Sport Photos
PWHL Vancouver Goldeneyes took down Montréal Victoire in a 4-3 thriller
Fresh off a gutsy win against Seattle, the Vancouver Goldeneyes returned to the Pacific Coliseum to host the league-leading Montréal Victoire in front of a packed crowd of 10,946. Despite a late Hayley Scamurra hat trick, the Goldeneyes held on to win 4-3 in regulation, earning three valuable gold plan points in the race for the first overall draft pick.
As It Happened
On Tuesday night, the Goldeneyes celebrated the South Asian Heritage and South Asian communities across British Columbia and beyond. The Abbotsford Canucks’s Arshdeep Bains, a high school classmate of fellow Surrey native Jenn Gardiner, was here at the Rink on Renfrew for the ceremonial puck drop.
The “Souuuup!” and “Holy moly what a goalie!” chants broke out early in the first period as Kristen Campbell made a pad save against Catherine Dubois. Vancouver and Montréal both put up 14 shots through the first two periods, but it’s Vancouver with the two-goal lead heading into the dressing room. The Goldeneyes opened the scoring fifteen minutes into the game. Tereza Vanišová took advantage of a Montréal turnover and set up Sarah Nurse’s eighth goal of the season. A tripping penalty to Jessica DiGirolamo gave Vancouver a power play at 7:36 of the second period. Vancouver’s captain Ashton Bell converted it with a stunning snipe to double the lead.
The third period turned into an emotional roller coaster for the fans on both sides. Vanišová, already with two assists under her belt in this game, drove the net to get past Sandra Abstreiter, extending Vancouver’s lead to three. Less than four minutes later, The Goldeneyes added a fourth goal with Claire Thompson firing a mesmerizing one-timer. With the assist on this goal, Sophie Jaques became the first PWHL defender to reach 50 career points. Desperate for a goal, the Victoire pulled the goaltender with more than eight minutes left in the game. Hayley Scamurra put on a show to score three goals in just two minutes and forty-four seconds to stun the crowd. Suddenly, it’s a one-goal game. The fastest hat trick in the PWHL history made the final five minutes of the game a nerve-wrecking time for the home fans. “Everyone got their money’s worth, on the edge of the seat right till the end,” Vancouver Head Coach Brian Idalski commented at the post-game press conference. As the final horn went off at the Pacific Coliseum, Montréal ran out of time for an equalizer, receiving their first regulation loss in seventeen games. Kristen Campbell held on with 25 saves, becoming the third PWHL goalie with 30 career wins.
The victory marked Vancouver’s first win against the Montréal Victoire and the first time winning three games in a row.
Three Stars
★Tereza Vanišová (#13) Vancouver Goldeneyes (1G 2 A)
★★ Hayley Scamurra (#16) Montréal Victoire (3G)
★★★Ashton Bell (#21) Vancouver Goldeneyes (1G)
Up Next
The Victoire remain on the road for the final game of the regular season against the Seattle Torrent. The Goldeneyes will wrap up their inaugural season this Saturday as they host the two-time defending Walter Cup champion Minnesota Frost on the Pride celebration.
Vancouver: Saturday, Apr. 25 vs. Minnesota at 4 p.m. PT / 6 p.m. CT / 7 p.m. ET
Montréal: Saturday, Apr. 25 at Seattle at 7 p.m. PT / 10 p.m. ET
Check out our favourite photos of the game below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
PWHL VANCOUVER GOLDENEYES v MONTREAL VICTOIRE
All Photo Credit: Cindy Shi
Sport Photos
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
Sport Photos
NSL Vancouver Rise FC Stun Halifax Tides FC With Last-Minute Winner
Drama took over Swangard Stadium on Saturday night as Vancouver Rise FC rallied from a 1-0 deficit to beat Halifax Tides FC 2-1, with Jessica De Filippo scoring the winner deep into stoppage time.
Rise nearly opened the scoring inside the first two minutes. De Filippo found herself at the edge of the six-yard box, but her first-time effort sailed over the bar.
Vancouver continued to create chances. Ten minutes later, Anna Bout slipped Anaïs Oularbi through on the left, with Oularbi cutting the ball back for De Filippo. Her sliding attempt just missed the pass.
Halifax had a chance of its own moments later, but Rise goalkeeper Morgan McAslan came up with one of the saves of the night. She stopped Julia Benati’s point-blank effort before quickly smothering the rebound.
The Tides eventually broke through in the 18th minute. Benati sent Rhodes in behind the Vancouver defence, and Rhodes finished past McAslan to give Halifax the lead.
Rise pushed for an equalizer before halftime. Bout tried her luck from distance in the 30th minute, but her shot skipped wide of the far post.
Vancouver‘s pressure picked up as the half progressed, with crosses repeatedly sent into the Halifax box. Just before halftime, Myla Ewasiuk met an Oularbi free kick with a header, but Tides goalkeeper Anika Tóth was ready for it.
Rise came out of the break with renewed pressure, bringing Latifah Abdu into the match to add another attacking option. Her impact was almost immediate.
Camila Reyes found Abdu behind the Halifax defence, sending the forward in alone against Tóth. Abdu slipped as she took her shot, though, leaving Tóth with an easy clearance.
The equalizer finally arrived in the 56th minute. Bout delivered a cross into the box, and De Filippo rose to meet it, powering her header past Tóth to make it 1-1.
Vancouver kept coming in search of the winner.
Josie Longhurst nearly put Rise ahead in the 74th minute when she popped the ball up just outside the box and launched an ambitious volley. She got plenty of power behind it, but the effort went just wide.
Abdu came even closer seven minutes later. After turning two defenders, she unleashed a volley that forced Tóth into a fingertip save.
De Filippo then came within inches of a second goal when her header was deflected onto the post and out.
With the match moving into stoppage time, the pressure from Rise finally paid off.
Abdu found space on the left and floated a cross toward the penalty spot. De Filippo brought the ball under control before firing it into the net, sending Swangard Stadium into a frenzy and completing the comeback.
The win gives Rise another dramatic result at home as the club continues its push through the season.
Vancouver Rise FC will return to action on Saturday, August 22, against Ottawa Rapid FC in Ontario. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. PT. The team then returns to Swangard Stadium on Saturday, August 29, to host Calgary Wild FC at 3 p.m. PT.
Tickets are available through Vancouver Rise FC.
Check out our favourite photos of the match below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
NSL VANCOUVER RISE FC v HALIFAX TIDES FC
All Photo Credit: Jason Martin