It was a battle of the young Canadian 91裸聊视频榢eepers Wednesday as the Vancouver Whitecaps blanked Pacific FC 1-0 in Canadian Championship semifinal action.
The Major League Soccer side now holds the lead in the two-game aggregate series, with Canadian Premier League91裸聊视频檚 Pacific set to visit Vancouver for the second leg on Aug. 27.
Wednesday91裸聊视频檚 lone goal came in the 58th minute when Mathias Laborda sent a long cross into the penalty area, and Ryan Gauld leapt up to flick a glancing header into the back of the Pacific net.
Vancouver 91裸聊视频榢eeper Isaac Boehmer preserved the victory with a series of saves as Pacific made a late push.
91裸聊视频淲e never thought it was going to be easy. But we just came, we did what we needed to do and we91裸聊视频檙e ready for the second leg,91裸聊视频� said the 22-year-old Boehmer, who stopped all-five on-target shots he faced to collect his first clean sheet for the 91裸聊视频楥aps.
At the other end of the field, Pacific91裸聊视频檚 Emil Gazdov made four saves, including a highlight-reel-worthy effort in the 49th minute.
Brian White sent a blistering header in from the top of the six-yard box, only to see the 20-year-old netminder dive sideways and poke the ball out of harm91裸聊视频檚 way. The American striker appeared to respond with disbelief, simply shaking his head in response.
Gazdov was circumspect about the play.
91裸聊视频淚 don91裸聊视频檛 want to say it91裸聊视频檚 routine, but I do it a lot in training. Just reading the situation 91裸聊视频� ball comes across, header, react. Not much to really say about it,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淗appy I got a finger on it to get it around the post.91裸聊视频�
Vancouver comes into the tournament having hoisted the Voyageurs Cup in both 2022 and 2023, but this year91裸聊视频檚 campaign hasn91裸聊视频檛 been smooth.
The 91裸聊视频楥aps faced Cavalry FC of the CPL in the quarterfinals and advanced on away goals after Cavalry took a 1-0 victory in the second leg to tie the aggregate score at 2-2.
Pacific earned a spot in the semifinals with a 2-1 aggregate win over fellow CPL team Atletico Ottawa.
The tournament91裸聊视频檚 other semifinal Wednesday saw CPL side Forge FC upset struggling MLS club Toronto FC with a 2-1 scoreline.
Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini referenced the result in his pre-game speech.
91裸聊视频淚 used that as motivation,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淚 used that game and also the second leg that played Vancouver against Cavalry when, to be honest, our performance was so bad that we were at risk to get out (of the quarterfinals).91裸聊视频�
This year marks the third time Pacific and the Whitecaps have faced off in the annual tournament.
The first matchup saw Pacific stun Vancouver 4-3 in preliminary-round action back in 2021. The 91裸聊视频楥aps went on to take a 3-0 victory in the semifinals last year.
Both teams return to league play this weekend, with the Whitecaps visiting St. Louis City and Pacific heading to Hamilton to face Forge.
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