The York University Lions men’s hockey team qualified for the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) final and earned a berth at the U SPORTS championships with a 6-3 victory over the University of Windsor Lancers in Game 3 of their OUA West final series on Saturday night at Canlan Ice Sports.
The result represents the first time the Lions will play for the Queen’s Cup since 2004, when they were last crowned champions.
The first period provided an offensive showcase as four total goals would be scored. The Lions opened up the scoring 11 minutes into the game when Reid Jackman sent a cross-crease pass to the awaiting Scott Feser for a one-time goal. More details on the York Lions website.
In Game 1 of the series, the Lions posted a 5-3 victory over the Lancers at South Windsor Arena in Windsor, Ont. For the third time in as many series-opening games, the Lions needed a comeback to win after falling behind early. Against the Lancers, they trailed 1-0 and 2-1 before scoring three unanswered goals to pull away with the victory.
The first period went nearly scoreless, but the Lancers earned a 1-0 lead just 22 seconds before the final whistle when Justice Dundas scored his second of the playoffs. More details.
The series required a deciding Game 3 after the Lancers earned a 4-2 victory in the second game, which was played back at Canlan Ice Sports. In the opening period on Friday, the Lions took an aggressive stance with high hopes of connecting the first punch. Their plan of action came to fruition when Bryce Milson sniped a wrist shot from the high left slot that gave the home team a 1-0 lead just 1:13 into the contest.
Thirteen minutes later, the Lancers let everyone inside the arena know they were not phased by York’s early advantage as they would score off of a wrist shot from the low slot by Dylan Seguin to neutralize the game at 1-1. More details.
Warriors upset men’s volleyball Lions in OUA quarter-final match
The York University Lions men’s volleyball team opened up their 2016-17 playoff campaign on Saturday afternoon against the University of Waterloo Warriors at the Tait McKenzie Centre and saw its season come to an end sooner than they wanted in a 3-1 loss in their Ontario University Athletics (OUA) quarter-final match.
In the opening frame of the match the Lions looked out of their usual high-flying form. The Warriors shot out to a quick lead that slowly began to compound against the Lions. Alex Duncan-Thibault took to his usual business regardless of the score in the set en route to his team leading 20 kills, but the set would end 25-17 in favour of the Warriors.
In the second set the Lions would be pushed to the limit as they desperately needed to get back into the match. Duncan-Thibault continued his dominant play all the way through to the final point and was credited with two of the final three kills to take the set by a score of 27-25 and pull even with the Warriors. More details.
Women’s volleyball Lions swept by Marauders in opening playoff game
The York University Lions women’s volleyball team faced a tough opponent in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) quarter-finals on Saturday and was defeated in straight sets by the No. 8 nationally ranked McMaster University Marauders at Burridge Gymnasium in Hamilton, Ont.
The Marauders made quick work of the Lions in the opening set, scoring five of the first six points en route to a dominant 25-6 score.
The Marauders carried that momentum into the first part of the second set before the Lions finally found their groove and starting stringing together points. The visitors trailed by just one, at 16-15, at the technical timeout and was tied with McMaster at 22-22, but the Marauders scored the last three points of the set to make it 25-22 and pull ahead 2-0. More details.