OUA Teams of the Month - November
HAMILTON, Ont. – The following Ontario University Athletics (OUA) teams have been named OUA Teams of the Month for November 2015.
BURLINGTON, Ont. – The following Ontario University Athletics (OUA) teams have been named OUA Teams of the Month for November 2015.
All OUA Teams of the Month will receive a pizza party, courtesy of Pizza Pizza.
MEN: York Lions – Soccer
As has been the case for the past couple seasons, the York Lions men’s soccer team was perfect in the month of November.
The Lions went a flawless 6-0 in the playoffs en route to winning their third straight OUA banner and then successfully defended their CIS championship title.
November started off with a thrilling 4-3 overtime victory over Guelph in the OUA quarter-finals. York snuck past the Gryphons with a goal in the 105th minute to earn the right to host the OUA Final Four Championship.
In their opening game of the tournament, the Lions again used overtime to defeat the crosstown rival Toronto Varsity Blues 1-0 in the semifinals and then knocked off the McMaster Marauders in the championship game for the second year in a row.
One week later at the CIS championship on home turf, the Lions won three straight against Cape Breton, UBC and UNB to capture their fourth national title in eight seasons.
The Lions easily handled the Capers with a dominant 4-1 victory in the quarter-finals before needing penalty kicks to advance past the No. 1 nationally ranked Thunderbirds 1-0. In the gold medal match, the Lions wrapped up the tournament with a 2-0 triumph over the Varsity Reds.
Over the last two seasons the Lions have an overall record of 39-1-4, posting 29 cleansheets in 44 games and outscored their competition 128-20.
WOMEN: Brock Badgers – Wrestling
If November was any indication, the Brock Badgers women’s wrestling team appears poised to take a run at a fifth consecutive CIS national championship.
The No. 1 ranked team in the country went a perfect five-for-five in the tournaments they competed in last month.
The Badgers opened the month at the Concordia Open where Farantina Gatta (51kg), Jade Parsons (55kg), Indira Moores (63kg) and Jessica Brouillette (67kg) placed second. Rounding out the Brock women's medalists were Mackenzie Smallwood (51kg) and Carmella Fleurant (67kg) who took home bronze.
Brock followed that up at the McMaster Open where they took home seven medals in total, led by Mackenzie Smallwood who won gold at 51kg. Raquel Reid (51kg), Emily Schaefer (59kg) and Carmella Fleurant (67kg) all captured silver, while Farrantina Gatta (48kg), Carlene Sluberski (59kg) and Indira Moores (63kg) all took home bronze.
At the Greater Toronto Open, the Badgers finished atop the podium once again with Emily Schaefer representing Brock as the gold medalist at 59kg. Adding silver medals were Larissa Buffalino (59kg), Jessica Brouillette (63kg), Carmella Fleurant (67kg) and Cassidy Noonan (82kg).
The following week, the Badgers finished with five medals at the Ontario Senior Provincials, led by Jessica Brouillette (63kg) and Olivia Di Bacco (69kg) who both placed first overall, while Jade Parsons (53kg) and Kristina Mclaren (55kg) both took home bronze.
The Badgers concluded the month with another first place finish at the York Open where Kristina McLaren (55kg) and Indira Moores (63kg) led the Badgers with individual golds in their respective weight classes. Emily Schaefer (59kg), Cassidy Noonan (82kg) and Stevie Kelly (67kg) all took home silver.
In total, Brock earned 29 medals in November (7 gold, 14 silver, 8 bronze). The Badgers would like nothing more than to defend their title on home turf when they host the CIS championships later this season.