After a hard-fought battle in downtown Toronto, the York University Lions women's basketball team came away with a 52-47 win over the Toronto Varsity Blues at the Goldring Centre in their Friday matinee.
 
With minutes left in the fourth quarter, the score remained tied 47-47 but that would be the limit of the Blues scoring as the Lions went on a five-point run to close out the match. Driving past her defender at the top of the key, Katrina Collins-Samuels drew two Blues defenders on to her dribble and found a wide open Cyanna King in the paint who put her side up by two. A trio of free-throws, one from Collins-Samuels and a pair from first-year Jada Codrington, iced the game for the visitors.
 
It was a story of two halves for the Lions who found themselves struggling early on. The Lions shot an impressive 50% from field goal range, hitting 10 out of 20 from the floor in the first half, but turnovers plagued the visiting team. York committed 17 errors compared to Toronto's eight that led to an extra 22 shot attempts for the Blues.
 
Despite Toronto's increased shooting, the Lions only trailed 29-23 heading into the half.
 
Pace of possession shifted for the Lions in the third quarter thanks to three-point shots from Megan Stewart and Codrington. The Blues committed four fouls late in the frame, sending Lauren Golding to the line who hit three free-throws, and King who got the hoop and harm to go, completing the three-point play. Jump shots from Golding and Lions forward Alysha Pinck cut the Blues lead to two, as the Lions only trailed 41-39 heading into the fourth.
 
The defensive effort in the final quarter by the Lions held the Blues to only six points – this was in due part to two of Pinck's game leading four steals, as well as a crucial block by King to keep the Lions within reach. With 1:37 left in the fourth York finally got their first lead of the game since early in the first quarter, thanks to King's layup, and never looked back.
 
Golding gave the Lions consistent scoring through-out the game, dropping 15 points and picking up nine rebounds in the win. Megan MacLeod added six points and six rebounds, while Pinck had four points, four steals and three rebounds in her third straight start.
 
The Lions are now 4-3 on the season and are tied for first in the Central Division, while the Blues suffer their fifth straight loss falling to 0-5 on the year.
 
The team will look to add to their current streak of two wins tomorrow evening as they host their division rivals, the Ryerson Rams, at the Tait Mckenzie Centre on Saturday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 6pm.