Ontario University Athletics News

The McMaster Marauders are the 2022 OUA Men's Soccer Champions. McMaster picked up a huge 1-0 victory over the TMU Bold in Saturday night's title contest in Toronto. The championship marks the first for the Marauders in a decade, after last bringing home the provincial banner in 2012. The maroon and grey have also clinched the OUA champion seed at the U SPORTS National Championship, hosted by the TRU Wolfpack, from November 10th to 13th in Kamloops, B.C. After winning two straight playoff games, the Marauders looked to finish the OUA postseason with a perfect record. The game started slow on both sides, with minimal offensive opportunities and the majority of the play occurring around midfield. In a very physical contest, the biggest play of the first half was the sending off of OUA first team all-star, Luca Di Marco. Di Marco was assessed a red card in the 25th minute, dropping the Bold to 10 men for the remainder of the contest. At the break, the score remained 0-0.

The home team came out of the dressing room strong at halftime, controlling the tempo while pushing for the first goal of the game. Despite the effort, it was the Marauders who scored the go ahead goal. After making a save on a TMU striker, rookie goalkeeper, Ethan Cagalj (Stoney Creek, Ont.), quickly put the ball up field, finding Justin Baker (Hamilton, Ont.) on the right wing. Showcasing some fancy footwork, Baker put the ball in the box and found the foot of Amir Shirazi (Oakville, Ont.). Shirazi has been no stranger to putting the ball in the back of the net this season and did just that, beating the Bold goalkeeper low and in the corner in the 79th minute. McMaster made some substitutions late to protect the one goal lead and were successful holding off the Bold down the stretch, helping the Marauders take the game by a 1-0 final and bring both the title and banner back to Hamilton. Cagalj was a standout in net, picking up his second straight shutout in the postseason.

It was home sweet home for the Ottawa Gee-Gees on Saturday afternoon at Matt Anthony Field, earning a 1-0 win over the York Lions to be crowned 2022 OUA champions. The game’s difference maker came on a Nibo Dlamini penalty kick goal in stoppage time of the first half. The Ottawa native was clinical in beating York keeper Ava Jones to the left make the game’s only mark. Jones was the busier of the two keepers in the game, stopping six of seven shots, while Ottawa keeper Juliann Lacasse earned the clean sheet with one save.

In intensely windy conditions throughout the game, the lack of scoring opportunities spoke to the level of defending that both squads had to do. In the second half, when York turned up the offensive pressure, they were repeatedly turned away by Ottawa’s backline, making it a long day for York’s strong attack. With the win, the Gee-Gees were able to exact some revenge on the Lions that defeated them in the semifinals in 2019, before capturing gold on Ottawa’s home turf. The win now marks Ottawa’s 10th OUA women’s soccer title – the most of any school. “It’s been a fantastic season,” said Gee-Gees head coach Steve Johnson, who has coached the team since their inception in 1994. “We’ve had a season that is unique, going down to play in Mexico, winning a championship there, then coming back, resetting our focus, and trying to win the championship here. The 10th win is special, I’m really proud of what the program has done in our existence.”