Bisons good as Goldsztein

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This article was published 28/08/2023 (948 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Allow Camila Goldsztein to reintroduce herself.

The third-year forward has coined this year her ‘comeback season’ and it didn’t take her long to put a stamp on it, powering the University of Manitoba Bisons’ women’s soccer team to its first win of the season with a pair of goals against Lethbridge on Sunday.

The markers were the first of Goldsztein’s U Sports career and a longtime coming after spending last season recovering from a torn meniscus in her right knee she suffered in 2021. Though Goldsztein, admirably, gutted through the final few matches with the ailment — which went undiagnosed until the end of the year — it largely hindered the remainder of what was an otherwise solid freshman season that she finished with two assists.

Goldsztein missed the next six months as she recovered from surgery. Even when she was able to play, the Winnipeg product didn’t look or feel like her normal self, leaving her to register just 51 minutes and no points in 2022 as she watched from the sideline.

“Definitely was not easy,” said Goldsztein, 19.

“It was frustrating but we all know ‘team-first mentality’ so at that point, that was what was going through my head and I knew that I couldn’t give my 100 per cent. So the other forwards, I was happy for them and I was happy that they would be playing over me, just because I knew that they could do a better job and I wasn’t ready to go.”

The Bisons began their campaign with a stunning 4-0 loss to the star-studded Calgary Dinos on Saturday but bounced back quickly against the Pronghorns, as Goldsztein buried a header less than a minute into the match then added another in the 37th minute for what proved to be the game-winner.

“Super exciting. Lots of adrenaline,” said Goldsztein. “I knew we needed those goals. Bianca (Cavalcanti), she used to be on our team, and I kind of knew that someone needed to step up.

“I knew that that was a role that one of the forwards had to take on. I knew that I would do anything to try and be that person. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter who puts it in but one of us had to do it. So the fact that I was able to do it was super exciting and really rewarding as we’ve all been working super hard in our preseason and prep period.

“Hopefully, more to come.”

The Bisons (1-1) will celebrate they’re home opener against the Alberta Pandas on Saturday (2 p.m.) before playing the MacEwan Griffins on Sunday (1 p.m.), both at IG Field.

The Winnipeg Wesmen are off to a slower start, owning an 0-2 record after their first road trip of the year. A late marker by Lethbridge in Saturday’s season-opener was a gut-wrenching start to a pointless weekend, as the Dinos blanked another Manitoba squad 3-0 on Sunday.

The Wesmen boast some experience but will rely on a handful of first-year players to make an impact this season, according to head coach Amy Anderson. The team’s backend, led by a pair of outstanding keepers in Madison Priebe and Taryn Raabe, is its strength and will need to shoulder the load if the program is to break the one-win threshold for the first time since 2016.

“I have a lot of confidence in this group,” said Anderson, in her ninth year at the helm. “We have seen progression in the short time we’ve had with them that has made our program better. I think we’re going to have some success this year.

“My big thing is as long as we’re getting better each game, we have a belief that results will come. Because it’s a great group of players this year with the mindset. The mindset has been good to work with and I can’t ask for anything more in that regard.”

The Wesmen open their home schedule against the MacEwan Griffins at IG Field on Saturday (3 p.m.) and wrap up the weekend against the Alberta Pandas at Ralph Cantafio Soccer Complex on Sunday (noon).

The Wesmen and Bisons’ annual home-and-home weekend comes Oct. 7 at IG Field (noon) and Oct. 8 at Ralph Cantafio Soccer Complex (3 p.m.).

The Bisons will look to build on a 7-7-1 record in 2022 that saw the program host its first playoff game. The program is reeling from a couple of key losses, including star defender Dalima Chhibber, an Indian sensation who returned home to play with her country’s national team.

The group is young but is wise beyond its years, thanks to the knowledge passed down by Chhibber, Bisons head caoch Vanessa Martinez Lagunas said.

“The team has great potential. Something we definitely need to do is be consistent. The potential is there. Our main goal this year is to try to get a little bit better than last year, see if we can maintain the wins that we had last year and see if we can improve at least by one point,” said Martinez Lagunas, who is in her 10th year at the head of The Herd. She added the team’s versatility figures to be its biggest strength this season.

“It’s going to be hard for opponents to figure us out and I think that’s going to be our biggest strength. Also, the unity of our team is fantastic. It’s one of the best that I’ve seen in the 10 years that I’ve been with the team, so I think that’s going to help us tremendously, as well.”

jfreysam@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jfreysam