Weekend wrap: Lee makes 43 saves in women’s hockey team’s upset victory over No. 2 Varsity Blues

Sunday's women's hockey game against U of T (image: Roham Abtahi)
Sunday’s women’s hockey game against U of T (image: Roham Abtahi)

York University Lions women’s hockey goaltender Megan Lee made 43 saves to lead her team to a 1-0 shootout victory over the No. 2 nationally ranked University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Sunday afternoon at Canlan Ice Sports.

The result was Lee’s second shutout of the weekend after she also blanked the Ryerson University Rams on Saturday.

Through three periods, a 4-on-4 and a 3-on-3 overtime, the game remained scoreless on Sunday. The Lions and Varsity Blues played a tight defensive style that allowed for no errors, which resulted in the low-scoring affair. More details on the York Lions website.

In the previous day’s win over the Rams, the Lions put up a convincing 4-0 victory. It was a competitive and aggressive first period, but the Lions were able to capitalize off of two chances in front of net that gave them an early 2-0 lead.

The first goal was scored at 7:54 off of a slap shot sent in by Rianna Langford after the puck was circulated between Amy Locke and Chelsea Tucker. More details.

No. 10 men’s hockey Lions upset No. 1 Redmen in thrilling affair

In a heavily heated match-up of nationally ranked teams hosted at the Canlan Ice Sports Arena, the York University Lions men’s hockey team upset the No. 1 McGill University Redmen by a 3-2 score on Saturday night.

The win moves the Lions into top spot in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) West standings with an 8-2-3 record on the year and a fifth win at home. For the Redmen, the loss stopped a nine-game winning streak and was just their second defeat of the year.

It was a very physical and fast-paced game as soon as the puck dropped, as both teams played great possession hockey to build their opportunities in front of net. More details.

On Friday night, the Lions suffered their first regulation loss on home ice with a 4-1 defeat to the University of Waterloo Warriors. The Lions came roaring out of the gates in the early part of the first period as Tyler Mort and Derek Sheppard both hit the crossbar within the first two minutes of the frame. More details.

Men’s volleyball Lions come back to defeat Varsity Blues in four sets

The York University Lions men’s volleyball team was victorious over the University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Sunday evening at the Tait McKenzie Centre by a score of 3-1.

The first set of Sunday’s match was controlled by the Blues from the get go, and the Lions couldn’t recuperate as the Varsity Blues ran away with the first set 25-15. The second set was a complete contrast to the first as the Lions roared to a hefty lead and were aggressive in their attack which gave them a 25-19 win, tying the match at one set apiece. The presence of Tyler Covach was felt in the second set as he skied for multiple spikes that set the tempo going into the third. More details.

On Friday night, the Lions were at the Mattamy Athletic Centre in Toronto and were defeated in four sets by host Ryerson University Rams. The Rams took the first two sets with identical 25-18 wins each. In the third set, however, the Lions were able to bounce back and come away with a 25-19 victory. They forced seven errors on the Rams’ side and fired in 27 attacks. More details.

Men’s basketball Lions come up short against No. 9 Marauders

The York University Lions men’s basketball team came up short on Saturday against the ninth-ranked McMaster University Marauders by a score of 88-74 at the Tait McKenzie Centre.

The Lions played a strong first quarter and held a one-point advantage after the first 10 minutes of play, at 22-21, but the Marauders found their offensive touch in the second to pull ahead 49-39 at the half. The visitors continued that strong play into the third quarter, outscoring the Lions by their biggest margin (12) to take a commanding 74-52 lead.

The Lions picked up their play in the fourth quarter and held the Marauders to just 14 points while scoring 22 themselves, but it wasn’t enough to upset McMaster. More details.

In their home opener the previous night, the Lions fell to the No. 4 nationally ranked Brock University Badgers by a score of 86-71. It was a nail-biting first quarter as both teams seemed to be sinking every shot. Nathan Culbreath made four jump shots in a row early in the quarter to edge out an a four point lead, and Jayden Frederick had the fans on their feet as he rounded out the 18-17 lead with an slam dunk. More details.

No. 4 Varsity Blues defeat women’s volleyball Lions in straight sets

The York University Lions women’s volleyball team was defeated in straight sets on Sunday by the cross-town rival University of Toronto Varsity Blues at the Tait McKenzie Centre.

The Lions exchanged points all night with the CIS fourth-ranked Blues, and although the Lions were swept in straight sets, each set was hard fought and came down to the wire. The first set was back and forth in scoring, but the Blues began to pull away at the midway point of the set, and a late comeback by Lions fell short in a 25-20 defeat. More details.

Two nights earlier, the Lions fell by a score of 3-1 to the Ryerson University Rams. After the Rams found their groove midway through the first set, the Lions struggled to narrow the lead and Ryerson ended up taking it 25-14.

In the second set, both teams battled back and forth for the win, but an eight-point sequence towards the end of the set secured the Lions the 25-19 victory. More details.

Women’s basketball Lions fall to No. 7 Badgers in home opener

After two weeks on the road, the York University Lions women’s basketball team made its home debut of the season with a 68-52 loss to the No. 7 nationally ranked Brock University Badgers on Friday night (Nov. 20).

In the first quarter, the Badgers caught the Lions on the back foot and ended up taking a 22-9 lead to start the game. Despite Brock’s convincing lead, the Lions were able to get themselves back into the game and outscored the Badgers 16-11 in the second quarter. More details.

As part of their home-opening weekend, the Lions also faced the No. 4 McMaster University Marauders and were defeated by a score of 86-45.

After falling behind 32-2 after the first quarter, the Lions began to claw their way back into the game, and leading the march was Ishanaa Seupersadsingh who scored a team high 11 points to go with four rebounds and four steals. The Lions outscored the Marauders 11-10 in the second quarter and stayed close with the Marauders throughout the second half. More details.