York Lions on the upcoming season

Mitch Scott
Contributor
For the York University Lions, this year was a season of growth and development for some, but a season of glory and success for others. Although we may not have got as high a medal count as we had hoped, there is optimism in the air.
All of the players and coaches have a distinct approach to the next season, and with team development and heavy recruiting on their minds, next season may turn out differently for some. Here is a look back at the seasons.

Men’s Hockey
York’s men’s hockey team knew they would be in a tough position this season. The Lions fully realized this when they failed to qualify for the playoffs, losing eighteen games and winning only ten. The players played well-enough on York’s Olympic-sized ice surface, finishing with an 8-6 record on home ice, but road games were the killers for the Lions this year, with a 2-12 score away from York.
“We were a very young team, youngest in the entire CIS, in fact,” said head coach Jim Wells. “We were injury-plagued all season, but were able to battle through it with a strong finish.”
Touching on some of the season highlights, Wells added, “Our last 10 games, we went 5-3-2 and swept the season series with Guelph, who ended up in the OUA West finals. We also took two of four against Lakehead from Thunder Bay.”
The Lions capped off their final home game in exciting fashion. Before the game, they honoured five graduating players – team Captain Chris Jones, Cassidy Preston, Riley Brand, Jeff Matheson and Jesse Grespan. Grespan was also honoured for joining the program’s 100 points club.
Grespan capped off his final home game by tying the game with three seconds left in regulation, which sent the game to overtime. Grespan scored the shootout winner for the Lions, a nice end to his five-year career at York.
“We were certainly hoping to make the playoffs this season and underachieved in that sense, but next year we will be one year older and one year more experienced. We have 18 players returning and are expecting to make the playoffs,” said Wells.

Women’s Volleyball
The Lions women’s volleyball team was one of the more successful teams at York this season.      Finishing first in the OUA East regular season standings with a 14-5 record, they had high expectations heading into the playoffs. In the OUA tournament semi-finals, the Lions fell to the Western
Mustangs.
Third-year setter Gina Morphy knew what was at stake for that semi-final match. “We were going into the OUA final four with high expectations, but never underestimating our opponents,” said Morphy. “We knew Western was a very strong team and they came out on top and deserved the semi-final win.”
The Lions faced the Ottawa Gee-Gees in the bronze medal game. Unfortunately, the Lions fell short again, losing 3-1 in a hard fought match. “We always have an extremely tough match against Ottawa, and we fought tooth and nail with them for the bronze medal. Unfortunately, some calls by the ref didn’t go our way and they ended up coming out on top, but by any means, we were happy with the fourth place finish,” said Morphy.
Next year, the team will be losing a few veterans to graduation, but with strong recruiting, Morphy believes the team will be successful. “I believe with the solid core that we’ve built, we have an extremely strong shot at winning the OUA. We have a transfer player as well as some strong recruits coming in, so we will rely on them to bring some experience to the squad.”

Men’s Soccer
We couldn’t have a season wrap-up and forget York’s most successful team for the 2010-2011 varsity season. The men’s soccer team was York’s only CIS champion, and brought home the squad’s second CIS championship in three years, showing the nation we are among Canada’s elite soccer teams.
Although the Lions lost in the OUA finals to the CIS tournament host, the University of Toronto Varsity Blues, the Lions were still able to advance to Nationals. The Lions captured gold by defeating the University of British Columbia 1-0 with a goal from Adrian Pena.
The Lions’ coaching staff was obviously ecstatic with the season’s finish.  “We prepare to get better every year, and we make sure we are getting better and maintaining that level,” said the head coach Carmine Isacco. “Losing players we didn’t expect to lose and replacing them with more inexperienced players was a great accomplishment. We always put ourselves into a position to win gold. If we got stuff right as a coaching staff, we knew we could win. We may not have been the most skilled team, but we always found a way to win,” Isacco said of his team’s efforts.
The Lions dominated in the awards category this year: nine OUA awards were awarded to York players; Adrian Pena and Jamaal Smith were named CIS All-Canadians; and Pena was also given the honour of Canadian Interuniversity sport (CIS) and OUA player of the week for the period ending Nov. 14, 2010.
Next season, the Lions have hopes of OUA gold and a repeat CIS championship. “We will just look to get better. We will lose Jamaal Smith as a fifth-year, and Antonini is a key player that we will lose this year,” said Isacco. “There will be a few key losses but we believe we can replace that with character players who know what their expectations are. Impact players will be brought in as well.”

Men’s Basketball
The men’s basketball team finished the 2010-2011 season with a below .500 winning record of 10 wins and 12 losses. However, this was a very young Lions team, with eight first-year rookies.
The Lions had several giant leaps this season. They won their final two regular season games – one in which the team trounced the RMC Paladins 122-44 and another where they defeated the Laurentian Voyageurs 77-70 – and another great leap when the team rose this year from seventh to fifth in the OUA East standings.
The Lions were able to qualify for the playoffs, but after a first round exit in an 80-70 loss to the Ryerson Rams, their playoff season came to a quick end. Throughout the year the team has been injured on and off, but the biggest problem has been their organization and teamwork.
During the season, head coach Tom Oliveri said “We feel that we can play against any team in our league. Our concern comes when we become too individually focused and not team-focused, and that’s been our central focus all year.”
The road ahead for the team is not going to be easy, as the Lions will lose fifth-year forward Stefan Haynes, who led the team with strong direction and persistence. Haynes was tied for fourth in the OUA in field goal shooting percentage, and was also among the league leaders in rebounds.
Now that the young captain is gone, the team will have to depend on players like David Tyndale and Dejan Kravic to earn them another playoff spot. Oliveri’s hopes to recruit players who understand the value of playing together and unselfishly.

Women’s Basketball
The women’s basketball team went into this year’s season with an experienced group of athletes, with only three first-year players, but like a lot of York sport teams, the experience did not translate into the success that they needed.
After a nail-biting victory over the Laurentian Voyageurs 70-68, the Lions were able to claim the sixth and final playoff spot in the OUA East playoffs; however, a first round exit at the hands of the second place Ottawa Gee-Gees put an early end to the Lion’s season.
The Lions’ biggest weaknesses have been rebounding and holding a strong defence; earlier in the season, the team went on a ten-game losing streak, which became a huge obstacle for the team to overcome.
The Lions have already begun their recruiting for next season. They have already signed Ontario native Samantha Ernest and London native Hayley Finn. Ernest comes to the team after participating in the 2010 All-Canada prospects camp and will bring some much-needed size up front.
In addition to keeping the hope that the team will make it to the playoffs once again next year, all players will be returning with more experience and more knowledge on the court.
With files from yorkulions.ca and oua.ca
Where york lions placed during their seasons
Men’s hockey   10-16-2 ? 9th OUA West
Women’s volleyball   14-5 ? 1st OUA East
Men’s soccer   12-2-2 ? 1st OUA West
Men’s basketball   10-12 ? 5th OUA East
Women’s basketball   7-15 ? 6th OUA East