Warriors weekly recap: Oct. 30 – Nov. 3

As October ends and we approach the end of the fall term, many seasons are in full swing, while some have reached their final game. This week was characterized by some teams winning their first, and one winning their last.  

Wednesday, Oct. 30

The men’s hockey team was back in action as they hosted the University of Toronto Varsity Blues for a regular season match-up. The Warriors had an offensive explosion, finding the back of the net on seven occasions. Liam Fedak accounted for two, Max Montette, Jaxson Murray, Jaden Goldie, Tate Popple, and Jack Phibbs, all accounted for one. The Warriors came out on top 7-4. 

Thursday, Oct. 31

The women’s field hockey team took the field for the first time in their hunt for gold in the U Sports Women’s Field Hockey National Finals Tournament, which took place at York University. First up, the Warriors had a tough matchup against the defending national champions,  2024 CANWEST champions, powerhouse University of Victoria Vikes. This was a strong defensive battle, as no majors were scored until late in the second half. The Warriors fought hard but ultimately dropped 2-0 against the defending national gold medalists. 

Friday, Nov 1

Women’s field hockey was back in action as they were playing their second installment in their hunt for gold. This time, the Warriors were up against the host team, the York University Lions. The Lions were able to jump out to an early lead as they found the back of the net 12 minutes into the match. The Warriors kept fighting until the end but it wasn’t enough as they lost 2-0 against the Lions. The Warriors move to 0-2 in the tournament, and will look to find a win in their next matchup against the UPEI Panthers. 

Women’s basketball played host to the University of Carleton Ravens, marking their first home game of the 2024-2025 campaign. The Warriors fought hard but ultimately came up short to a very strong Raven’s team 67-52. It was a strong combined team performance with nine different players coming up on the score sheet. Kymora Stafford led the way with 11. 

Men’s basketball took the hardwood at PAC for the first time in their 2024-2025 regular season campaign, hosting the University of Carleton Ravens. Similar to the women’s team, the men fought hard but ultimately fell to a tough Carleton team. The Ravens jumped out to an early 15-point lead in the first quarter and never looked back. Rafael Llorin led the way in scoring, as he dropped 23, and Isaiah McRae wasn’t far behind, adding 20.  

Women’s volleyball hit the road as they travelled to Toronto to take on the University of York Lions. The Warriors continued to roll as they swept the Lions 3-0 25-14, 25-21, and 25-19 accordingly. Stella Mckenna had a strong performance as she posted 12 kills, and added five blocks. Madison Seo was the team’s best friend as she contributed 24 assists. The Warriors moved to 3-0 on the season. 

Men’s volleyball was also on the road, as they faced off against the York Lions as well. Unlike the women’s team, the Men were not able to find success as they fell to the Lions 1-3. The Lions came out hot as they won the first two sets 25-16, and 26-24, the Warriors fought back and won set three 25-19 but dropped the fourth set 25-19. Lucas Redmann had a strong performance as he posted 12 kills while adding 11 digs and three blocks. Warriors move to 1-2 on the season. 

Women’s hockey was in action playing host to Toronto Metropolitan University Bold. Talk about domination, the Warriors were able to find the back of the net on nine separate occasions. Emma Thornton accounted for three, completing a hat trick, Carly Orth accounted for two, and Kassidy McCarthy, Sarah Bestic, Keiara Raitt, and Nikki McDonald all added one. Kara Mark had a strong day between the pipes as she stopped 20 of the 22 shots she faced. 

Saturday, Nov 2.

Women’s hockey was back in action as they travelled to St Catharines to take on the Brock University Badgers. The Warriors struggled on the offensive side as they were unable to find the back of the net until early in the 3rd frame. The Badgers were able to find the back of the net on 2 separate occasions which proved to be too much for the Warriors. Warriors fall to the Badgers 2-1 and move to 6-3 on the season. 

Women’s field hockey was back in action for the third and final match-up of round robin play in their hunt for gold. This time they were facing off against the AUS champions University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) Panthers. The Warriors posted a dominating performance as they came out on top 3-0. Isabella Beck wasted no time as she found the back of the net less than 5 minutes into the game, marking the first goal of the matchup and the first of the tournament for the Warriors. Sierra Blackburn had a stand-out performance as she was able to score two majors in the final frame which proved to be too much for UPEI. 

Men’s hockey took the ice as they hosted the TMU Bold for a regular season matchup. This matchup was a nail-biter bitter to say the least, keeping fans on the edge of their seats. Tate Popple opened up the scoring less than a minute into the first, Tate Popple again was able to find the back of the net in the second putting the Warriors up 2-1, Bold responded to tie it up, but in the dying seconds of the 2nd, Adamo Santia joined the party, found the back of the net and put the Warriors up 3-2 going into the third. The Bold responded with 2 goals in the third putting them up 4-3, Nate Bierd said enough is enough and scored the tying goal with less than 2 minutes left in the game. Unfortunately, the Bold responded and scored the go-ahead with less than 30 seconds in the game. The Warriors got knocked off by the Bold 5-4 and moved to 4-5 on the season. 

Women’s basketball took the hardwood at PAC, playing host to the University of Ottawa Gee-Gee’s. The Women fought hard but fell to a very strong Ottawa team 72-43. Nehita Oko-Odoh had a big day cleaning up the glass as she accounted for 16 rebounds, six offensive and 10 defensive. The Warriors move to 1-2 on the season and will look to get back in the win column as they face off against the University of Toronto on Wednesday, Nov. 6. 

The men’s team were also back in action at PAC against the University of Ottawa. The Warriors were able to find success as they picked up their first win of the season defeating the Gee-Gee’s 61-51. Isaiah Macrae had another stand-out game, dropping 26 points, and shooting 6/9 from beyond the arc, while also adding five rebounds, five steals, and two assists. The Warriors will look to carry this momentum moving forward as they hit the road for a matchup against the University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Wednesday, Nov. 6. 

Women’s volleyball was back in action as they were facing off against the York Lions for their second game of the weekend. Much like the first, the Warriors posted a truly dominant performance. Winning the first set 25-15, dropping the second 25-20 but sweeping the back two, 25-19 and 25-17 respectively. Rachel Meilikhan and Avery Kelly both had strong performances as they were team leaders in both kills and aces, Sydney Degraauw was a problem at the net, posting 5 blocks while also adding 11 kills, Madison Seo continued to be the team’s best friend, accounting for 36 assists. Warriors continue to roll, moving to 5-0 on the season and have their eyes set on Nov. 8 as they will be playing their home opener against the RMC Paladins. 

Men’s volleyball was back in action as they finished off back-back games on the York Lions home court. Unfortunately, this game was much the same as the Friday match-up. The Warriors dropped three sets, losing the first two, 25-14, 27-25 respectively. The Warriors were able to find success in the third set, winning a tight one 35-33 bringing the match 2-1 but could not sustain that success and dropped the fourth 25-18. Warriors move to 1-3 on the season and will look to right their wrongs as they will host the RMC Paladins in their 2024 season home opener on Friday, Nov. 8. 

Sunday, Nov 3

To wrap the week up, the women’s field hockey team was back in action at the U Sports championship tournament, pushing for a national bronze. The Warriors were up against the UPEI Panthers, a rematch from Saturday’s pool play where the Warriors came out on top 3-0. It was much the same in this bronze medal match-up as the Warriors took the boots to the Panthers, winning by a lopsided tally of 5-0. Scoring opened up in the first frame as Mary Lencz found the back of the net just over halfway through the first quarter, Megan Hobson and Isabella Beck followed up with two more in the second frame bringing the Warriors’ lead to 3-0 going into the half. Georgia Murray found the back of the net in the third and Anika Johannsen put the cherry on top, knocking one back with less than a minute to go in regulation. Goalie Grace Miller will be in UPEI player’s nightmares as she was a brick wall, not allowing goals in either of the two games against the Panthers. This strong dominant performance marked the end of a historic 2024 season for this Warriors team. Congratulations to the National Bronze Medalists! 

Men’s rugby travelled down to Guelph to take on the Gryphons in OUA semi final playoff action. The Warriors were coming off a dominant quarter-final performance where they knocked off the University of Trent Excalibur 64-17 at home. Unfortunately, the Warriors were not able to carry on this momentum as they fell to the Gryphons marking the end of their 2024 campaign. The Warriors went 4-4 on the season and were able to make a playoff run, congratulations on a strong 2024 campaign men!