WATERLOO, Ont. – The Golden Hawks made it three straight wins in a big way on Saturday afternoon, taming the York Lions by a 30-point margin, 86-56.  

Laurier entered the game on a high after their triumph against the Windsor Lancers the night before. 

Speaking about the match-up York would present after that weekend-opening victory, Laurier's manager of men's basketball operations and head coach Paul Falco said, "The thing about York right now is that they are extremely hungry. They are coming in rested and extremely motivated, so we're going to have to bounce back from a very physical game and come in with full effort."

After a few competitive opening minutes of play, the Golden Hawks began to pull away and create a divide, finishing the quarter with a 14-point lead. Eight different players got on the scoresheet for Laurier, with Martina Errazo's six points leading the way. The team also shot a sizzling 58% from the field.

The Golden Hawks shifted into a much more controlling role, initiating strong defensive plays that resulted in multiple steals, some of which even resulted in baskets. Second-year forward Kate White was seen using her body as an advantage, grabbing three rebounds and setting picks throughout the quarter. 

Midway through the quarter, York switched to a tight man-to-man defence with a full-court press. This slowed the Golden Hawks but had little overall effect on them overall as they took a 19-point lead to the locker room at halftime.

The third quarter would see the Golden Hawks build a 9-4 run taking them to the mid-way point, with points from White, Miranda Campbell, Janet Enge, Brittyn Graves, Cassidy Hirtle and Emmanuelle Felix. 

York was prepared to go down swinging, as they got their legs back under them late in the quarter. 

The Lions provided their stiffest opposition in the fourth but, by then, it was too late, as the Golden Hawks outscored them again to coast to victory. Much of the damage was done in the key, as Laurier held a 48-24 advantage for points in the paint. 

Errazo again led the Golden Hawks with seven points in the fourth as Graves, White, Hirtle, Khailan O'Connor and Enge all also put points on the board. 

The win moved Laurier to two games over .500 at 11-9 and has them tied for third in the OUA West with Western. 

When asked about the team's performance to wrap up the weekend action, Errazo, who finished with a career-high 13 points, said, "Honestly, (York) battled, but it showed on the court that each of us wanted (the win)."

"I think it was a really good team effort," added the second-year guard. "Everybody contributed and did what they needed to do."

Hirtle led the way offensively once again with a game-high 19 point while Campbell and White tied for a game-high with eight rebounds apiece.

Laurier will meet its aforementioned divisional rival for their regular season finale on Saturday night. but, before that, the purple and gold will play host to the Toronto Varsity Blues (5-15).

Top Performers

Laurier Golden Hawks
Martina Errazo
In her best performance of the season, Errazo was hustling non-stop, saw the court well and didn't shy away from contact in putting together her best-ever points total.

York Lions
Gabriella Di Pietro
Di Pietro led the Lions with 12 points in a game-high 30 minutes of action.

Up Next

The Golden Hawks take on Toronto on Friday for the unofficial kick-off to Reading Week.

Tip-off is at 6 pm at the Laurier AC Gym. Tickets are available now or stream the game live on OUA.tv