The York University Lions women's tennis team won the silver medal at the OUA championships for the second straight year on Sunday (Oct. 16) with a 4-3 loss to the host Western Mustangs in the championship final.
 
The men's team, meanwhile, was defeated by a 5-2 score by the Montreal Carabins in the bronze medal match to finish in fourth place.
 
The women, who entered the championships as the top seeds after an undefeated regular season, knocked off the Waterloo Warriors 7-0 in the semis to set up a surprise final against the Mustangs, who upset the defending champion Carabins in their semifinal match. The Lions took a 3-0 lead after claiming the doubles point and winning the first two singles matches, but the Mustangs came storming back to win the last four singles matches and capture the banner.
 
In the final, earning points for the Lions in singles were rookie Claudia Poluga (Toronto) and Heather Hills (Markham, Ont.). Poluga, playing in the second spot, defeated Mellisa Lee 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 while Hills won in straight sets over Theresa Barnett in the fourth spot, 6-1, 7-5.
 
Poluga also teamed with Nikki Carnovale (Woodbridge, Ont.) to win their doubles match while Eugenie Lim Ah Tock (Curepipe, Mauritius) and Sara Krupica (Toronto) also won theirs.
 
In the men's draw, the fifth-seeded Lions upset the fourth-seeded Warriors in the quarter-finals to advance to the medal round for the first time since claiming silver in 2012. They were defeated by the eventual champion Mustangs in the semifinals by a 6-1 score before the loss to the Carabins.
 
Filip Obucina (Etobicoke, Ont.) was tremendous for his team throughout the championships. He went undefeated in singles and doubles, securing the team's only point against the Mustangs and one of two in the bronze medal match.
 
He and doubles partner Pranav Yardi (Mississauga, Ont.) won all three of their doubles matches on the weekend, while Tre Eli (Toronto) was the other player to win his singles match against Montreal.