Just like that Warriors, January has come and gone. This past week was jam-packed with varsity competition. We are getting to the nitty-gritty as playoffs are right around the corner, and some Warriors teams are doing everything they can to crack that final spot.
Wednesday, Jan. 29th
The Men’s basketball team came into the evening match-up against the University of Western Ontario Mustangs riding high as they knocked off the University of Guelph in a nail-biter the last time they took the court. Unfortunately, the Warriors were not able to ride this momentum as they came out flat, only scoring 30 in the first half. The Mustangs continued to roll the rest of the game and knocked off the Warriors 87-52. Issac Watsa led the way in scoring dropping 17 adding three rebounds, two assists, one block and a steal.
The Women’s team was also back in action on the home court to host the University of Western Ontario Mustangs. The ladies were coming into this game on a 4 game losing streak and were looking to get back into the win column. To say the absolute least, they did just that. The Warriors posted a dominant performance knocking off the Mustangs 70-44. Jamiesen Newell was unstoppable in the paint as she went for the double-double dropping 17 points and 16 boards, adding two steals and three assists. Nehita Oko-Oboh also had another strong day in the paint squeezing 13 rebounds, eight blocks, and scoring six points. Warriors get back into the win column in impressive fashion!
Friday, Jan. 31st
Onto the ice, the women’s curling team travelled to Sudbury for the OUA championship tournament set to take place this past weekend. Kicking things off bright and early, the Warriors faced off against the McMaster Marauders and lost 8-2. Later in the day, the Warriors faced off against the Brock Badgers and came out on top 11-2. The Warriors opened the tournament going 1-1.
Staying on the ice, the Men’s Hockey team travelled to North Bay to take on the University of Nipissing Lakers for back-back matchups. The Warriors came out hot in this one, Tate Popple opened up the scoring in the first period as he was able to find the back of the net in the dying seconds of the frame putting the Warriors up 1-0. Fast forward to the end of the second period Cole Fraser said it was my turn and found the back of the net putting the Warriors up 2-0 going into the third. This would prove to be enough as the Lakers could only score once in the third. Warriors win 2-1 marking their fourth in a row.
The Women’s ice hockey team was back in action on home ice as they hosted the York University Lions. It took the Warriors a while to get going in this matchup, but once they did they were unstoppable. It wasn’t until the third frame that the Warriors found the back of the net. Nikki Mcdonald struck first on a sweet setup from Erika Porter putting the Warriors up 1-0. Lyndsy Acheson and Leah Herrfort both added another and the Warriors knocked off the Lions 3-1 snapping their 3-game losing streak.
Back on the court, the Women’s volleyball travelled to Windsor to take on the Lancers in back-to-back games. The first installment of this double header did not go the Warrior’s way as they fell to the Lancers 3-2. The Warriors dropped the first set but were able to win sets two and three convincingly and came very close to putting the Lancers away in the fourth. However, they ultimately dropped sets four and five. Rachael Meilikhan continued to show why she is a top player in the province leading the team with 24 kills and three aces, adding sixteen digs. Maddison Seo did her thing providing 50 assists.
The Men’s volleyball team also travelled to Windsor for back-to-back matchups against the Lancers. The Warriors came out hot in this matchup knocking off the Lancers in set 1, but dropped the next three and fell to the Lancers 3-1. Lucas Redmann had a strong day at the net accounting for 13 kills, Cohen Peters was the team’s best friend accounting for 29 assists. This loss marks the fifth in a row for the Warriors.
Saturday, Feb. 1st
Women’s hockey was back in action as they travelled to Guelph for a very highly contested matchup against the Guelph Gryphons. Currently, the Gryphons hold the number one spot in the West division of the OUA with the Warriors right on their tail. The Warriors came out very slow in the matchup, with less than 10 minutes into the first period, the Warriors found themselves down 3-0. This lead disintegrated quickly as Keiara Raitt, Tatum James, & Sarah Bestic all found the back of the net tying the game at 3 a piece. The Gryphons responded to put them ahead 4-3, but in the dying minutes of the final frame, Carly Orth said “Not so fast” and tied the game up at 4-4. Unfortunately, the Gryphons struck first in sudden death OT and knocked the Warriors off 5-4. The Warriors hold strong in second place in the West with a 14-8 record.
Men’s hockey was back in action to finish off their doubleheader against the Lakers. The Warriors came out firing less than a minute into the game, as Jaden Goldie found the back of the net on a sweet setup from Tate Popple. Jackson Murray added another one less than five minutes later to put the Warriors up 2-0. Fast forward to the second frame, and the Lakers responded fast by putting up three unanswered, Jaxson Murray responded, finding the back of the net for the second time in this game, tying the game 3-3. The third period was scoreless and overtime was needed. Unfortunately, the Lakers struck first in sudden death overtime and knocked the Warriors off 4-3. The Warriors move to 10-14 on the season.
Staying on the ice, the Women’s curling team was back in action as they took on the TMU bold for a Saturday morning matchup. The Warriors were able to come out on top of this very competitive match-up 6-5. Later on in the day, the Warriors took on the York Lions and won impressively 9-1. The Warriors wrap up round-robin play going 3-1.
Back to the court, the Men’s volleyball team finished off their double-header in Windsor against the Lancers. Unfortunately, it was much of the same in this matchup as it was on Friday. The Warriors fought hard and got knocked off by a very strong Lancers squad 3-0. Lucas Redmann had another strong day at the net accounting for nine kills while Nolan Reed added another eight. The Warriors fall to 5-11 on the season.
Staying on the court, the Women’s Volleyball team played the second installment of their back-back matchups against the Windsor Lancers. The Warriors held on and took the first two sets, but the Lancers responded and knocked off the Warriors in the third. In set four, however, the Warriors dominated, this was enough to give them the win 3-1. Rachael Meilikhan and Avery Kelly were dominant at the net accounting for 22 and 21 kills respectively. Madison Seo did what she always does and accounted for 46 assists. The Warriors move to 11-5 and hold strong at 5th in the province with the playoffs approaching.
The Women’s basketball team was back in action as they hosted the University of Laurier Golden Hawks. The Warriors came out hot as they outscored the Golden Hawks 44-27 going into the half. The Warriors held on despite the Golden Hawk’s fourth-quarter surge, 66-58. Kymora Stafford had a very strong performance posting a team lead of 20 points adding 10 rebounds, two blocks, two assists and a steal. The Warriors win two in a row and move to 8-10 on the season. It’s always a good day when the Warriors beat the Golden Hawks!
The Men’s basketball team played host to cross-town rivals University of Laurier Golden Hawks. The Warriors came out hot in this one, but a dismal third-quarter performance proved to be costly as they fell to the GoldenHawks 63-51. Isaiah McRae led the way in scoring dropping 15 points, adding five rebounds and three assists, Rafael Llorin was right behind him adding 13 points, five rebounds and five steals. The Warriors fall to 6-12 on the season and currently sit fourth in the OUA west, on the outside looking in as far as playoffs go.
Sunday, Feb. 2nd
To wrap up their time in Sudbury, the Warriors women’s curling team took on the University of Guelph Gryphons in the quarter-finals of the OUA curling championship. Unfortunately, the Warriors fell to the Gryphons 9-4. Congrats on a great season ladies!
