A hard-fought battle between the York University Lions Football team and the University of Windsor Lancers played out in the favour of the visitors in front of a large homecoming crowd on Friday night.

The Lions fell short by a score of 33-10 on a cold, windy night under the Friday Night Lights for the annual homecoming game at the York Lions Stadium. York had a lead at the half, but some costly penalties and ill-timed turnovers sunk them in the second half, something that has been a common theme throughout 2022.
 

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Lions got off to a solid start, with Noah Craney pushing the Lions to the Lancers 12-yard mark. From there, Derek Giacobbi handled business with a clean kick between the posts to put the Lions up on the scoresheet first, leading 3-0.
• Not long after, the Lancers found themselves nearing the Lions endzone. However, they only managed to secure three points off a Brady Lidster 20-yard field goal, knotting the game at 3-3.
• After some tight back-and-forth action in the first quarter, Lidster wasted no time grabbing a 6-3 lead for Windsor with another 16-yard field goal late in the quarter.
• Lidster nailed his third field goal of the night, to give the Lancers a 9-3 edge late in the 2nd.
• After multiple opportunities for the red and white, York was able to break through with a fumble recovery by Quinton Douglas, clearing the way for Dexter Sargent who scooped and scored. The play was followed by a PAT from Giacobbi to give the Lions a 10-9 lead at the break.    
• The Lancers looked to respond in the 3rd, and they did just that with a successful fake punt, ultimately leading to a 2-yard touchdown by Christopher John. With 9:13 left in the 3rd, Windsor re-took the lead by a 16-10 margin.
• With the momentum shifting toward the visitors, Danny Skelton was able to connect off a fake pass to find the end zone for another 1-yard touchdown , increasing the margin to 23-10 early in the 4th. 
• Joey Zorn followed suit, scoring the final touchdown of the night, extending the Lancers lead to 30-10. 
• Lidster capped off the scoring with a his fourth field goal of the night to secure a 33-10 Windsor victory.     

NOTABLE NUMBERS:

• Mack Bannatyne had a stellar performance for the Lions with seven tackles, followed by a six-tackle performance by Matt Dean and Coop Bannatyne.
• Craney led the way for the Lions as he went 20-35 on passing for a total of 216-yards.
• Windsor was led by the terrific passing from Skelton, as he went 16-21 on 195-yard passing.  

LOOKING AHEAD:

The Lions will remain on home turf, as they look to play their final game of the season against the Ottawa Gee-Gees next Saturday, October 15. The Gee-Gees sit third in the OUA behind the Queen's Gaels with a 5-1 record. Kickoff is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 15 with a 1pm kickoff.