AROUND OUA: U of T battles weather and Gaels in 2-1 loss to Queen's
The Toronto Varsity Blues men's soccer team battled both the weather and the visiting Queen's Gaels Saturday (Sept. 19) afternoon falling 2-1 at Varsity Centre.
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U of T battles weather and Gaels in 2-1 loss to Queen's
The Toronto Varsity Blues men's soccer team battled both the weather and the visiting Queen's Gaels Saturday (Sept. 19) afternoon falling 2-1 at Varsity Centre.
As tboth teams walked onto the field for opening kickoff the skies opened up to greet them with a downpour. Despite the weather, U of T burst out of the gates with striker Nirun Sivananthan (Brampton, Ont.) scoring his fourth goal of the season in just the 3rd minute of the game.
The Queens Gaels responded in the 10th minute when Jacob Shroeter sent a strike that was deflected into the lower left corner of the net beating Varsity Blues keeper Rab Bruce-Lockhart (Victoria, B.C.) for the tying marker.
After the early scoring, both teams found themselves turning to a defensive game until the 60th minute. Back-to-back chances for goal scorer Sivananthan and fellow striker Dakar Charles (Toronto, Ont.) looked to break the deadlock but Gaels keeper Kyle Lanzinger was up to the task.
The final effort for U of T came from a set piece in the 76th minute off a corner when a header off the bar created a scramble in front of the net but a Toronto touch sent the ball just wide of the post.
The miss would turn out to be costly as the Gaels scored the winner in the 81st minute when captain Conor Hannigan delivered a precise header off of a cross.
The Toronto Varsity Blues are back at it Sunday, September 20 welcoming the RMC Paladins to Varsity Centre for a 3:15 p.m. kickoff. U of T will be looking to capture a full three points to end their current three game home stand on a big note.
Source: Toronto Varsity Blues
Andrew Bryan continues to impress as Ravens knock off Voyageurs
(Sudbury, ON) – In just his third game as a Carleton Raven, forward Andrew Bryan (Montreal, QC) scored his 3rd and 4th goals of the season to lead the Ravens to a 2-1 victory over the Laurentian Voyageurs on Saturday afternoon.
The Ravens brought the heat right from the opening kickoff and they were rewarded with a goal in the first minute when Bryan scored off of a Walker Smith flick that came off a long throw in.
In the 32nd minute, Andrew Bryan struck once more as he pounced on a cross into the box that managed to get by a few Voyageurs defenders before finding his laces as he struck through the ball with force to increase Carleton's lead to 2-0.
The Ravens were dominant in possession for the majority of the first and they also had a copious amount of chances to put the game out of reach.
It was a tale of two halves as Laurentian forced a breakthrough in the early stages of the second. The tempo swayed when Laurentian's Mackenzy Kropa scored a goal in the 47th minute to cut the deficit in half. Carleton gave away the ball in the midfield before the defence surrendered the opportunity that Kropa capitalized on.
From there, Laurentian out-shot and outplayed the Ravens for the remainder of the game. Carleton keeper Felix Daigle (Gatineau, QC) made a few important saves to keep the Voyageurs at bay, and midfielder Theodore Lopez de Castilla (Ottawa, ON) made a game-saving play when he cleared a ball off of the goal line to preserve the win.
Carleton's assistant coach Kwesi Loney talked about the team's nail biting finish against Laurentian.
"We're on a little bit of a run right now," stated Loney, "but we need to learn to finish games – it comes down to better management of time."
The Ravens have won four in a row and five of their last six matches. The team plays Nipissing tomorrow afternoon in North Bay.
Source: Carleton Ravens
Ridgebacks sweep season series against Trent
OSHAWA, Ont. - Sophomore Lee-Victor Massunda has taken on a leadership role with the UOIT men's soccer team and responded with the only goal in a 1-0 win over Trent on Saturday to sweep the season series.
Massunda (Mississauga, Ont.) had been kept in-check for the majority of the first half but in the 47th minute emerged to score to end UOIT's two-game losing streak. The goal came during the heart of storm that passed through Oshawa, causing the pitch to look more like a mud pit for the majority of the second half.
The goal was Massunda's second of the season, as he found himself alone in the box and delicately put it by Trent goalkeeper Dave Ellis.
During the 66th minute, Ellis committed a goal-saving foul outside of the box resulting in a red card.
Up by one, UOIT played back on their heels over the final ten minutes of the game with the man-down Trent squad having a number of scoring opportunities. However, Travis Martin (Whitby, Ont.) stood on his head including stopping a point-blank shot with his left hand in the 86th minute to give the Ridgebacks their third win of the season.
Martin finished the game with six saves, giving the fourth year keeper two shutouts.
UOIT (3-2-1) sits in fourth place in the OUA eastern conference standings, three points behind the Toronto Varsity Blues (4-2-1). Trent has failed to pick up points in five straight games as they fall to 0-5-1.
The Ridgebacks will head to Kingston next weekend for matches against Queen's (2-1-2) and RMC (0-5-0). Their next home game is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 3 against the Gaels.
Source: UOIT Ridgebacks
Bicamumpaka, Ricciuti Pace Mac to 2-0 Win over Western
A controlled effort, and a second-half wonder goal, saw the Marauders past the ever-dangerous Western Mustangs by a 2-0 score on Saturday.
Karl Bicamumpaka and Sasha Ricciuti had goals for McMaster, while Angelo Cavalluzzo earned his fourth clean sheet of 2015 and second in as many matches. With the win, the Marauders improved to 5-2 on the season and sit alone in the third in the OUA West.
It was the visiting Mustangs who threatened goal first on Saturday, as Cavalluzzo was forced into a diving save at close range to deny a header, before a second Western effort whizzed just over his crossbar. That would be as close as either team would come in a fairly pedestrian first half, with the ball remaining largely in the midfield.
McMaster returned with greater purpose after the break, and Yunus Mollayev nearly put the home side ahead mere minutes into the second half when his volley just narrowly scooped over the bar and connected with the upright.
Gifted a much simpler chance in the 52nd minute, Bicamumpaka would make no mistake, thumping the ball high and past the Western goalkeeper after a cross bounced straight through the box and to the waiting Marauder on the wing.
That looked like all that the Marauders would need on the day, as they seemed content to defend their lead as time became the Mustangs greatest enemy. But Ricciuti had other plans, and produced a highlight-reel goal to bring the Ron Joyce crowd to life.
Having found room along the left wing consistently over the course of the afternoon, Ricciuti took possession along that flank in the 89th minute and dove inside before lashing a powerful strike past the outstretched goalkeeper and into the far side netting.
With an impressive win in the bag, the Marauders will attempt to sweep their weekend when they travel to Waterloo on Sunday to take on the Warriors.
Source: McMaster Marauders
Bauer nets four as Golden Hawks defeat Waterloo
WATERLOO, Ont. (September 19, 2015) - An uneventful first half marked by a few missed shots and corner kicks evolved into a barrage of goals for the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks against Waterloo goalkeeper Hansel Paico-Avilez of Oakville, Ont., Saturday afternoon.
Five minutes into the second half, Niklas Bauer of Newmarket, Ont., secured Laurier's first goal against Waterloo, marking the turning point at which Laurier fully exuded its dominance. Bauer continued to pour it on and proceeded to net two additional goals within two minutes of one another, providing the Hawks with a 3-0 lead.
A successful penalty kick made by Nikola Miokovic of Kitchener, Ont., aided in furthering the gap between the Hawks and the Warriors. Bauer's assault against Paico-Avilez continued with an additional goal, leaving him with a total of four for the match.
Following a red card handed down to the Warriors, which left them with 10 men, the Hawks continued their offensive assault as Oakville natives Leonardo Leone and Michael Warden contribute a goal each to round out the scoring, leaving the Hawks with a 7-0 victory.
For Warden and Miokovic, the goals were the first of the season for the veteran players.
Next, the Hawks (2-2-2) travel to Guelph, where they will be facing the Gryphons on Tuesday, September 22. Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m.
Source: Laurier Golden Hawks
Brock men's soccer falls to No. 1 ranked York Lions 1-0
ST. CATHARINES, Ont. – The Brock University men's soccer team (1-6 OUA) lost a heartbreaker 1-0 versus the No. 1 ranked York Lions Saturday afternoon on homecoming weekend.
Terrance Giangregomo (Burlington, Ont.) would lead the Badgers in shots with two, while it was Joey Cicchillo and Jarek Whiteman for the Lions who each had three shots a piece.
The Rams started the game with all but three of their regular starters on the bench and the Paladins took advantage early on, holding off Ryerson's potent attack before reinforcements could arrive. The rain had an effect on Ryerson's backline as they were struggling to advance the ball out of their own half due to torrid conditions and pesty press defense by the Paladins. The sloppy play culminated in the 28th minute when a Ryerson defender hit the ball off the back of RMC's David Choi, giving the Paladins a 1-0 lead.
Ryerson's Marko Miketic (Thornhill, Ont.) consistently threatened to expose the Paladins defense and was at the crux of winning balls and initializing counterattacks. Despite his solid chemistry with Matthew Isabella (Brampton, Ont.), the Rams found themselves down at half.
With several halftime substitutes reinvigorating the team, including returnee Jamie Baker (Aurora, Ont.) (knee), the Rams wasted no time showing why they are the second ranked team in the nation. Thirty seconds after play restarted, Baker had an excellent goal scoring opportunity that narrowly missed the net. Three minutes later, Miketic was denied a goal by a great save from RMC's Tobin Semple.
The ensuing corner from Abdallah El-Chanti (Toronto) found a leaping Kyle Stewart (Kingston, Jamaica), whose header equalized the game in the 48th minute, tying the score at one a piece.
Describing his impressive goal, Stewart remarked, "RMC was flat on their feet, so I just jumped up and I got a flick on it, and it went back-post and in."
After several more impressive shots on goal for the Rams (60', 62', 63') and all around creative play from Naji Awad (Aman, Jordan), Baker and Basit Madamidola (Vaughan, Ont.), things took a turn for the worse.
In the 75th minute, RMC's Olivier Couillard found himself inside the penalty box with no crossing option and an unfavorable angle. Before Ryerson's defenders could encroach, he struck the ball near post and put his team ahead 2-1.
Not prone to panic, Ryerson quickly equalized in the 75th off an El-Chanti goal from the right side of the penalty box. With a stalemate looming in the 86th, Ryerson's Baker showed why he should be one of the most feared strikers in the nation. The play began with Miketic darting through the centre of the Paladins defense as he had all game. Seeing Baker in a one on one, he passed him through cleanly, and Baker did the rest, holding off the lone defender before calmly tucking the ball under the keeper for a goal that was more than a year in the making.
The rain delay had a physical impact on Baker in his first game back but he wasn't prepared to waste his opportunity in the clutch, saying, "As soon as I got the ball, I knew I was going to score." Ryerson held on for the remaining time and won the game 3-2, improving to 6-0-1. The loss drops RMC to 0-5-1.
Ryerson faces Queen's (2-1-2) on September 20th, and looks to use their depth as a means of overcoming the short layover. While complimenting his team's depth and talent Stewart noted that, "Queens is also coming off a tough game against University of Toronto, so I believe that they're going to be banged up as well. So It's going to be just about desire, who wants it more, who can have the calmer head, and who can play the better ball."
