An Omar Marzouk goal in the 71^st minute was all that was required for the York University Lions men's soccer team. The 1-0 goal was the only score of the OUA quarterfinal between the Lions and the Toronto Varsity Blues, propelling the No. 2 seeded Lions into the next round of the playoffs.
 
They will now take on the No. 3 seeded Rams, who will travel to York Lions Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 6 for the OUA semifinal.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The visitors from Toronto came into the game playing tactfully for a draw, and were able to hold the Lions off for the scoresheet in the first half of the game. The best York chance came on a through ball from Marzouk that found the OUA's leading scorer Dieu Merci Yuma, but he got stonewalled by Toronto keeper Ben Grondin.
• A similar breakaway chance for the Blues came from Anthony Sousa in the 59^th minute at the York end of the field. But York netminder George Tzimas came out to challenge and made his biggest save of the match.
• That save turned out to be a gamechanger for York. Minutes later, Marzouk tallied off a fantastic back-heel feed from Agostino Principato, giving York their one and only goal.
• From that point on, York switched to a defensive style and held off a charge from Toronto to seal the 1-0 victory. 

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• York carried the majority of the offensive play in the game, directing multiple shots on goal. They outshot Toronto 18-10 in the contest, but Grondin kept his team in the match.
• On top of Marzouk's goal, he was also the Lions' offensive leader for the entirety of the contest with four shots. 

LOOKING AHEAD
 
With the OUA's bracket playoff format, the Lions already knew who their opponent would be before their game ended – the No. 3 seeded Rams defeated the Waterloo Warriors 4-0 in their quarterfinal, setting up yet another Toronto derby in the OUA semifinal. The game's winner will then take part in the OUA final, against the winner of the semifinal featuring the Guelph Gryphons and the Carleton Ravens.