Vancouver Whitecaps Prospects Men claimed their first draw of the Pacific Coast Soccer League season after a 2-2 result away to Peace Arch United on Wednesday evening.
After claiming their first win in the Men's Premier Division during the past weekend, Bart Choufour's side tried to build on Sunday's victory at Khalsa Sporting Club by taking a another maximum-point haul at South Surrey Athletic Park.
The young visitors had a strong opening quarter of the game, with Choufour having three Whitecaps Residency players in centre back Anthony DiNicolo, midfielder Devin Gunenc, and forward Marcus Johnstone in his starting 4-3-3 formation.
The first chance of the game fell to Whitecaps striker Gavin Barrett on 14 minutes, but he struck his shot just wide of the target after getting in behind the Peace Arch back-line. Two minutes later, DiNicolo won the ball with a strong tackle before playing the ball to Max Maund. He found Johnstone, whose shot brought a fine save from former Whitecaps goalkeeper Didar Sandhu.
The Prospects kept the pressure on their hosts, and on 32 minutes, the Whitecaps took the lead. Barrett and Johnstone combined well on the edge of the box before Barrett converted his own rebound after Sandhu saved the forward's initial strike.
Three minutes later, Peace Arch drew level from a corner, as Liam Breen headed home to make the scoreline 1-1 at halftime.
The Prospects had a bright start to the second half, but against the run of play on 57 minutes, Peace Arch took the lead when Matt Ormerod converted a fiercely-driven free kick from the edge of the Whitecaps box that Ben Leggett failed to deal with in front of his own goal.
Undeterred, the Prospects made sure there would be a share of the spoils on 67 minutes, as Barrett took a Gunenc through ball before placing his finish into the top corner of Sandhu's goal for the 2-2 final.
Choufour admits having the availability of players from the Residency squad in the last couple of games has been a boost. "The Residency players have given us that little bit of an edge that we need," Choufour told whitecapsfc.com. "We have players that can play in the team, but they are sometimes a bit naïve, so when we bring in players that have a bit more experience, it helps us."
The Prospects Men return to PCSL action on Sunday afternoon at Simon Fraser University's Terry Fox Field, as they host PSSA Rapids in a 12:30pm kickoff. Peace Arch, meanwhile, visit PSSA Rapids in their next game on Saturday afternoon.
Whitecaps Prospects Men - line-up v Peace Arch United
Coady Nett (Michael Branion-Calles 45'); Branden McLean (Ashley Ankiewicz 73'), Anthony DiNicolo, Ben Leggett, Rhys Volkenant; Devin Gunenc, Max Maund, Ben Hemphill; Gavin Barrett, Marcus Johnstone (Nat Blaiklock 45', Jordan Whitehead 80'), Milad Mehrabi (Lawrence Buchan 60')
