WATERLOO, Ont. – A late first-half goal sparked the Laurier Golden Hawks on a soggy Sunday evening as they defeated the Windsor Lancers 3-0 at Ansley Alumni Field in their 2026 season opener.
The rain-soaked opening half was physical, with both sides struggling to create clear scoring opportunities. Laurier goalkeeper
David Carano kept Windsor off the board with a two-handed save on a free kick in the 20th minute.
Laurier finally broke the stalemate in the 41st minute when
Andrea Chiechi found the top-left corner following a deflection from a corner kick by
Dante Labile, sending the Golden Hawks into halftime with a 1-0 lead.
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The turning point came in the 63rd minute when Chiechi was attacking in the penalty area and drew a yellow card, allowing
Alban Osdautaj to convert a penalty kick to double Laurier's lead.
Windsor's Mateo Nepszy received his second yellow card on the play, leaving the Lancers with 10 players for the remainder of the match.
The physicality continued throughout the second half, with the two sides combining for 11 yellow cards in the match.
Laurier put the game out of reach in the 81st minute when
Armaan Patel found the left side of the net to secure the 3-0 victory.
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David Carano and the Golden Hawks' back line kept Windsor off the scoresheet to earn the clean sheet.
Head coach
Mario Halapir was very impressed with his team's performance.
"We had a great training camp, with 21 new players and four first-year guys starting the game, which was great to see," he said.
"Performance-wise, you couldn't ask for much more. This isn't ideal weather conditions, but you've got to give the boys credit for competing until the end."
Halapir also praised his goalkeeper,
David Carano, saying that he "was outstanding today in the net" and that it was key that the team was able to have a clean sheet, as "there is a big difference between a 0 and a 1".
One of the stronger performers in the victory,
Andrea Chiechi, with a goal and a drawn yellow card in the penalty area, said that "the team played awesome today and you couldn't ask for much more than a zero" from the opposition.
Up Next:
The Laurier Golden Hawks (1-0) take on the Algoma Thunderbirds (0-2) on the road at Superior Heights Turf Field in Sault Ste. Marie on Saturday, September 5th.
Kickoff is at 3:15 PM.
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