Weekly catch-up

Lewis Chaitov and Victoria Alarcon (with files from yorkulions.ca)
Staff Writer and Sports & Health Editor
York Women’s Basketball
In a hard-played match against the Ottawa Gee-Gees, the York Lions came up short in their first round of the playoffs, losing their chance at winning the Ontario University Athletics Championships (OUA) after a 67-53 loss.
The match started strong for the Lions as they managed an early lead over their opponent; however, the Ottawa Gee-Gees were able to outscore the Lions and capitalize on the Lions’ mistakes.
Head coach Bill Pangos, who has been coaching at York for 25 years, was very proud with the overall effort his team put out on the court this whole season, noting it’s the first time the team has gone to the playoffs in three years.
Last season the team achieved only three wins, and they were not able to move forward into the playoffs after they fell behind in the standings. Team captain Brittany Szockyj finishes sixth in the OUA leaders board, with an average of about 16 points a game.
York Men’s Basketball
After a promising finish to the regular season, the York Lions were defeated Feb. 23 by archrival Ryerson Rams, 80-70, eliminating them from the playoffs this season.
Ryerson Rams Ola Adegboruwa and Bjorn Michaelsen built the team’s momentum throughout the match, making quick passes to teammates and strong lay-ups the Lions could not block. The wide gap the Rams managed to build made it near-impossible for the York Lions to catch-up, losing to the Rams in the fourth quarter and ending the match.
The Lions finished the season with a 10-12 record compared to last year’s 6-16, owing it to big wins over rivals like the Ottawa Gee-Gees and the Toronto Varsity Blues.
Captain Stephan Haynes was recognized for his performance in shot-blocking on the court all year. Though the captain will not be returning next year, the team is hoping to make it to the playoffs once again.
The team will begin their next season in the fall.
York Women’s Volleyball
In a surprising turnaround, the Western Mustangs silenced the women’s York Lions volleyball team in a 3-0 shutout Feb. 25 during the OUA semifinals.
The Mustangs outperformed the Lions, who were favored to win the match, and they took the first set thanks to Western’s Jenna Thomson aggressive game. The second set found the York Lions unable to secure the last few points. By the third set, the Lions were struggling to hold on, and lost to their rival in the final set 25-13.
The Lions would go on to play the Ottawa Gee-Gees in the OUA bronze medal match, but would once again come up short, losing to the team 3-1.
York captain Sarah Sutton received the award of merit to end her final season with the Lions.