Blues Meet Royals in Semis
It's a sudden death playoff semi-final on Saturday when the Blues battle the Royals
#3 Douglas Royals @ #2 Capilano Blues – Saturday October 29, 1:30pm | WATCH HERE
It’s the third straight game between these two teams and believe it or not the fifth time this season the Blues and Royals meet up. The Blues have won three straight in the seasonal series including earning a sweep last weekend winning 2-0 and 3-1 respectively.
Overall, the defending champion Blues have won four straight games and are playing their best soccer at the perfect time heading into the championship tournament. They have earned a pair of shutouts on this winning streak including their 2-0 win last Sunday over the Royals.
On the other side of the pitch the Royals haven’t won since October 2nd and have lost three of their last four. Their only other decision was a 0-0 tie against the VIU Mariners.
In the seasonal series the Blues have outscored the Royals 8-4 with Maya Smith leading the way with three of those eight goals. All three came in one game on September 24th as she recorded the hattrick. Adrianna Babinski has accounted for two of the goals. Keeper Megan Thitchener has been outstanding in the series with a 3-1 record and has earned a shutout.
The Royals offence in this series with the Blues has sputtered with four goals from four different goal scorers. All-Star Christine Singh was the last Royal to score, which came a week ago when the Royals opened the scoring but lost 3-1.
Keeper Elisha Machado has been good when called upon and has recorded a shutout in the series.
These two schools are no stranger to playing one another in the postseason. The Blues have won three straight playoff games against the Royals, all by a single goal. Last season they won 2-1 in overtime and in 2019 they won 2-1 in penalty kicks. The last time the Royals won a playoff game over the Blues was in 2017 and a 1-0 win in penalty kicks.
The winner of the semi-final will face the VIU Mariners on Sunday at 1:30pm in the PACWEST gold medal game.
Head-to-Head
Records: Royals 5-5-2 – Blues 8-3-1
Goals For: Royals 16 – Blues 23
Goals Against: Royals 19 – Blues 15
Scoring Leaders: Christine Singh – 6 goals (Royals) – Maya Smith – 4 goals (Blues)