No. 3 Lions take down No. 4 Hawks in battle of nationally ranked teams

The No. 3 nationally-ranked York University Lions women's soccer team defeated the No. 4 Laurier Golden Hawks by a score of 3-2 on Thursday night (Oct. 8) in the first ever York event at the new York Lions Stadium.
 
After not defeating their rivals for nearly six years, the Lions have now won two in a row in the span of a week. They extended their unbeaten mark on the season to 10-0-1 and remain the only team in the OUA West Division without a loss. They also stretched their lead atop the standings to three points over the Golden Hawks and four clear of the Western Mustangs, and they also hold a game in hand.
 
The Golden Hawks broke the scoreless match in the 25^th minute with a tally from Maxine Murchie, who soared in to tap the ball past the goal line for a 1-0 Laurier lead.
 
In the 29^th minute, a cross into the box found the foot of Christina Morelli (Markham, Ont.), who generated a one timer for Nour Ghoneim (Aurora, Ont.) and she capitalized on the pass and launched it into the back of the net to tie the contest.
 
The Lions pounced on a glorious opportunity at the 42^nd minute when a loose ball in the box rolled onto the boot of Charlene D'Mello (Mississauga, Ont.) and she rifled the shot passed the outstretched Laurier goalkeeper to give the Lions their first lead of the game.
 
After the ball was placed at centre field the Golden Hawks charged down the pitch and Jacky Normandeau managed to beat Taylor Grant (Brampton, Ont.) to tie the game at two apiece just before the half.
 
Once halftime broke, the Lions came out hungry as they attacked the Golden Hawks and drew a penalty in the box, which ultimately led to Ghoneim stepping up and placing the ball in the bottom right corner of the cage for her second goal of the match and a 3-2 Lions lead. After the York go-ahead goal the Lions controlled the remainder of the match and dominated the possession of the ball until the final whistle.
 
The Lions will be back on the pitch on Sunday (Oct. 10) when they take on the Waterloo Warriors at 1pm at York Stadium.

Source: York Lions