Jefferson Hagen, MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – No one will ever forget Salma Kamel's four-goal game against Mount Royal University during the 2019 season.
The program record-breaking performance will certainly live on forever as a highlight when her five-year university career ends this fall.
But as the forward gets ready for her final playoff season as a Griffin, her game has evolved to the point where it's more than just scoring; she's doing a little bit of everything for the team.
"I think in comparison to last season, I've grown a lot as a player mentally and in a leadership role," said Kamel. "A lot of my plays this year have been less about me going to goal, but I've been involved in a lot of our goals. And defensively, I think I've played a big role. As a complete player, I think I've evolved a lot more."
She will lead the Griffins (10-2-0) into a Canada West quarter-final match against UFV (6-4-2) on Saturday (1 p.m., Clarke Stadium, Canada West TV presented by Co-op).
The squad is an optimistic and confident group after closing out the regular season with a dramatic 3-0 win over Calgary last Saturday to claim top spot in the Central Division and finish with the program's best record since joining Canada West in 2014.
"I think we're all just so excited and we're all feeling really, really confident after our big win," said Kamel. "That's really important. This past weekend, we had some really good team meetings and conversations. I think it's brought out mentality to a whole other level.
"I think we're really ready going into this weekend. We're just peaking at the perfect time."
Salma Kamel, seen against Lethbridge in a recent match, is always around the goal for the Griffins, creating chances and scoring many herself. She scored 14 regular season goals in her career (Tia Schram photo).
As dangerous as Kamel can be – (she finished with three goals and five points in 12 games this season) – the key to the Griffins' success doesn't just lie with one player. Their depth is as strong as anyone in U SPORTS as they boast 13 different players who scored at least once during the 2021 regular season.
"That's one of the things that's made us hard to play against this year," said Kamel. "We're not relying on one or two people like a lot of these other teams are. It's so hard to build a strategy against our team, in particular, because … there isn't just one or two players you have to worry about. It's all of us. Everyone is playing massive roles.
"It's really nice to see and it's really nice to play with because you can always depend on the person next to you no matter who it is."
Make no mistake, though, Kamel remains on every opposing team's scouting report. She has two career playoff goals and is always driving offensive production, even if she isn't always the one scoring.
"I think you see within our team that we've never been this deep where the scoring is just spread out and everybody's contributing at different times," said head coach Dean Cordeiro. "Salma's been a major contributor throughout her career here and this season again, especially of late. She stepped up huge on Saturday. She didn't score a goal, but she was the one who got things going. She turned the defender, played an amazing pass into Grace Mwasalla to get what was the game-winning goal in that match.
"She's been a handful to deal with for defenders, teams have been trying their hardest to keep her in check and it's really opened up other players because of how threatening she is every single time she touches the ball. Salma's been great and we're looking forward to her stepping up in the playoffs as she has in the past."
UFV presents a unique challenge in that the Griffins have only had a chance to see them on film under a regional schedule format this season. They're coming into Saturday's match on a six-game winning streak.
That said, the Griffins will be worrying more about making sure their own game is ready to roll.
"We're going to review some film, see some of their tendencies and make sure we're ready to go, but ultimately at the end of the day it always comes back to us playing our game and doing what we need to do to be successful," said Cordeiro. "If we do that, we're going to be OK."
The winner of Saturday's game will advance to the Final Four Nov. 5-7, to be hosted by the highest-remaining seed in the West Division.
From there, the road continues to the U SPORTS national championship Nov. 18-21 in Sydney, N.S., hosted by Cape Breton University.
Salma Kamel poses with head coach Dean Cordeiro after receiving a framed photo and flowers in a Senior Day celebration on Oct. 17. She is one of five seniors heading into their final playoff season with the Griffins (Tia Schram photo).
Kamel, who is one of five graduating seniors on the Griffins, would dearly love to lead the team to the U SPORTS nationals for the first time. They've been a win shy of advancing four different times since joining Canada West in 2014.
"I can't even believe this is my last playoffs and last season, but I'm really excited," she said.
"My time at MacEwan went by way too fast," she added. "I'm so grateful for all of the experiences with our team, all the players I've played with and Dean for creating such an amazing team atmosphere for the past five years. It's been the best five years of my life and I'll never forget it."
