Weekend wrap: York University Sport Hall of Fame welcomes six new members

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York University Athletics and Recreation and the School of Kinesiology and Health Science, Faculty of Health, officially welcomed six new inductees to the York University Sport Hall of Fame on Saturday afternoon at the annual induction ceremony.

Four former student-athletes, one coach and, for the first time ever, a team were welcomed into the Class of 2018. This year’s inductees were basketball player Mark Bellai, track and field athlete Craig Cavanagh, field hockey player Tammy Holt, rugby player Cheryl Phillips, tennis coach Eric Bojesen and the 1969-70 men’s hockey team. More details on the York Lions website.

Thrilling win on Homecoming weekend for Lions

The York Lions won a thrilling game in front of a full house at Alumni Field on Saturday against the visiting University of Waterloo Warriors by a final score of 34-32. The game was full of momentum changes and wasn’t decided until the final seconds, when Lions rookie Matt Dean blocked a field goal attempt by Warriors kicker Caleb Girard to seal the win and send the Homecoming game crowd into a frenzy.

The Lions got off to a good start to open the game as a 34-yard touchdown run by quarterback Brett Hunchak gave the home team an early 7-0 lead. After a Dante Mastrogiuseppe rouge point made it 8-0, the Warriors responded with an impressive 11-play, 75-yard drive to pull within one. Waterloo quarterback Tre Ford found Gordon Lam in the end zone on a 25-yard pass to put the first points on the board for the visiting team. More details.

Lions continue their undefeated streak with two wins and a tie

The York University Lions field hockey team kept up their stellar season and stayed undefeated with two wins over the University of Guelph Gryphons and the Queen’s University Gaels, and a tie against the University of Toronto Varsity Blues over the weekend.

The Lions opened up the action against the Varsity Blues on Saturday morning, competing to steal the spot from the top team in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) division. The two teams, who are both undefeated this season, played a tough match that ended with a 0-0 tie. With the tie, the Lions stayed two points behind the Blues for first place. More details.

York pulls out 2-1 win over Brock

The York University men’s soccer team faced the Brock University Badgers for the second time this season, this time at Alumni Field on Sunday afternoon.

The fast-paced game saw a 2-1 win for York University in their second-last home game of the regular season. The game saw an early goal from York’s second-highest scorer, Christian Cavallini, in the 17th minute, giving York an early lead against the Badgers, the seventh-ranked team in the OUA West division. More details.

On Friday night, The York Lions men’s soccer team played against the McMaster University Marauders at Alumni Field in pouring rain and tied 1-1 during York’s first game of the weekend.

The game started off with a recognition of the 2008 York men’s soccer team who won the CIS national championships that year. They were the first York men’s soccer team to win a CIS championship since 1977. Since the 2008 team’s win, the men’s team has won three more national titles and the team was recognized for the 10th anniversary of their historic win. More details. 

 Ghadghoni and Pisani crack top 20 at Don Mills Open

York Lions cross country runners Ali Ghadghoni and Katrianna Pisani raced into the top 20 this weekend as the men’s and women’s cross country teams competed at the Don Mills Open at the University of Waterloo.

Ghadghoni led the way for the men’s team, placing ninth in a time of 27:02 in the 8K race, not far behind Chris Moore of the Waterloo Warriors, who won the race in a time of 25:59. Lions rookie Austin Kpiebewieng also toed the start line for the Lions and came across the line in a time of 28:55, in 40th place. More details.

Lions top Badgers 2-0 in Sunday afternoon game at Alumni Field

The York University women’s soccer team played their second game of the weekend at Alumni Field against the Brock University Badgers on Sunday, Sept. 30. The home team beat the Badgers in a 2-0 win with both goals scored by fifth-year veteran Christina Morelli and assisted by forward Stephanie Lamanna.

The first half of the game saw very strong defence from both sides. York defenceman Teni Odetoyinbo made great plays on two Badgers attempts to shut down their scoring chances, while goalkeeper Tamara Orlando protected York’s net as she produced three saves in the first half. More details.

Two days earlier, the Lions women’s soccer team played against the McMaster University Marauders at Alumni Field after three straight away games, and dropped a close 1-0 game. The loss was payback, as the Lions were able to previously beat the Marauders during an away game three weeks ago when the Lions won 1-0.

The first half of the game saw many good saves from both the Lions and the Marauders. McMaster had a few opportunities to score against the Lions; however, Lions goalkeeper Tamara Orlando was able to save two of McMaster’s shots. Marauders goalkeeper Jayashree Pathak countered with three strong saves of her own in the first half on two attempts from midfielder Catherine Umoloc and one by Jotam Chouhan. More details.

Lions fall to No. 6 Gaels in last regular season game

The York University Lions women’s rugby team competed hard in Kingston, Ont., on Saturday afternoon, but were ultimately defeated 90-5 by the Queen’s University Gaels.

The Lions were able to get on the scoreboard thanks to Lauryn Alexander-Legerton, earning five points for the Lions, scoring her first try of the season.

With the win, the Gaels have secured second place in the Shiels Division and get a bye in the first round of playoffs. Leading the way for the Gaels was Nadia Papov with one try and eight conversions, and Sophie De Goede with two tries and two conversions. More details.