Blaze temper Heat 5-1 0
By Dan Falloon, Portage Daily Graphic
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Val Desjardins of the Portage Blaze jockeys for position during a 5-1 win over the Heat at Republic of Manitobah Park on Monday night. (Dan Falloon/Portage Daily Graphic)
The Portage Blaze ended their regular season with a bang.
The Blaze (5-5-4) pounded the Heat 5-1 in their Winnipeg Women's Soccer League first division finale at Republic of Manitobah Park on Monday night.
Sarah Mansell had a pair of second-half goals to lead the team, while Jade Barrault, Val Desjardins and Caitlin Pringle also tallied for the Blaze.
"Unfortunately, we had to wait to the last game of the season to get our highest goal-scoring output of the season," said head coach Bryan Mintenko. "But it's nice to see to finish off the season."
Portage trailed 1-0 early on, but Barrault was sprung on a breakaway midway through the first half and made no mistake on her shot. Moments later, she set up the Desjardins marker and the side never looked back.
Desjardins felt the goal helped to entrench the Blaze as firmly in control of the contest.
"It was good," said Desjardins. "It put a spark in us to keep going and keep our energy up."
Portage will now participate in a playoff round for cash prizes beginning next Monday when they face league-leading Wolves United, which suffered its only loss at the Blaze's feet this season.
The lone home game for the Blaze will take place on Aug. 28 against a yet-to-be-determined opponent.
For more, please see Tuesday's edition of the Portage Daily Graphic.
dan.falloon@sunmedia.ca
Twitter: PDGdfalloon
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