Stratigakis scores two in AUFC women’s tie

June 1, 2016 · 0 Comments

By Jake Courtepatte

Canadian national Sarah Stratigakis notched her first two goals in an Aurora United FC uniform on Saturday at Sheppard’s Bush, but the party was spoiled in a 3 – 3 comeback effort by the Kingston Clippers.

The Aurora side took a 3-nil lead into the half of League 1 Ontario action, with Stratigakis opening the scoring at the 18-minute mark with a low marker from just outside the box. The midfield added her second of the game twelve minutes later by finishing off a cross, and Meghan Reynolds scored her second of the season just before half with a nice second effort on her own rebound.

The Clippers, however, were in famiar territory: they had erased a three-goal deficit against Woodbridge earlier this month, and came out striking in the second half.

They broke the shutout just a few minutes after the intermission, and made it a one-goal game at the 71-minute mark. A free kick sailed past goalkeeper Marissa Zucchetto in the 90th minute to tie the match, a score that remained to the final whistle.

“We watched Kingston against Woodbridge and we knew they had good players who were capable of coming back strong,” said Aurora head coach Ramin Mohammadi. “We spoke to the players about that aspect, but they are on the field and have to deal with the psychological aspect.”

“We had opportunities in the second half, but we were not lucky. There is no excuse, we should have played stronger. We had our plan but, I don’t know – could have been the fitness, the heat, just being comfortable at 3-0 ahead. There are no excuses.”

While still looking for the first win of the club’s history, the United women are proving themselves competitive in their first season in the semi-professional league. They carry a record of 0-1-3, placing them in a tie for fifth place in the nine-team table.

Next up is a visit to Toronto Saturday to face the Sanjaxx Lions (1-2-0). The next home game is June 18 in a matchup with the Woodbridge Strikers at Sheppard’s Bush.

The men’s side of the Aurora club is still in search of their first league wins of the season as well, falling 4 – 1 to the Strikers at Sheppard’s Bush on Saturday.

The club’s first-ever match on home turf, the powerhouse Woodbridge squad proved too much for League 1’s newest member. The visitors opened the scoring in the sixth minute of play, doubling their lead to 2 – 0 by halftime.

Woodbridge added two more early in the second half to take a commanding lead, while Simon Adiej managed to add a nice touch by scoring Aurora’s first home goal in the 67th minute.

“We had a few chances today, we created some good things going forward and I think our shape was better,” said Aurora head coach Jimmy Brennan. “A lot of positives today. We had some good opportunities but couldn’t put them away in the end.”

Scoring troubles have plagued the Aurora side all season, playing to an 0-5-0 record through the first month. A prime opportunity to find the win column comes this Saturday, in a visit to Scarborough to face Master’s Futbol (1-4-0). The next home match is June 11 against Toronto Skillz FC at Sheppard’s Bush.