The York University Lions will have to wait another year to return to the top of the OUA. Despite two late goals from Dieu Merci Yuma they fell 3-2 to the No. 1 seeded Guelph Gryphons in the OUA final Saturday afternoon in Guelph, Ont.
 
With the win, Guelph moves onto the U SPORTS national championship, joining the host Carleton Ravens as the second OUA berth in the tournament. York's OUA season ends with a final loss for the second straight season; they dropped the 2019 iteration of the championship game to Carleton.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Guelph's first goal came off a deflected shot from inside the box in the 23^rd minute. Owen McKee let a shot go, but it deflected off York defender Milo Djuricic, changed direction and eluded York goalkeeper George Tzimas.
• Niko Sigur, who scored last week's game winner in the OUA semifinal's 116^th minute, earned a glorious opportunity in the 47^th minute. After the ball deflected to him off an Agostino Principato shot, Sigur struck one just over the net – the ball hit the bottom bar of Alumni Stadium's football goal posts.
• McKee then left his mark on the game for a second time, drawing a penalty via a foul in the box in the 51^st minute. Lucas Doros made no mistake and sent a high shot past Tzimas, expanding the Gryphons lead to 2-0.
• Guelph added to their lead in the 76^th, after Damian Truong picked up a loose ball and got it behind Tzimas, who was on the ground due to cutting off a cross from the right corner. That made the score 3-0, putting the game out of reach for York.
• In a late effort to get back into the game, Yuma put the Lions on his shoulders and scored two goals. First, he finessed a low shot past Gryphons goalkeeper Svyatoslav Artemenko in the 80^th minute to cut the lead to two, then he added his second in stoppage time on a thunderous free kick.
• But the Lions ran out of time shortly thereafter, and the game ended with a 3-2 final score.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• York's two goals tied for the most allowed by Artemenko all season – the other instance coming in a 2-2 draw against the Waterloo Warriors on Oct. 6. The Gryphons only allowed four goals all season. Artemenko stopped three shots on the afternoon.
• Yuma's two goals were his first two of the playoffs, and two most recent goals since the drew Carleton on Oct. 24.
• The loss is just York's third loss to an OUA opponent in the last two seasons – the others being the 2021 season-opening contest on Sept. 23 at Ontario Tech, and a 3-0 loss to Carleton in the OUA championship on Nov. 2, 2019.