The York University Lions men’s soccer team defeated the visiting Wilfrid Laurier University Golden Hawks 2-0 in an Ontario University Athletics quarter-final game on Saturday afternoon to advance to the provincial Final Four Championships.
The Lions (13-2-2) will host the event Nov. 6 and 7 at York Stadium thanks to their first-place finish in the OUA West.
The winning goal was scored in the first minute of the game when striker Adrian Pena headed the ball into the back of the net on the first attack of the contest after a perfect pass from Moreno Alberti. Pena was the top goal scorer in the OUA throughout the regular season with 13 tallies. See more details on the York Lions website.
Rolheiser, men’s hockey Lions blank Thunderwolves
Travis Rolheiser made 41 saves for his first career shutout as the York University Lions men’s hockey team earned a 3-0 victory over the Lakehead University Thunderwolves at the West Orillia Sports Complex on Saturday.
The rookie netminder from Edmonton was impressive throughout the game but particularly in the first period. The Thunderwolves spent the majority of the period in Lions’ territory and fired 22 shots at Rolheiser, but he stood tall to make every save. More details.
In the other game between the two teams this weekend, the Thunderwolves’ high-powered offence proved to be too much for the Lions as they were defeated 5-2 during Friday night action at Canlan Ice Sports. More details.
Mustangs take out women’s soccer Lions with 1-0 win
Erin Grand’s goal in the 82nd minute was all the University of Western Ontario Mustangs women’s soccer team needed on Wednesday for a 1-0 victory over the York University Lions in a first-round playoff game at York Stadium.
The midfielder from London, Ont., scored from 10 yards out on a gorgeous kick that got past the outstretched arms of Lions rookie goaltender Samira Sarvian-Somer. More details.
Field hockey Lions finish sixth at OUA championships
The University of Western Ontario Mustangs and University of Waterloo Warriors advanced to the semifinals of the OUA field hockey championships with victories in their first round games at Downsview Park.
The Mustangs were the first team to advance with a 3-2 victory over the host York University Lions in the first game on Friday afternoon, and the Warriors got through later in the day with a 3-0 win over the Atlantic University Sport champion Dalhousie University Tigers.
The game between the Mustangs and Lions pitted the fourth seed against the fifth, both teams came into the game with 7-7 records, and the contest proved to be as close as their matching regular-season records would indicate. More details.
The following day, the Lions were defeated by the Tigers 2-1 in the game for fifth place.
Alex Turriff was a force for the Tigers, scoring twice in the first half. Despite some bouts of sustained pressure, the Lions were unable to respond before halftime.
In the second half, the Lions came out hungry for a goal and pressured the Tigers hard; however, they were not rewarded for their efforts until the 66th minute, when Shannon Vance beat Tigers’ goalkeeper Ashley Simon to cut the Tigers’ lead to just 2-1. Vance’s goal sparked her squad, but they could not create any further scoring chances before time expired. More details.
Cross country Lions finish strong at OUA championships
The York University Lions cross country teams, led by Dale Findlay and Kevin Montgomery, closed out their seasons with a pair of solid finishes at the OUA Championships in Guelph on Saturday.
The Lions women finished 10th in the team draw, while the men finished 13th.
Findlay posted the best time for the Lions women, finishing the 5km course in just 19:05. She was 26th out of a field of 107 runners. On the men’s side, Montgomery posted the best time for the Lions. Montgomery finished the 10km course in 34:42, which was good enough for 54th place out of a field of 131 runners. More details.
Women’s hockey Lions lose heartbreaker to Varsity Blues
Amanda Fawns’s goal with 50 seconds left on the clock gave the University of Toronto Varsity Blues a 3-2 victory over the York University Lions women’s hockey team on Saturday afternoon.
In the dying seconds, the Lions turned the puck over in their own end. There was a scramble in the crease, where Lions goaltender Sydney Brown made two sprawling saves. However, the rebound went right to Fawns, who blasted in the winning goal.
The Lions kept the match close with goals from Chloe Milano and Katie Ippolito. More details.
Submitted by Alyson Fisher, sport & recreation information officer for Sport York