The York University Lions reclaimed Ontario University Athletics (OUA) supremacy and lifted the Blackwood Cup for the second consecutive year and the fifth time in the past six years, after shutting down the Carleton University Ravens with a 3-1 victory in the OUA final match.
York started early on as Maurizio Ragone shot a bullet into the right lower corner of Raven Nick Jeff's goal after a lost ball in the middle of the field for a 1-0 lead. OUA first-team all-star Jorgo Nika increased the gap with his first goal of the night on a beautiful header to the first post from a corner kick by Dylan Carreiro to make the score 2-0 Lions. More details on the York Lions website.
A day earlier, while playing in the second semifinal of the day against the Ryerson University Rams, the Lions needed well over 60 minutes to put themselves ahead of the game, while Ryerson demonstrated to be a tough challenge in what was a defensive-minded game throughout.
In a scoreless first half, both teams had a few chances to open the score and while Ryerson had a better control coming from the back, York created the best opportunities of the half with five shots on goal against three for Ryerson. More details.
Lions win second consecutive silver medal at U SPORTS championships
The York University Lions field hockey team fought hard in Game 2 of the U SPORTS national championships, but it wasn't enough to top the University of Victoria Vikes, as U Vic took the game by a score of 3-1. With the win, the Vikes will bring home the program's first national banner since 2008, while the Lions win the national silver medal for the second year in a row.
The game was intense from the beginning, as both teams seemed desperate to get off to a good start. The Lions had the first scoring chance after U SPORTS all-Canadian Jaslan Stirling broke in front of the Vikes net and was fouled inside the circle. An ensuing penalty corner was defended well by the Vikes defence though, as they shut down the Lions attack and cleared the ball quickly away from goalie Robin Fleming's net. More details.
The Lions dropped Game 1 on Friday afternoon, playing on a cold day with drizzling rain. The game started slowly with both teams trading possessions early on. The Lions had the first good scoring opportunity 10 minutes into the game when forward Jaslan Stirling set up Prava Sandhu inside the box after dekeing around a Vikes defender. Sandhu was foiled by Vikes goalie Robin Fleming, who made the first big save of the game to keep the score tied 0-0.
Fleming made another highlight-reel save at the 16-minute mark, as she stoned Stirling this time after the forward snuck behind the Victoria defence and ripped a shot that the netminder sprawled to stop. A few minutes later, the Vikes looked dangerous in the Lions end, but a crossing pass was deftly broken up by Lions defender Sydney McFaul to shut down the scoring chance. More details.
Malu and Agard bring home medals at McMaster Open
A small contingent of York University Lions wrestled this weekend at the McMaster Open in Hamilton, Ont., with two of the three competitors bringing back medals.
Third-year wrestler Josh Malu led the way for the team with a first-place finish in the men's 57-kg category. Malu defeated a pair of Marauders on his way to the finals, beating Francesco Fortino 12-0 in the opening round and Spencer Lee 11-2 in the semifinals. In the gold medal match, Malu claimed the top step on the podium by defeating Garette Saunders of the Brock Badgers by a score of 8-3. More details.
Lions stay undefeated with win over Gryphons
The York University Lions women's volleyball team beat the University of Guelph Gryphons on the road in Guelph, Ont., on Friday by a score of 3-1. The Lions lost the first set 25-18 to the Gryphons and although they were handily defeated in the first set, they were able to make a comeback throughout the remainder of the game and win the following three sets.
In the second set, the Lions beat the Gryphons by a close score of 25-22. The third set saw another close win by the Lions as they took the set in a 25-23, while in the final set of the game the two teams reversed original scores and York won by a 25-18 score. More details.
Two days later, the women's volleyball team impressed the crowd in the first home game of the season dominating three sets to defeat the visiting Trent University Excalibur 3-0 on Sunday afternoon at the Tait Mackenzie Centre.
The Lions have started off their season strong and are now 3-0 on the season after previously defeating the Nipissing Lakers and the Guelph Gryphons in their first two away games.
The Lions sailed through the first set, building a 16-6 lead by the midway point. The Lions continued to outplay the Excalibur and finished off the set with a final score of 25-11. More details.
Lions defeat Excalibur in first home game of season
The York University men's volleyball team won their first game of the season 3-0 against the Trent University Excalibur in front of the home crowd at the Tait Mackenzie Centre on Sunday evening.
The Lions were off to a slow start as Trent was able to lead 11-7 early in the first set. After a kill by York's Andrew Tauhid got the crowd going, the Lions were back on track and led the Excalibur midway through the set 16-14. The rest of the set was close as the Excalibur managed to trail one point behind the Lions. After a York timeout, Toure Nwakwesi came back into the set with a huge kill, followed by Tauhid with a service ace to finish the set 25-21 for the Lions. More details.
On Friday night, the Lions men's volleyball team lost to the Guelph Gryphons with a final score of 3-1 on Friday, Nov. 2 in Guelph, Ont. The Lions won their first set as they battled their way towards a 26-24 win against the Gryphons.
In the final three sets, however, the Gryphons were able to secure each set to take victory over the Lions. In the second set, the Gryphons surpassed the Lions by seven points, giving them a 25-18 win. More details.
Lions score big win on road over Lancers
The York University Lions men's basketball team was able to lead the University of Windsor Lancers through all four quarters and come away with a 76-73 victory at St. Denis Centre on Friday evening. The win for the Lions snapped a lengthy regular season losing streak for the squad dating back to last season and evens their record at 1-1 on the year.
Despite the Lions leading all four quarters, the Lancers were the first to get on the scoreboard, earning five points from two layups and a free throw. Chevon Brown scored the Lions' first points with a jump shot, followed by Nicholas Duncan who sunk a three-pointer. The quarter was close in points from both the Lions and Lancers; however, after a three-point jump shot by Prince Kamunga that brought the score to 11-9, the Lions continued to lead and finished the quarter with a score of 18-17. More details.
The following day, the Lions competed against the University of Western Mustangs and, despite outscoring the Mustangs by seven points in the second half, the Lions were defeated 78-61 on Saturday evening at Alumni Hall in London, Ont.
The Lions got off to a slow start in the first and second quarter as the Mustangs added 18 points to the scoreboard that the Lions were able to score their first points of the game with a layup made by Chevon Brown. Brown scored all six of the Lions' points in a tough opening quarter, sinking four free throws to end the quarter at 25-6 for the Mustangs. More details.
Lions win first game of season against Mustangs
The York University women's basketball team had a huge fourth quarter and netted a 35-point victory over the University of Western Mustangs by a score of 77-42 on Saturday evening at Alumni Hall in London, Ont.
The entire Lions squad contributed to the massive win, with every player on the roster racking up points against the Mustangs. Leading the way was Lauren Golding who earned 11 points and nine rebounds, while veteran Haley Bowie picked up 11 points and six rebounds. Similarly, Madison Bardoel had 11 points and three rebounds, and close behind was Emma Jonas with 10 points, three rebounds and two steals. More details.
A day prior, the Lions jumped out to an early lead, but were unable to hold on. They were defeated by the University of Windsor Lancers 97-76 at St. Denis Centre in Windsor, Ont., on Friday evening.
The Lions were the first to get on the scoreboard when Lauren Golding nailed both of her free throw attempts. For the next five minutes, the first quarter saw back-and-forth action as the Lions and Lancers were close in points. The Lancers were able to build a 10-point lead, 19-10; however, the Lions dominated the last three minutes of the quarter, building on the momentum of a three-pointer by Emma Jonas. More details.
Rams too much for Lions in Friday night home game
The York University men's hockey team was defeated by the Ryerson Rams 8-3 after a huge third period by the Rams at Canlan Ice Sports on Friday evening.
The intensity was high as the two top teams of the OUA West competed for the first time this season. The Lions were close in shots to the Rams with 32 compared to the Rams' 40; however, the Rams dominated the third period, scoring five goals with only 12 shots on net. Leading the way for the Rams was Matt Mistele who earned himself a hat trick with a goal in the first period and two goals in the third. More details.
Lions unable to capture city bragging rights, fall to Blues on Saturday afternoon
The York University Lions women's hockey team lost 5-3 to the University of Toronto (U of T) Varsity Blues on Saturday, Nov. 4 at Canlan Ice Sports.
The Blues were the first to score between the two Toronto-based teams. It took a little over 15 minutes for the first goal of the game to make its appearance on the scoreboard, when Blues forward Kassie Roache scored the first goal for the visiting team in the first period of the game. More details.
Earlier in the week, the Lions played the University of Guelph Gryphons at Canlan Ice Sports on Wednesday, Oct. 31 and lost 4-0 in their fourth game of the regular season.
Guelph got off to a strong start as they scored two goals within the first four minutes of the first period. It was Guelph's Gabrielle Smith who scored the opening goal of the game and, minutes later, the Gryphons' Miranda Lantz secured the second goal for the visiting team, which was assisted by forward Ashlee Lawrence. More details.