OSHAWA – Yannick Laurent of Terrebonne, Que., scored the tying goal to force overtime and Maher Fares notched the deciding third marker in penalty kicks as fifth-seeded McGill rallied for a dramatic 2-1 upset over No.4 Ontario Tech in a U SPORTS men's soccer national quarter-final, Thursday. The game was played before a hostile, capacity crowd cheering on the hometown Ridgebacks at Vaso's Field.
 
It marked McGill's first appearance at Nationals since 2011 and the result punched the Redbirds ticket to Friday's semifinal round, where they will confront top-seeded UBC in a 7 p.m. start. The Thunderbirds advanced after defeating eighth-seeded UNB 4-2 earlier in the day. Ontario Tech, which entered the eight-team tournament as OUA champions, were relegated to the consolation round and will meet UNB. In the other quarter-final bracket, York upset St.FX, the AUS title-holders, 2-1 and will meet the RSEQ champion Montreal Carabins, who blanked sixth-seeded Mount Royal University 1-0.
 
The Redbirds-Ridgebacks match began with chances on both sides but Ontario Tech struck first, when Kairo Coore of Whitby, Ont., scored on a bicycle kick in the 12th minute, converting a corner kick by Alex Maadanian. McGill responded with the equalizer in the 36th minute when Laurent, a 5-foot-7, 148-pound midfielder, somehow converted a header on a corner kick from Fares and proceed to celebrate with a few head-over-heel backflips.
 
"I told our group at halftime that sometimes it's not the tallest guy who scores from a corner kick. It's the one who wants the ball the most," said McGill head coach Marc Mounicot. "Yannick was great on that play. He made a good run (into the box) and connected very well on that corner. It was really great to see that. We're not a big team but we did a lot of work on set plays because we knew that Ontario Tech was very dangerous. They have a few guys who are top notch players."

The second half was scoreless, and likewise the two 15-minute overtime periods, despite multiple chances they were neutralized by strong performances from both goalkeepers. McGill's Ludovyck Ciociola, a junior from Montreal, was a surprise starter after missing the previous four games with an undisclosed injury. The six-foot, 173-pound 'keeper made five crucial saves, plus three more in the shootout session.

"He trained with us on Tuesday and Wednesday (after close to a month off to rehabilitate) and said that he felt okay," said Mounicot. "And he was great tonight."

Ontario Tech's Kevon Grant, a local from Oshawa, registered eight in a losing cause.
 
The shootout session had McGill displaying their resolve, converting their first three of five attempts, on goals by sophomore midfielder Nassim Kemel from Algeria, rookie defender Ibrahim Chami of Laval, Que., and the aforementioned Fares, a freshman from Brossard, Que.

"When the second overtime ended," we asked the guys on the field who wanted to shoot in the PK," revealed Mounicot, whose troops had only gone through two shootouts during the regular season. "Then we made a decision about who would go."
 
Ontario Tech countered with only two successful shots, with defender Alex Irwin of London, Ont., and Coore, a forward.

"We did our homework, and it paid off in the PK session," Mounicot noted. "But we got lucky on their last shot against us because it was going to the open side hit the goalpost."

Irwin and McGill defender Stuart Klenner, both team captains and best friends since childhood, were named as their respective players of the game. Prior to reaching the university ranks, they played together in Kamloops, B.C., and were also on the same team in Germany.

"Klenner was very solid tonight, all over the field," Mounicot said. "Their centre-forward (Irwin) is a great one, who played pro and helped Cape Breton win the Nationals previously. We knew he was dangerous but Klenner was able to contain him for most of the game. He played like the type of captain that we needed in a game like this."

McGill will now turn its focus on the top-seeded UBC Thunderbirds. The last time that they met at the soccer nationals was in 1997, when Marc Mounicot was team captain and they upset top-seeded UBC 1-0 in penalty kicks to claim their third national title.

All games from the tourney will be streamed live on CBC Sports digital platforms in English and on Radio-Canada's digital platforms and ICTou.tv in French.

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Official championship website
 
SOURCE
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
CELL: 514-983-7012
E-MAIL:earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca