Knights atop Midwest; Mustangs softball 5th at CCAA’s, tennis silver

Gameday in 5: A look to the week ahead — and a recap of the week that was (Oct. 2-9) — for London’s teams and athletes.

The London Knights are off to a quick start, with seven points in their first five games. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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London Knights

After starting the season with two straight wins, the Knights dropped two of three last week (although they picked up a point in a shootout loss).

Opening the week in Sault Ste. Marie, the Knights lost 3-2 to the Greyhounds in a shootout. London took the early lead at the 13:30 mark thanks to a Max McCue goal. The Soo fought back in the second to tie the game, but the Knights took the lead back five minutes later with a powerplay goal, credited to Sam O’Reilly, who deflected a Sam Dickinson slap shot into the net. But at the 9:37 mark of the third, the Greyhounds tied things up again and eventually forced overtime. After a scoreless extra period, the home side won in the shootout, scoring the lone goal for the win. Backup goalie Owen Willmore picked up the loss, although he stopped 25 of 27 shots during regulation.

After a hard fought game Wednesday, the Knights were overpowered 4-1 by the North Bay Battalion on Friday at Budweiser Gardens. It was the team’s first regulation loss of the year (and first on home ice). The Knights actually opened the scoring, with Sam Dickinson notching the ice breaker at the 3:37 mark of the first period (assists to Oliver Bonk and Michael Simpson). But the lead was short-lived. North Bay tied the game less than a minute later, and then went on the offensive and scored twice more before the first intermission. The Knights were unable to muster a comeback.

The Knights flipped the script on Saturday, beating the Guelph Storm 4-1 at home. Denver Barkey led the charge, scoring twice and picking up an assist. Barkey’s first of the game opened the scoring at the 7:14 mark. Oliver Bonk picked up the assist as Barkey deflected the defenceman’s wrist shot into the net. The Knights’ second goal came on a 3-on-1 just after the six-minute mark of the second, as Jackson Edward finished off the play with his first marker of the season (assists to Will Nicholl and Jacob Julien).

Guelph made it close in the second period, but London responded with Barkey setting up Ruslan Gazizov for the latter’s first goal of the season. With a two-goal advantage restored heading into the third, Barkey later added an empty net goal to put the game away. 

Up next:

The Knights are back in action Thursday for the first of three games in three days. They’ll be at home Friday vs. Kingston.

Thurs. Oct. 12 (7:05pm @ Peterborough Petes)
Fri. Oct. 13 (7:00pm vs. Kingston Frontenacs)
Sat. Oct. 14 (7:05pm @ Sarnia Sting)

Western Mustangs

Men’s and Women’s Tennis - OUA Championship

The Mustangs’ men’s team fell short of winning its fifth straight OUA tennis championship over the weekend, falling 4-3 in a tough battle against the University of Toronto in the gold medal match.

Western lost the doubles point, dropping two of three matches to the Varsity Blues. In singles action, Ashton Cross and Aidan Ziawon won their matches — 6-0, 6-1 and 6-2, 6-1, respectively. But Toronto won three singles matches to secure this year’s OUA title. The Mustangs’ Cross was named OUA Player of the Year, while Zia was named an OUA all-star.

The Western women, also coming in as defending champs, were knocked out in the semis and then lost their bronze medal match to the McMaster Marauders. Lauryn Son and Mihika Saraswathi won their doubles match, but McMaster picked up the point after winning the other two. In singles action, the Mustangs managed just one match victory, by Carly Sitron (6-1, 6-3). The result was a 6-1 McMaster win. For her strong play, Sitron was named an OUA all-star.

Women’s Softball - CCSA National Championship

In Victoria, BC for the collegiate national championships, the Western Mustangs’ women’s team went 3-2 and placed fifth overall, a step back from their silver medal finish from a year ago. A 7-2 loss to Durham got Western off on the wrong foot. They bounced back to beat the Victoria Vikes, 5-2, on their home turf, and then won convincingly, 8-0, over the Calgary Dinos to improve their record to 2-1.

But a crucial loss to the Humber Hawks late Saturday knocked the Mustangs out of medal contention. Scoreless heading into the 5th inning, Humber plated three runs with two out to grab the momentum and ride it to a win. Western closed out the tournament with a 7-1 win over Victoria to grab fifth place. Two Mustangs were named all-stars at the conclusion of the tournament: Catcher Megan Hamilton and second baseman Blythe Hilbert. 

The ‘Stangs are now looking to regroup and make a run at an OUS title. They went undefeated, 18-0, during regular season play. The provincial championship takes place Oct. 21-22 in Paris, ON.