After dropping two of the first three sets, the York University Lions women’s volleyball team battled back to earn a tough 3-2 comeback victory over the University of Toronto Varsity Blues Saturday night at the Tait McKenzie Centre.
With the win, the No. 5 nationally ranked Lions improved to 10-0 on the year and remain the only 
undefeated team in the country. The loss dropped the Varsity Blues to 5-7 on the year.
The Lions delivered in a do-or-die fourth set, leaping to an early lead and never relinquishing it. Middle blocker Michelle Pierce was a major factor in the Lions’ success, posting critical blocks and well placed tips that translated into points en route to a 25-18 set for the Lions to force the deciding fifth set.
The Lions dominated the match’s final set, as Melissa Humana-Paredes served for a five-point run. The Lions jumped out to an early 7-1 lead and never looked back, closing out the final set 15-6 to take the match. More details on the York Lions website.
One night earlier, the Lions kicked off the new year right where they left off, defeating the Ryerson University Rams in straight sets.
The opening set started with the Rams picking up two straight points after a couple of nice rallies went in their favour. However, the Lions would explode on the back of third-year outside hitter Brandie Wilkerson, who contributed multiple key blocks and kills. The Lions took the first set by a score of 25-17. More details.
Messier’s two goals lead men’s hockey Lions over Thunderwolves
Team captain Jesse Messier scored two goals to lead the York University Lions men’s hockey team to a 4-2 victory over the Lakehead University Thunderwolves at Canlan Ice Sports on Friday night, extending the squad’s unbeaten streak to four games.
The game opened with a predictably rough first period that saw both teams try to grind the other down. Lakehead forward Jake Carrick got the game’s first scoring chance, picking up a clever drop pass and firing a shot past Lions’ goalie Andrew Perugini and off the post.
For the Lions, forward Mackenzie Micks created several scoring chances with his hard skating, and the Lions’ best scoring opportunity came off the stick of Tyler McGee, who made a clear charge for the net and fired the puck, only to be denied by the quick glove of Thunderwolves’ goalie Alex Dupuis.
Despite a number of chances, neither the Lions nor the Thunderwolves could solve the opposing defence and the first period ended in a 0-0 draw. More details.
The two teams faced off again the following night, this time with the Thunderwolves topping the Lions by a score of 5-3.
The first period saw the Thunderwolves get the first good scoring chance, but Perugini was there to close the door and it was still scoreless. After the Lions failed to capitalize on a power play, Lakehead got its first man-advantage at 8:55 of the frame. With 30 seconds left in the power play, Lakehead forward Mike Hammond let a booming shot go from the point, beating Perugini to make it 1-0. More details.
Men’s volleyball Lions down Rams, move into fifth-place tie
The York University Lions men’s volleyball team was victorious on Friday night, downing the Ryerson University Rams by a final score of 3-1 at the Tait Mackenzie Centre.
The first set was tightly contested from start to finish as neither team was able to run away with it. York would hold the largest lead of the set at 10-7, but the Rams would answer back to take a 16-15 lead after some impressive kills.
The rest of the set saw both teams trade points, with the Rams unable to go up by more than one. That would prove costly as after Ryerson had set point at 24-22, the Lions rallied with four straight points to take the opening set 26-24. More details.
On Saturday night, the Lions rallied from two-sets-to-one down but were ultimately defeated in five sets by the University of Toronto Varsity Blues
After a heroic effort for victory in the fourth set, the Lions failed to gather any momentum in the deciding fifth and lost the critical set 15-9. It was a disappointing finish to a game that saw the Lions repeatedly rallying from behind to put its sets on the board. More details.
Ridgebacks clip women’s hockey Lions in shootout
The York University Lions women’s hockey team squared off against the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) Ridgebacks on Sunday afternoon, falling by a final score of 2-1 in a shootout at Canlan Ice Sports.
The low-scoring affair required a shootout to determine a winner after neither team could find the back of the net in the five-minute overtime period. It took four rounds as both goalies continued their strong play, but finally UOIT’s Sarah Worthington put one behind York goalie Megan Lee for the winning marker. More details.
The previous day, the Lions played host to the No. 5 Queen’sn University Gaels, dropping a 5-2 decision at the team’s fifth annual Roar for a Cure game.
The opening frame kicked off slowly as both teams were feeling each other out, limiting the offensive scoring chances and having most of the play in the neutral zone.
York would get the first scoring chance of the game on a nice shot from the slot, but it was turned away by Queen’s goalie Mel Dodd-Moher. However, the Lions would strike first on a shot that bounced off the boards right in front of the net for an easy tap in for fifth-year forward and team captain Chloe Milano. More details.
Gaels top women’s basketball Lions in ‘Shoot for the Cure’ game
The York University Lions women’s basketball team dropped a tough loss to the Queen’s University Gaels on Thursday night, falling 70-63 in Kingston.
The Lions struggled in the first quarter despite earning the first basket at the hands of Courtney Osborne. After that, however, the Gaels offence surged, wracking up consecutive points from free throws as well a three-pointer from Gemma Bullard and a tough three-pointer from Rachel Urosevic. The Gaels led 23-11 going into the second.
The Lions rallied in the second, opening with a three-pointer from Nadia Qahwash and two last-minute three-pointers from Erin Sarapnickas in a quarter that saw the Lions outscore the Gaels 20-15 to trail by just 38-31 at the half. More details.
Men’s basketball Lions drop tough game to Gaels in Kingston
The York University Lions’ men’s basketball team met the Queen’s University Gaels in Kingston. on Thursday, battling to a 92-72 defeat.
The Lions fell into a tough early deficit in the high-scoring first quarter, and trailed 31-18 heading into the second. The offensive pace slowed down considerably, and saw the Gaels outscore the Lions just 16-9 to take a 47-27 lead into halftime.
York played a universally stronger second half, improving to a 21-point third quarter that finished 70-48 in the Gaels’ favour. The Lions managed to outscore the Gaels’ 24-22 in the final quarter, but the Gael’s lead was by then insurmountable, and they cruised to the victory. More details.
Track and field Lions post strong results at Can Am Meet in Windsor
The York University Lions track and field team put together an impressive weekend of results at the Can Am Meet hosted by the University of Windsor.
Leading the way was Evander Cobbold, who won an individual gold medal in the 300m and added another in the 4x400m relay. The rookie sprinter crossed the finish line of the 300m race in a time of 35.62 seconds, finishing atop a field of 28 runners in first place. Teammate Birko Montinat also had a strong race, finishing in fourth place in a time of 35.84 seconds.
Cobbold and Montinat then teamed with Ryan Charlton and Andrew Heaney to finish in first place in the 4x400m relay. Their winning time was clocked at 3:26.09. More details.
Wrestler Abtan wins silver at Brock Open
York University Lions wrestler Robert Abtan won the silver medal in the senior men’s 65kg division at the Brock Open this past weekend in St. Catharines.
Abtan won three straight matches without conceding a point before being defeated in the final by Cody Airdrie of the Guelph Gryphons. He defeated the Impact’s Junior Alja 6-0 in the first round and Guelph’s Tom Hiebert 10-0 in the second round to advance to the final four, and then put together his most impressive showing with an 11-0 win over Alex Aubin of the Laurentian Voyageurs in the semifinals.
Abtan was one of five York wrestlers who posted top-six results at the meet. Mehrdad Pourkamali finished just off the podium in fourth place in the senior men’s 72kg division. He defeated Guelph’s Prathan Singh 12-5 in the first round and moved past Laurentian’s Jon Cohen in the second before being stopped by Gabriel Turetski of the host Badgers in the semis. More details.