, this felt like a well-paced go-home-style episode even though the pay-per-view is still two weeks out: hot angles up top and at the close, a satisfying tournament advancement, and a women’s division storyline that’s clearly building toward something bigger
Check out our favourite photos of both Monday Night Raw and Smackdown below or head to our Facebook page for the full galleries: Raw – Smackdown
WWE MONDAY NIGHT RAW
All Photo Credit: Kieran Delport