Kaylee Hunter scored her ninth of the year, Sarah Stratigakis her fourth, as the club earned its first win at BMO Field
Toronto, ON (August 30, 2026) – AFC Toronto earned a 2-1 win over Ottawa Rapid FC on Sunday afternoon at BMO Field, courtesy of goals from Kaylee Hunter and Sarah Stratigakis. The win marked the club’s first victory at the venue. Now with five wins across the last seven games, AFC Toronto (9-4-5) continues to close the gap atop the Northern Super League table, currently third place with 31 points.
AFC Toronto generated numerous chances through the first 45, but were unable to find the back of the net. In the 73rd minute, Toronto was awarded a free kick at the top of the box, which Hunter converted with a clinical strike for her ninth of the year. Later in the match, Kaylee Hunter headed a ball towards the net where Sarah Stratigakis finished it to double Toronto’s lead. The goal marked Stratigakis’ fourth of the year and Hunter’s third assist. Nearing stoppage time, Ottawa got one back off the foot of Florence Belzile, but Toronto was ultimately able to hold on for the win.
Captain Nikki Small, on the win at BMO Field: “Getting the goal and celebrating with the fans, that was something really special because we haven't done that a lot here. So for us, that was very huge. And I think that mentality shift of, like, we need to get this win was very key and you saw it in all our faces that we were not leaving there without a win.”
AFC Toronto returns to BMO Field next weekend to face Calgary Wild FC on Sunday, September 6th at 2:00 p.m. ET.
KAYLEE HUNTER: Kaylee Hunter scored a goal and added an assist on Sunday. The 18-year-old striker currently sits third in the league’s Golden Boot race with nine goals on the year, and is tied for fifth in assists with three.
SARAH STRATIGAKIS: Sarah Stratigakis scored her fourth goal of the year on Sunday, earning her seventh overall goal contribution.
YOUTH DEVELOPMENT PERMIT: AFC Toronto Academy’s Isabella Lanzillotta and Gabriela Istocki were available on the bench for Toronto on Sunday, joining the main club on Youth Development Permits.
LEAGUE’S BEST DEFENCE: AFC Toronto has the fewest goals against this season, with just 18 conceded in 18 games. Toronto also sits second in the league in goal differential at +12.
BMO FIELD: Sunday’s win marked the club’s first at BMO Field.
HEAD-TO-HEAD: AFC Toronto has a 1-2-1 record against Rapid FC this season.
UP NEXT: AFC Toronto hosts Calgary Wild FC at BMO Field on Sunday, September 6th 2:00 p.m. ET (Available on CBC).
MATCH SUMMARY
AFC Toronto - 2 | Ottawa Rapid FC - 1
Venue: BMO Field
Referee: Carly Shaw-MacLaren
Assistants: Twayne Anderson, Stéphanie Fortin
Fourth Official: Melvin Christopher
Referee Observer: Patricia Koutoulas
SCORING SUMMARY
AFC Toronto: K. Hunter (73’), S. Stratigakis (86’)
Ottawa Rapid FC: F. Belzile (89’)
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
72’ - Yellow: Minyoung Jung (Ottawa Rapid FC)
STARTING LINEUP & STATS
AFC Toronto Starting Lineup:
GK Sabrina D’Angelo (Welland, ON)
DF Victoria Pickett (Barrie, ON)
DF Sarah Rollins (Toronto, ON)
DF Shelina Zadorsky (London, ON)
MF Colby Barnett (USA)
MF Olivia Chisholm (Toronto, ON)
MF Zoe Burns (USA)
MF Nikayla Small (Pickering, ON)
FW Kaylee Hunter (Calgary, AB)
FW Lauren Rowe (Conception Bay South, NL)
FW Lena Silano (USA)
Substitutes: Sierra Cota-Yarde (GK), Ashley Cathro (DF), Croix Soto (DF), Nyota Katembo (MF), April Lantaigne (MF), Isabella Lanzillotta* (MF), Sarah Stratigakis (MF), Mia Fontana (FW), Gabriela Istocki* (FW)
*Youth Development Permit (YDP)
Total Shots: 13
Shots on Goal: 3
Fouls: 7
Offsides: 1
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.afctoronto.ca/games/2026-08-30-toronto-ottawa
More from the locker room:
Marko Milanović, on the club’s first win at BMO Field: “We had some tough times in this stadium, more on the results side, not on the performance side. Finally today we got that win that we wanted so much.”
Milanović, on Hunter’s free kick goal: “It was a massive moment obviously from a very young player. I think a lot of our young players have had moments today, and in an important game, where they can really take them and grow from it. Nyota’s goal-saving tackle was just as important as Kaylee's goal. And I think we had a lot of those moments today where I think our young players can really grow from and that's what I'm really, really happy about.”
Nikki Small, on the midfield battle: “I think in any game, the game is won or lost in the midfield and I think there are spells where their midfield was really good and there were spells where our midfield was good. At the end of the day, (it was) who wanted it more, and then we obviously showed that.”
Nyota Katembo, on contributing to the team’s win as a substitute: “I think players on the bench are as important as people that are starting. I think it's like we're game finishers. We're there to finish the game and to just help the team win. So I think I did my job today and I'm always happy either to start or to be on the bench.”
Milanović, on the team being three points behind first place: “We’ve just got to continue to get better. We were 16 points behind about a month ago, behind first place. Now we're three points behind. Our goal is still the same. We haven't been shy about saying that even when we were 16 points behind. Our goal is always to win every trophy available, but really the key thing is to continue to improve.”
Milanović, on Hunter and Chisholm departing the club for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup: “Those are two big losses. We've been dealing with absences all year long, starting with preseason and Sam (Chang) being out. Esther (Okoronkwo) hasn't played. I mean, she played one 90-minute game all year. But I've been saying all along that our strength is in our training environment, in the depth of the squad. Obviously our technical director over there has everything to do with that in terms of recruitment, but we have a very deep squad and we're not afraid to play any of our players on the roster. So now, another two absences, and it's going to be next player up and we just have to perform.”