The York Lions womens’ soccer team found themselves in uncharted territory when they took on the UOIT Ridgebacks on Sunday September 15 at York Stadium. Usually among the top teams in the Ontario University Athletics league, the Lions fell on hard times early in the season, going winless in their first five contests. If you were to look at the standings before the game, technically the Ridgebacks would have been the favourites with a big 5-0 victory over the Windsor Lancers on their resumes, even though York has been the more successful program in recent years. Thankfully for the Lions, they were able to get the monkey off their backs and defeat the Ridgebacks 2-1 on a penalty kick in the 90th minute.
Early on in the game, both teams traded possession of the ball, but neither was able to penetrate through its opponent’s defensive wall. UOIT especially struggled with York’s strong defense, failing to register a single shot in the first half, while the Lions managed to place four shots on target. Regardless, both teams remained tied at zero after 45 minutes of play.
The Ridgebacks came out with a purpose in the second half, smothering the Lions early. With York on their heels, the Ridgebacks’ Sonya Sampogna, was able to capitalize on her team’s momentum, striking the ball past fifth-year goalie Sarah Fiorini in the 48th minute to put UOIT ahead 1-0.
The goal shocked the Lions as they faced the reality of dropping even further down in the standings, an outcome they could not afford. The Lions ramped up the offensive pressure, but a lack of shots on goal was beginning to hurt their chances. York consistently moved the ball deep into UOIT territory, but could not squeeze a shot past the Ridgebacks’ keeper. The Lions’ fate then changed quickly due to a beautiful strike by Samantha Furlin in the 70th minute, which set up a finish nobody could have anticipated.
The two teams battled harder for posession as the final minutes began to tick away, and a mad scramble formed in front of Fiorini in the Lions’ box. Amidst the crowd of players, the referee spotted an infraction on York and with a couple minutes left on the clock, awarded the Ridgebacks a penalty kick.
A hush fell over the crowd as the well-travelled UOIT fans rose to their feet. UOIT’s lone goal-scorer Sampogna was elected to take the kick, hoping she could add a second to her stat line. Sampogna launched the ball towards the right side of Fiorini. Fiorini reacted instinctively and leaped to make the diving stop, sending York back up the field the other way.
“The ending was just insane. I had tingles the whole time.” explains Fiorini, “Even though we were still tied, it felt so good to make the save.”
In yet another unexpected turn of events, the Lions’ relentless push up-field forced back-to-back corner kicks with only extra time remaining. On the second corner kick, the referee awarded another penalty, only this time to the Lions. The Lions were riding an emotional high after Fiorini’s massive save, and now a chance to taste victory for the first time in 2013 rested on the foot of Sarah Wong. Fiorini could barely hold back her emotion while watching from her net.
“When we got the penalty shot at the end, I was shaking. When Sarah was about to shoot I was crying. It was really emotional. I was going insane, the energy we had was just crazy,” Fiorini says. As Fiorini and the rest of the Lions’ fans sat on pins and needles, Wong made no mistake about it as she booted the ball past UOIT’s keeper, sending the crowd and team into a frenzy.
After a frustrating start to the season, the Lions were finally able to finish off an opponent and chalk one down in the win column. York’s slow start to the season may have caused concern among fans, but Fiorini assures us they are still one of the elite teams in Canada.
“We play through everyone, and we play tougher than everyone. We have just had some trouble finishing. Some of our girls seem like they are scared to shoot, but really, all you have to do is shoot and hope that it is going to go in. Any shot can go in, so I think we are gaining that confidence now.”
The Lions hope they can build on the momentum of their win and slowly climb back to the top of the OUA standings while having to play their next four games away from York Stadium.
The Lions return home October 5 to take on McMaster Marauders.
