For the first time in 19 seasons, Graham Wise will not be behind the York bench when his hockey team takes to the ice at Canlan Ice Sports arena at York. Instead, Wise will be coaching the visiting Ryerson Rams when they play the York Lions, Wednesday at 7:30pm. The game also marks the home debut of the Lions’ new 
bench boss, Bill Maguire, who was a former captain and assistant coach under Wise.
Right: Bill Maguire
Maguire and Wise share a history of winning at York. As a player, Maguire captained the team from 1985 to 1989, winning three Ontario University Athletics Association (OUAA) titles and back-to-back national championships in 1988 and 1989. As a coach, Wise took the team to 11 division titles and two national championships. This will be the only meeting of the year between Wise and Maguire. Tickets can be purchased at the arena. Cost for admission is $8 for adults and $5 for non-York students. As always, York students get into the game for free.
The men’s hockey team opened the regular season last week in Kingston with dates against the Royal Military College Paladins and Queen’s Golden Gaels. Jerry Clarke scored twice, while Tyler Harrison and Sean Langdon added two helpers each in a 6-3 setback to the Paladins on Friday. Saturday, the team played to a 3-3 tie with the Gaels. Jesse Grespan and Matt Passfield had two points each for the Lions.
The women’s hockey team also began regular season play this past week, tying the Windsor Lancers 1-1 at home, before dropping a tough 5-4 road contest to the No. 10-ranked Guelph Gryphons. Justine Jackson scored for the Lions in the game against Windsor, while Kaylee Black and Riley Edwards each had a goal and an assist in the loss to Guelph. This week, the team welcomes the Brock Badgers and Western Mustangs to the Canlan Ice Sports arena at York for a pair of weekend afternoon games.
The women’s volleyball team earned silver at their invitational tournament this past weekend at the Tait McKenzie Centre. The team finished with a 3-2 record, with both losses coming in five-set marathons against the eventual champion Toronto Varsity Blues. York opens the OUA regular season this Friday, when the team looks for revenge against the Blues. The men’s volleyball team captured bronze at the Queen’s Invitational Tournament over the weekend. In the third-place match, the Lions used 22 kills from Ryan Anderson and 16 from Mike Greene to edge the Western Mustangs, 3-2. York libero Rob Dyba was named a tournament all-star. The Lions open the season Friday night at Toronto.
In the pool, the Lions women’s water polo team opened the season with an 8-7 win over the University of Toronto Varsity Blues. Kara Knowles had an outstanding game for York, recording three goals and four assists. The third-year criminology major scored twice in the final quarter, including the game-winner with a minute left in regulation. For her efforts, Knowles is this week’s Female Athlete of the Week. The Lions look to move to 2-0 this Saturday when they face McMaster. The men’s water polo team fell 20-11 to the Blues. Ryan Forde led the way with four goals for the Lions. Looking ahead to this week’s action, the team plays host to the Western Mustangs and McMaster Marauders on Saturday.
Right: Kara Knowles
The Lions women’s soccer team finally broke out of mid-season scoring slump, playing to a 3-0 victory at York Stadium on Sunday against the Wilfred Laurier Golden Hawks. Nicole Burling scored the game’s opening goal just 27 seconds in, and April Noga added two more for the 3-1-8 Lions. Earlier in the week, the team played to a 0-0 draw with Guelph. Lions keeper Aurelea Gumiela earned her ninth and 10th shutouts on the season, tops in the nation. The men’s soccer squad played to a pair of ties last week. On Wednesday, the team played to a 0-0 draw with Guelph. Sunday, a second-half goal by rookie striker Luca Forno earned the team a 1-1 tie with Laurier. Both the men’s and women’s teams play at home this weekend against Windsor and Western, with home playoff dates still within reach.
The Lions football team saw their post-season hopes dashed after a heartbreaking 16-14 overtime loss to the visiting Queen’s Golden Gaels Saturday at York Stadium. In the final home game of his career, running back Pearce Akpata earned Athlete of the Week honours after rushing for a game-high 146 yards and scoring the Lions’ only major of the contest. The team wraps up the regular season this Saturday when they travel to Waterloo to take on the Warriors.
Right: Pearce Akpata
The Lions women’s field hockey squad had a busy week, going 1-1-1 over three games. In their first match, Nicole Zaharopoulos scored twice in a 2-2 draw with Toronto. The team’s undefeated streak came to an end on Saturday, when they fell 1-0 to Guelph. Sunday the Lions rebounded with a convincing 5-0 victory over Waterloo. This week, the squad plays four matches in four days when they take on teams from the University of Toronto, University of Western Ontario, Carleton University and McGill.
Women’s rugby wrapped up league play last week, topping the Toronto Varsity Blues 17-0 on Wednesday, before falling to the division-leading McMaster Marauders, 17-0, on Sunday. With a 4-2 record, the squad qualifies for the OUA Quarterfinals, where they will face the Waterloo Warriors this Wednesday.
The badminton team fell 11-2 against the Toronto Varsity Blues, evening its season record at 1-1. Yearnny Tam won both of his pairs matches for York.
Swimming opened the regular season with a tri-meet against Trent and Carleton. The men’s swim team lost to Carleton and tied Trent, while the women lost both match-ups.
Cross country took to the hills at Fort Henry in Kingston for the Queen’s University Open this past weekend. The men’s cross country team placed seventh, while the women’s cross country team wound up in 12th. This week, the squad travels to St. Catherines for the Brock University Open.
York’s basketball teams were both out east for a series of exhibition contests last week. The women’s basketball squad split four games, defeating St. Mary’s and Dalhousie, while dropping a pair against UCCB. The men’s basketball team competed in the UPEI Panthers Tournament, where they defeated St. Mary’s and the University of Prince Edward Island teams before falling to Saint Francis Xavier University. This week, exhibition play continues as the women play host to the St. Mary’s University, Laval University and University of Quebec at Montreal teams while the men entertain teams from St. Francis Xavier and the University of Alberta.
This article was submitted to YFile by Steven Reid, sport & recreation information assistant in York’s School of Kinesiology & Health Science, Faculty of Health.