Football squad seeks first victory of the season

The York Lions football team will be looking for its first win of the season on Saturday, Sept. 20 at 1pm, at York Stadium as part of the annual homecoming celebration.

The squad will be in tough action as they take on the undefeated University of Western Ontario Mustangs, the reigning Yates Cup champions and current number four team in Canada. The Mustangs are tied for the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) lead with three straight victories. The Mustangs have collected 30 or more points in each game they have played this season.

Last week during the Red & Blue Bowl things did not go according to plan for York as the Lions saw their 13-game winning streak against the University of Toronto Varsity Blues come to an end with a 58-7 loss. Rookie quarterback Nick Coutu had the only touchdown for the Lions, a six-yard rush in the first quarter.

The men’s and women’s soccer teams will also be busy this week as they each have a pair of road games. They will first travel to Guelph on Wednesday, Sept. 17 for a game at 3:15pm against the University of Guelph Gryphons before heading to the University of Waterloo on Sunday, Sept. 21 at 1pm and 3:15pm for games against the Waterloo Warriors.  

Both teams are currently atop the OUA West division standings after weekend home games where the men were 2-0 and the women 1-1. The men’s team remains undefeated this season after defeating the McMaster University Marauders 3-1 and the Brock University Badgers 1-0. Adrian Pena scored a goal in each game to lead the Lions. Meanwhile, the women were handed their first loss of the season on Saturday when they fell to the Marauders 2-1. Canadian Interuniversity Sports scoring leader Stefania Morra added to her total by counting a goal in the game. The squad rebounded in its second contest of the weekend to defeat the Badgers 1-0 thanks to a goal by Alicia Donaldson.

The women’s field hockey team will continue its season this week with another pair of games on Saturday, Sept. 20 against the Carleton University Ravens at 11:30am and the Waterloo Warriors at 6:30pm. The team’s 2008-2009 campaign began last weekend with back-to-back losses to the Western Mustangs and the University of Toronto Varsity Blues.

The women’s rugby squad hopes home-field advantage will be kind this weekend on Sunday, Sept. 21 at 2pm when it looks for its first win of the season. The opponent is the Guelph Gryphons. The team is coming off two losses last week to the Toronto Varsity Blues and the Queen’s University Gaels.

The men’s and women’s tennis teams are back at home next Sunday, Sept. 21 with games at 9am and 12pm. They will take on the McMaster Marauders after a trip to Montreal this past weekend to face the McGill University Redmen and University of Montreal Carabins. Both York teams defeated McGill by identical 4-3 scores but were upended by the Carabins.

The cross country team will be in London, Ont. for the Western International, its second meet of the season. Last weekend the men finished third at the Gryphon Open in Guelph, Ont. thanks to a third-place finish by Ryan Finn. The women placed fourth.

Meanwhile, the women’s hockey team will continue its exhibition schedule with a pair of games in Montreal against the McGill Redmen on Friday, Sept. 19 and the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees on Saturday, Sept. 20.

Submitted to YFile by Alyson Grant, sport & recreation information officer.