Emily Goodwin | Editor-in-Chief
Featured Image: Lions’ Michelle Lee (right) closing in on Lakshmi Khatri of the Warriors Sunday afternoon. | Courtesy of York Lions
The Lions field hockey team experienced a mix of emotions during their matches this past weekend. Although they easily took down the Western Mustangs and the Waterloo Warriors, the Lions suffered their first loss of the season at the hands of the University of Toronto Varsity Blues.
Saturday’s road game against Western saw the Lions prevent the Mustangs from scoring any goals, but it also saw Western put up a strong defensive effort that made it challenging for the then-undefeated Lions to add as many goals as they did during the previous week’s 10-0 match against McGill. Lions forward Paige Koochin was able to score early in the first period off a penalty corner. She added another point in the second period from a field goal. Lexi Hannah—currently ranked fifth in the OUA for total points—also capitalized on a field goal in the third period to bring the Lions to their final winning score of 3-0.
On Sunday, the Lions returned to Alumni Field for a double-header against the Varsity Blues in the morning and the Waterloo Warriors in the afternoon. The Lions found a tough opponent in the Varsity Blues. After a scoreless first period, the Varsity Blues were the first ones to get onto the scoreboard thanks to a goal from Emily Zlraldo early in the second period. Anna Costanzo followed up with a goal of her own for a 2-0 lead for the Varsity Blues at the end of the first half. The third period was hard-fought and scoreless for both teams. Third-year Haley Bannister of the Lions found the back of the Varsity Blues’ net early in the fourth period for what would be the Lions only goal of the game. Five minutes later, Katie Lynes extended the Varsity Blues lead to 3-0 with her unassisted goal. With such little time left, the Lions could not bounce back and they lost their first game of the 2019 season 3-0.
The Lions returned to their winning ways when they took on the Waterloo Warriors, although the game did not begin in the Lions’ favour. Eileen Tudorica of the Warriors netted their first and only goal of the match at the end of the first period. The Lions bounced back quickly with Hannah scoring off a pass from midfielder Michelle Lee to bring the score to 1-1. Following a third period goal from second-year Prava Sandhu, the Lions were up 2-1 over the Warriors. The score would remain this way for the rest of the game and the Lions got back into the win column.
The Lions are now 5-1 for the season. They are currently sitting in second place in the OUA with 15 points, just behind the Varsity Blues’ 19 points.
The Lions will be on the road for the rest of the regular season. This weekend they head to Varsity Stadium at the University of Toronto to take on the Queen’s Gaels on Saturday, and they will be looking for redemption when they take on the Varsity Blues for a second time on Sunday.
