1996 OWIAA Women's Soccer Champions

RECAP : Gee-Gees aim for perfect end to season

It was another stage in what the Ottawa Gee-Gees hope will be a perfect soccer season.

The Gee-Gees won the Ontario Women's Interuniversity Athletic Association championship Sunday with a 1-0 victory over the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks in the conference final at Carleton University.

The Gee-Gees will next take their 13-0-2 record, including three playoff victories on the weekend, into the Canadian championships Nov. 7-10 in Halifax.

The Golden Hawks, the 1995 national champs, will also be in Halifax becuase the Ontario conference has two berths in the Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union finals.

Credit the Gee-Gees' tough defence for much of their success. Opponents have scored only five goals against Ottawa goaltender Tania Singfield all season, including two in playoff games. Singfield, a member of national women's team for six years, was a Gee-Gees assistant coach for the previous two years. She returned to school and the university game in September.

Singfield, 26, brought not only experience to the team, but also a level of maturity. "(Her teammates') focus was always there; I just helped them to stay concentrated," Singfield said. "It's been a treat to play with them. They are 100-per cent heart."

A diverse scoring attack led by Julie Gareau, Julie Madore, Danielle Vella and Natasha Stobert, the leading scorer in the OWIAA, were also essential to the Gee-Gees' success.

On Sunday, the Gee-Gees stayed together to the end. They took control early in the game when Tammy Godin scored off a header 14 minutes into the first half.

Ottawa continued its onslaught and kept the Golden Hawks from even crossing midfield for most of the game; even when they did, Singfield was quick to kick the ball back out.

"There was no doubt in my mind," said Singfield, who pulled a bottle of champagne out of her equipment bag at game's end. "I knew there was no way we were going to give one up."

Mandy Sabiston of Ottawa and Lorraine Hodds were named game MVPs.

Gee-Gees head coach Steve Johnson said the '96 season was not only for the current team, but also for all the players who fought to make women's soccer a varsity sport. "We proved we deserve to have a varsity team. It's a great accomplisment, it feels terrific," Johnson said.

After being eliminated in the conference quarterfinals in each of the past two years, Johnson said, Friday's 2-1 win against the Waterloo Warriors provided a sense of relief. "It gave us a sense of calm. I was very valuable to us since our veterans knew what had happened in the past."

Johnson will use the two-week break before nationals to have the Gee-Gees practise on artificial turf, the surface they'll play on in Halifax.

The Queen's Golden Gaels defeated the Western Ontario Mustangs 2-1 on Sunday for the bronze medal.

Note: this article was originally published by the Ottawa Citizen on October 28, 1996. It was written by Lisa Burke.