The bad news for York Lions men’s soccer team is that it blew a chance to go undefeated in regular season play. The good news is that the season-ending loss will not affect the Lions in the standings.
Right: York Lion intercepts pass from Western player in Sunday’s 2-0 loss. Photo: Rita Abiog
The top-ranked team in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) for the past two weeks, the Lions (11-1-2) lost, 2-0, against the University of Western Ontario Mustangs (8-1-3) on Sunday at York Stadium.
While the top spot in the CIS rankings is in jeopardy, the Lions clinched first in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) West division with a 1-0 win over the Guelph Gryphons Saturday while the Mustangs were held to a 0-0 tie by the Brock University Badgers.
Division runners-up, Western has two games left, not enough to catch the Lions in the standings. The Lions will play host to an OUA West semi-final on Oct. 27 at 2pm. If they win that game, the Lions will play in the OUA Final Four at the highest-ranked East team’s stadium.
The Mustangs opened scoring in the 56th minute and added another goal later in the half to secure the victory. The Lions had many chances but were unable to capitalize on them.
Women’s team ends regular season with pair of wins
The OUA West-leading York Lions women’s soccer team ended its regular season with a 2-0 win against the visiting Western Mustangs on Sunday.
The win came on the heels of a 2-0 victory against the visiting Guelph Gryphons in York’s home game Saturday.
Right: York’s Ashley DePalma battles for the ball
in a 2-0 win over Western. Photo: Rita Abiog
Kyla Jones opened the scoring seven minutes into the game against Western as York dominated in the first half. The Lions defensive corps remained strong throughout the game. Goalie Aurelea Gumiela was unbeatable as she turned aside a penalty shot in the second half and recorded the shutout for York.
Stefania Morra continued to control the field with a goal against the Mustangs as well as a goal against Guelph, giving her a CIS-leading 19 on the season. The Lions, ranked fourth in the CIS, ended regular season play with a record of 13-1.
The Lions will begin post-season play on Oct. 27 at 11:30am when they play host to an OUA West semi-final at York Stadium. If they win that game, the Lions will play host to the OUA Final Four the following weekend.
Submitted to YFile by Alessia Cianni, sport information assistant, in York’s School of Kinesiology & Health Science, Faculty of Health.