Mustangs divisional champs

Photos by Mike Maloney/London Community News/Twitter: mdmaloneyphoto The Western University Mustangs men’s lacrosse team finished off the regular season in fine style, defeating both Brock and McMaster universities this past weekend to nail down first place in the West Division of the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association (CUFLA) standings. Opening the weekend at home to Brock on a cold and wet Friday night (Oct. 19), Western managed get out front early when Shayne Snider sliced a shot down the lane past Badgers netminder Ian Duffy. Taking turns adding a pair of singles each to their tallies over the next 36 minutes, it was Western holding a slim one-goal lead as the teams returned to the pitch for the second half. Within minutes, that Mustangs lead had disappeared. Bouyed by the change of fortunes, the Badgers added another pair to take a 5-3 lead before a power-play marker by Sam Neeb drew Western back within one heading into the final 20 minutes of play. Another power-play goal — this time by Ryan McCrory with his second of the game — drew the teams even once more. With just over six minutes left on the clock Dylan Ham pulled the trigger on his 25^th goal of the season to put the Mustangs back into a lead they would not relinquish despite the best efforts of Brock over the final moments of play, posting a 6-5 win. Saturday night (Oct. 20), it was the McMaster Mauraders taking up position on the visitors bench of TD Waterhouse Stadium. McMaster would draw first blood in this contest but it wasn’t long until Western was riding high in the saddle, scoring eight unanswered goals before the half. To their credit, McMaster never gave up but when the final whistle sounded, it was the Mustangs taking a 10-7 decision. Western ended the regular season with 22 points thanks to an 11-1 record, finishing two points ahead of Guelph in second place and four up on Brock. The first place finish gives the Mustangs a first round bye to the Final Six CUFLA Baggataway Cup Championship being played Nov. 2-4 in Peterborough. Find us on Facebook: London Community News [gallery columns="4"]