Sunday’s match doubled as an NSL regular season matchup and a quarterfinal contest for the 2026-27 W Canadian Championship, with AFC Toronto advancing to the next round of the tournament in extra time

Toronto, ON (October 4, 2026) – Kaylee Hunter scored in extra time on Sunday at York Lions Stadium to power AFC Toronto into the semifinals of the inaugural W Canadian Championship. Lena Silano had the club’s sole goal in regular time, as the match was recorded as a 1-1 draw with Vancouver Rise FC in the NSL regular season standings. Picking up one point, Toronto (10-8-5) remains second in the league table with 38 points.

AFC Toronto opened the scoring on Sunday afternoon when Lena Silano took a feed from Lauren Rowe in the box and buried it for her third goal in two games. Rowe was credited with her third assist of the year on the play. Ten minutes later, Vancouver evened the score with a goal from Latifah Abdu. Both clubs continued to press through a scrappy second half, but were unable to find a go-ahead goal. After 90 minutes, the match was recorded as a 1-1 draw for the NSL regular season.

The match then continued into extra time to determine a winner for the W Canadian Championship quarterfinal. In the 100th minute, April Lantaigne delivered a corner kick into the box, where Shelina Zadorsky first headed it, then Kaylee Hunter finished it with her head to give Toronto the lead. The club continued to attack late into the match while keeping composed defensively, securing the 2-1 victory to advance to the W Canadian Championship semifinals.

“We definitely wanted to win within 90 minutes, that was our goal,” said head coach Marko Milanović. “I thought we created more than enough chances to do that. In the first half especially, I thought we had a number of opportunities where we could have went up by one or two goals and probably ended the game. At that point we didn't. But at the same time, I think we showed a lot of character in extra time, despite being disappointed that we didn't win within 90. They left that aside and played a great 30 minutes, even though they were tired. And that just speaks volumes.”

Following the league’s international break, AFC Toronto hosts Calgary Wild FC at BMO Field for the final meeting of the season between the two sides. Kickoff is scheduled for Sunday, October 18 at 2 p.m. ET.

2026-27 W CANADIAN CHAMPIONSHIP: Sunday’s match doubled as the final quarterfinal of the inaugural W Canadian Championship, with Toronto now advancing to the semifinals. The eight-team single-elimination tournament serves as qualification to next year’s CONCACAF W Champions Cup, which in turn is a pathway to the inaugural FIFA Women’s Club World Cup in 2028. The semifinals are scheduled to take place early next year, with matchups to be announced at a later date.

LENA SILANO: Forward Lena Silano opened the scoring on Sunday for her third goal in two matches.

LAUREN ROWE: Lauren Rowe assisted Silano’s goal for her 3rd assist of the season.

KAYLEE HUNTER: Kaylee Hunter scored in extra time on Sunday. Hunter’s goal will not count towards her NSL regular season statistics, but will be recorded as part of her tally for the 2026-27 W Canadian Championship.

IRON WOMAN: Defender Sarah Rollins has played every minute of every game so far this season for Toronto, totalling 2070 minutes.

UNBEATEN STREAK: Toronto is unbeaten in seven straight NSL matches. The club has just one loss across its last 12 matches.

HEAD-TO-HEAD: Toronto finishes the season series against Vancouver with a 2-1-2 record. The club holds a 4-2-4 record against Rise FC across ten regular season contests all-time.

UP NEXT: AFC Toronto hosts Calgary Wild FC at BMO Field on Sunday, October 18 at 2 p.m. ET (Available on TSN; U.S. streaming on ESPN+).

MATCH SUMMARY (in regulation)
AFC Toronto - 1 | Vancouver Rise FC - 1

Venue: York Lions Stadium
Referee: Sheila Couture
Assistants: Camille Raymond, Sean Hornsby
Fourth Official: Yusri Rudolf
Referee Observer: Stephen Cahoon

SCORING SUMMARY
AFC Toronto: L. Silano (19’)
Vancouver Rise FC: L. Abdu (27’)

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
33’ - Yellow: Olivia Chisholm (AFC Toronto)
40’ - Yellow: Colby Barnett (AFC Toronto)

STARTING LINEUP & STATS
AFC Toronto Starting Lineup:
GK Sabrina D’Angelo (Welland, ON)
DF Colby Barnett (USA)
DF Sarah Rollins (Toronto, ON)
DF Shelina Zadorsky (London, ON)
MF Olivia Chisholm (Toronto, ON)
MF Kaylee Hunter (Calgary, AB)
MF Nyota Katembo (Montréal, QC)
MF April Lantaigne (Ajax, ON)
MF Nikayla Small (Pickering, ON)
FW Lauren Rowe (Conception Bay South, NL)
FW Lena Silano (USA)

Substitutes: Sierra Cota-Yarde (GK), Ashley Cathro (DF), Croix Soto (DF), Jasmine Vilgrain (DF), Zoe Burns (MF), Zoe Hasenauer (MF), Sarah Stratigakis (MF), Cloey Uddenberg (MF), Mia Fontana (FW)

Total Shots: 16
Shots on Goal: 3
Fouls: 9
Offsides: 0
Corner Kicks: 1
Saves: 2

MATCH SUMMARY (W Canadian Championship)
AFC Toronto - 2 | Vancouver Rise FC - 1 (a.e.t.)

SCORING SUMMARY
AFC Toronto: L. Silano (19’), K. Hunter (100’)
Vancouver Rise FC: L. Abdu (27’)

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
33’ - Yellow: Olivia Chisholm (AFC Toronto)
40’ - Yellow: Colby Barnett (AFC Toronto)
109’ - Yellow: Latifah Abdu (Vancouver Rise FC)

Total Shots: 21
Shots on Goal: 6
Fouls: 10
Offsides: 0
Corner Kicks: 4
Saves: 3

Video Highlights
Media can access video highlights from the match on the Northern Super League YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/@NorthernSuperLeague

Photo Highlights
Media can access photo highlights from the match here.

Match Summary
A complete summary of the match facts and stats can be viewed at: www.nsl.ca/games/2026-10-04-toronto-vancouver

More from the locker room:

Marko Milanović, on the game’s physicality: “I enjoyed it. I thought it was two good teams. Obviously there was a lot at stake for both within 90, but also to advance in the Cup. We really wanted to advance in this Cup as it could potentially, down the road, provide an opportunity to play against NWSL teams, Liga MX teams. To potentially host someone like Washington, Gotham or Kansas here. That's something that we're really looking for. So obviously with lots at stake, the game got chippy. But I thought it was enjoyable to watch.”

Captain Nikki Small, on the game’s physicality: “As you saw, it was gritty. You could tell both teams wanted it and it just came down to who was grittier.”

Milanović, on the players facing extended minutes: “I thought we managed it well and I thought our players showed how fit, how physically prepared they were.”

Colby Barnett: “I think ideally we wanted to win the game in the first 90, but we kind of just had to have a bit of a switch onto that last 30 to get it done. So I was happy we got the win in the second half of things.”

Small, on the midfield battle: “I think every time we play this team, it's a challenge in the midfield. And I think that's what you look for as a player. I thought we won a lot of balls off our press, and again, just what we did in transition. Sometimes we made good decisions, sometimes we made bad decisions, but at the end of the day we had the ball.”

Milanović, on how the team can remain in the fight for the 2026 Supporters’ Shield: “Be ourselves, fight, continue to improve because that's our daily goal. Every other day we come to training, we want to get better. But most days that's enough for us to win games. So obviously worry about performances more than anything else, but continue our daily work that we enjoy and that we absolutely love and we hope that's going to be enough in the last two games.”