The Vancouver Rise were still looking for their first win of 2026.
The defending NSL champions travelled out east to take on the Halifax Tides. The Rise were dead last in the NSL with three straight losses to start the season. Meanwhile, Halifax were 1-1-1 heading into the Victoria Day tilt.
Vancouver looked to prove that their bad start was just a hiccup and not a championship hangover. A win was also especially needed after back-to-back 4-0 losses.
Rise head coach Anja Heiner-Moller made a few tweaks to the starting XI, which included Jessica Wulf making her first NSL start in goal instead of Morgan McAslan. Anna Bout and new signing Tori Tumeth also got starts.
This game marked an improvement for the Rise, as they finally secured their first win of 2026.
First half: Attack was lacking, but Rise scored first
The Rise wanted to set the tone early. They dominated possession, and Latifah Abdu and Jessica De Filippo led the way.
The Tides aimed to capitalize on the Rise’s counterattack and created some dangerous chances early. Fortunately, for Vancouver, they couldn’t muster a decent shot.
In the 25th minute, Sara Taylor nearly opened the scoring, but Surah Yekka made an excellent last-second block. As the half went on, Halifax started picking up the pace, and Vancouver hardly tested Rylee Foster. For the Tides, Saoria Miller and Jordyn Rhodes.
The Rise struck first. On the counterattack, Bout chased down Tumeth’s through ball and then found De Filippo, who had a ton of space in the box, and she beat Foster. That was De Filippo’s first goal of the season.
The Rise did a good job of weathering the storm of the Tides. It was nice to get the goal, but they still needed more with the final pass.
Second half: Momentum swings
Halifax came out of the break strong, but the Rise backline hung on. But Miller was giving them fits.
It was Miller who forced the corner. Taylor’s corner wasn’t cleared properly by the rose, and Rhodes poked the ball past Wulf. The Wanderers Ground crowd had something to cheer for.
But just seconds after the goal, Tumeth was pulled down in the box by Sheyenne Allen. Rise captain Quinn blasted the penalty kick past Foster. Quinn has been perfect from the penalty spot for the Rise. Talk about momentum changing.
The Tides did not want to give up. Rhodes and Miller were threatening on the rush. Wulf was doing very well between the posts as she went after the ball with no fear. On the attack, the Rise were looking to finish off Halifax, but the play in the final third wasn’t the greatest.
In the end, the Rise hung on for their first win of the season. Both defence and attack showed clear improvement, marking progress but also highlighting areas to address for the next match.
Stat of the match
Vancouver won this game despite being outshot 17-7.
Wrap-up
With momentum from this win, the Rise look to build at home against AFC Toronto. Kickoff is at 1:00 pm from Swangard Stadium.
