PREVIEW: Women’s soccer set to raise National Championship banner in home opener

Just days after a season-opening victory in Oshawa, the Gee-Gees women's soccer team are ready to return to the pitch for their home opener on Wednesday night against the Carleton Ravens.

Ahead of kickoff, the team will raise a banner in recognition of their 2018 U SPORTS National Championship victory.

With one game in the books this season, head coach Steve Johnson and his team are focused on establishing and executing a consistent game plan, rather than worrying about opposing teams and making drastic adjustments in each game.

"This team is still forming," said Johnson. "We've had such a short training camp that were still working on ourselves as a team."

"I'll be very nice to do a banner unveiling, to have family and friends recognize the team. I'm hoping that we have a good performance against Carleton and not lose our focus."

The game against Carleton will mark the first meeting between the cross-town rivals since October 22, 2017, as the two were non-combatants in the OUA schedule last season.

Ottawa's offense will be tasked with fighting though Carleton's solid defense.

Through two games this season, Carleton has given up two goals. Looking back to last year, they surrendered only nine goals in 16 matches, which was second best in the OUA East behind the Gee-Gees' seven goals against. 

The reigning national champions are sporting a handful of new faces that represent the next generation of talent ready to make an impact.

A quintet of Gee-Gees, Soumaya Bouak, Adriane Devlin, Trinity Esprit, Becca LeBlanc, Anna Satterthwaite, all made their debuts for the Garnet and Grey during the season opener.

The contributions from the new athletes just weeks into their university careers have left Johnson and the coaching staff feeling impressed. 

"We were able to get five rookies into the game against Ontario Tech, they performed very well," he said. "It's promising that they've been able to show so well during training camp and their first opportunity in a league game." 

For in-game updates on Gee-Gees women's soccer games, follow @GeeGeesWSOC on Twitter. Tickets for all home games are available for purchase at tickets.geegees.ca, all home games will be streamed live on OUA.tv