Sports recap: Men’s basketball Lions top division-rival Gaels

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Richard Iheadindu, York Lions basketball player, in game action against the Queen's University Gaels
Richard Iheadindu, York Lions basketball player, in game action against the Queen’s University Gaels

The York University Lions men’s basketball team defeated the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) East division-rival Queen’s University Gaels 76-63 on Saturday at the Tait McKenzie Centre.

The home team dominated the first quarter at 20-9. The Gaels caught up before half time by a thin margin at 30-28. The Lions reorganized themselves and managed to preserve their lead at the third quarter at 50-45. The fourth quarter was all about the Lions as they marked a crucial 76-63 victory.

The win moved the Lions back over .500 on the year at 6-5, and they continue to hold down second place in the OUA East.  More details on the York Lions website.

Stathopulos scores two in women’s hockey Lions win over Ridgebacks

The York University Lions women’s hockey team took down the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) Ridgebacks 3-1 on Sunday in Oshawa, Ont., thanks to a pair of goals by Lisa Stathopulos.

With the two goals, the fifth-year forward remains the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) scoring leader with 27 points and is also first with 15 goals.

In the first period Sarai Whitty was the lone scorer with a goal at 6:51 that was assisted by Dana Somerville and Justine TreadwellMore details.

Also this weekend, the No. 4 nationally ranked Queen’s University Gaels earned a 3-2 victory over the Lions at Canlan Ice Sports in the team’s annual Roar for a Cure game.

Kristen Barbara played an excellent game for the Lions as she criss-crossed the puck between the Gaels and held a strong defence. Barbara highlighted the game by scoring a goal 17 metres from the goal line in the second.  More details.

Men’s volleyball Lions take down Gryphons in four sets

The York University Lions men’s volleyball team defeated the University of Guelph Gryphons 3-1 in a difficult match on Sunday at the Tait McKenzie Centre.

The Gryphons won the first set 25-15, while the Lions won the second 25-17, the third 25-18 and the fourth 25-22.

Ray Szeto opened up the scoring with a kill on the Gryphons. After a series of service errors from the Lions and kills from Gryphon players Patrick Strzalkowski and Marc Wilson, the Gryphons began to take the lead 6-5.  More details.

As part of their weekend schedule the Lions also lost a four-set match to the University of Waterloo Warriors on Saturday afternoon. It was a tight match in the first set that ended at 27-25 for the Warriors. The visitors dominated the Lions in the following set at 25-15. The Lions pulled one back to deny a straight-sets win for the Warriors at 28-26. The Warriors completed their victory at the fourth set that ended 25-23.  More details.

Women’s volleyball Lions sweep Thunderwolves

The York University Lions women’s volleyball team extended its winning streak to four games as they defeated the Lakehead Thunderwolves in straight sets on Sunday in a home game at the Tait McKenzie Centre.

The Lions won the first set 25-19, the second 25-15 and the third 25-16.

The Thunderwolves opened up the scoring with a kill from Jennifer Casey and an attack error from the Lions.

The Lions quickly fought back with three kills from Michelle Pierce and two from Aleks Arsovic. Three attack errors from the Thunderwolves, helped give the Lions a 9-2 lead.  More details.

Pentathletes shine at Fred Foot Memorial Meet

Pentathletes on the York University Lions track and field team competed at their first meet of the season this weekend at the Fred Foot Memorial Meet at the University of Toronto, with all three of them setting new personal-best marks.

Justin Massar finished sixth in the men’s event with 3402 points, which qualifies him for the OUA championships. He set personal-best marks in the 60-metre hurdles (8.90 seconds) and the high jump (1.88 metres), and also surpassed the OUA standard in those two events, as well as the long jump and shot put.

In the women’s event, Tracey Edwards and Alix Mahood finished sixth and seventh, respectively, with personal-best point totals that also qualified them for the OUA championships.  More details.

Comeback falls short as No. 10 Mustangs top men’s hockey Lions

The York University Lions men’s hockey team narrowly lost to the No. 10 nationally ranked Western University Mustangs 3-2 in overtime on Friday in London, Ont.

Cody Brown scored the winning goal just over a minute into the overtime. Stefan Salituro provided the assist.

The winner came after the Mustangs coughed up a two-goal lead in the final two minutes of the game. The visitors were trailing by 2-0 at the start of the third period, but late goals by Jordan Forfar and Michael Santini forced the game to overtime and earned the Lions a crucial point in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) West standings.  More details.

The following night, a late goal by the visiting University of Guelph Gryphons gave the Lions their first regulation loss of 2015 by a 4-3 score at Canlan Ice Sports.

In the first period Shayne Rover opened up the scoring at 7:55 with a superb goal from 17 metres out on the left side, where he sent the puck sprawling to the top left corner of the net. The Gryphons didn’t let the Lions hold the lead for very long, however, as Scott Simmonds scooped in an effortless goal at 10:07, levelling the score at 1-1 after the first period of play.  More details.

Gaels use big second half to defeat women’s basketball Lions

The York University Lions women’s basketball team lost 66-56 to the division-rival Queen’s University Gaels on Saturday at the Tait McKenzie Centre after a big second half by the visitors opened up what was a tie game at the half.

With the loss the Lions remain at the bottom of the OUA East standings with a 2-9 record. The Gaels improved to 7-3 and are still second in the division. The Gaels dominated the first quarter with a high pressure play on the Lions’ court. The visitors had the majority of possession due to the number of turnovers committed by the Lions.  More details.