Marquee Matchup: Lions secure first win of the season with hard-fought victory over Marauders
Toronto (via York Lions) - The annual Frosh Frenzy game at Alumni Field did not disappoint on Thursday night as the York University Lions men's soccer team earned a 1-0 victory over the McMaster Marauders in front of thousands of fans in the OUA's Marquee Match-up.
After a scrappy but uneventful first half, the home squad, ranked No. 4 nationally, gave its fans plenty to cheer for in the second half.
It was actually McMaster with the best chance early in the second frame, but Dusan Kovacevic's shot rang off the post in the 49th minute. Minutes later, a hard tackle led to a skirmish between the fierce rivals, which seemed to ignite both sides.
The Lions broke the deadlock in the 65th minute when Lucas Puntillo rang a shot off the inside of the far post and in following a nice pass into the box from Michael Thornton. It was the first career goal and assist, respectively, for the two Lions newcomers.
Puntillo nearly had his second of the night in the 83rd minute when he received another great pass, this time from Agostino Principato, and fired it hard on net but McMaster goalkeeper Tristan Joyce made the save with some help from the post. Principato had his own good scoring chance just before the end of the game but sent the ball rocketing off the crossbar.
The Lions continued their unbeaten streak against OUA opponents, a run that now reaches 37 matches and dates back more than two years. They will look to continue that impressive streak this weekend when they head out on the road for the first time this season, while the Marauders will look to bounce back when they host the Mustangs at home.
