TORONTO — On an uncharacteristically warm October evening at Downsview Park, the Rams women's soccer team bested the visiting University of Toronto Varsity Blues in their second meeting in as many weeks. It was the team's first win of the season and, perhaps more importantly, the first victory against the Varsity Blues in program history. 

Though the two teams traded chances early on in a sloppy first half, it was Toronto who jumped out to an early lead in the 34th minute when Miranda Badovinac beat Rams keeper Elisa Lapadula after the Varsity Blues attackers hit the post twice.

For the Rams, falling behind was even more deflating given that four minutes earlier, they appeared to take the lead when Shea Jeffery-Novak tapped a loose ball into an empty net, only for the play to be called back for being offside. 

But the ship was quickly righted when Skylar Sheehan-Alleyene knotted things up with her first career OUA goal, sending the Rams bench - and the small but mighty group of Rams fans sitting opposite them - into an excited frenzy. 

"It was very much the same game plan [as last week], just with a little bit of fine-tuning," Rams head coach Natalie Bukovec remarked. "We were really dialing in on the film and looking into the specifics."

In the dying seconds of the first half, Lapadula shut the door on Badovinac, who stepped up for a penalty kick in pursuit of her second goal. Lapadula, who her teammates called the team's "spine," made one of her crucial eight saves. 

Minutes into the second half, the Rams took the lead on a Christiana Daniel header that snuck past Varsity Blues keeper Maddy Nardin. For the veteran Daniel, it was an unexpected but welcome appearance on the scoresheet.

"I'm usually the person who finesses the ball and doesn't really shoot," Daniel said, "but it's nice to be a part of it."

For the remainder of the second half, the Rams had to defend against a fierce onslaught of offence from the voracious Varsity Blues, who scratched and clawed to try and get back into the fray, but couldn't break through. As the final whistle blew, the elated Rams spilled out onto the field, celebrating a historic victory.

Overall, the Rams played a solid ninety minutes and made plays when it mattered most. As a holistic team effort, their coach regards it with incredible fondness.

"I was definitely proud of them," Bukovec concluded. 

Next week, the rolling Rams will head to North Bay to take on the Nipissing Lakers on Friday, October 8 at 5 p.m.