WINDSOR, Ont. – The Golden Hawks took flight this past Sunday to face off against the Windsor Lancers on the road.

It was clear before the match even started that it would be a very close game, as the Golden Hawks and the Lancers entered the match with identical records of five wins, four losses and two ties. The two teams were already guaranteed to meet again in the first round of the OUA playoffs, and faced off to see who would secure the fourth playoff spot in the OUA West division and a home playoff game.

Very early on in the match, Windsor had a key scoring opportunity generated from a through-ball on the right wing and a powerful shot by Lancers striker Kailyn Robertson resulting in a massive save from Laurier keeper Taya Johnson. This was the first of many big scoring opportunities and even bigger saves from both teams. 

The first half of play saw four shots on net from Laurier - all from third-year student-athlete Jyanessa Sealy - and two from Windsor.

Going into the second half, the intensity on the pitch seemed to double after a couple of key substitutions were made on both sides.

Laurier was able to put nine shots on while Windsor had three. Near the midway point of the second half, Laurier player Sasha Marikano and Windsor player Ava Facchineri both received yellow cards after a particularly rough collision.

At the end of the 90 minutes of play the score remained 0-0, meaning both teams finished the season with the exact same record. Laurier holds the tiebreaker on goal differential, meaning they will host the first-round rematch on Wednesday night. The last time Laurier women's soccer hosted a playoff game was 2017.
 

TOP PERFORMERS

Windsor Lancers

#0 – Izzy Barrette

Keeper Izzy Barrette faced insane amounts of pressure during the match. Facing a flurry of Laurier shots and near constant pressure within the box would be one challenge, doing it while knowing the score of the match determines your team's overall ranking is quite another. Barrette did both with confidence while also securing her first full-game shutout of the season.

Laurier Golden Hawks

# 30 – Sasha Marikano

Marikano entered the match at the 73rd minute of play which can sometimes be difficult for players who may struggle to gain momentum. Sasha however was quite the opposite, putting three shots on net in 15 minutes.

UP NEXT

The Golden Hawks and the Lancers face off again this coming Wednesday, October 25 for the first match of their OUA playoff campaign. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Alumni Field. Admission is free. 

If you can't make it to the pitch, you can follow along to live updates on X (formerly Twitter) at @WLUAthletics.