The Varsity Blues men’s soccer team played their last regular season home game against the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) Ridgebacks this past Wednesday.
The Varsity Blues, ranked second in the OUA East division heading into the game, were looking to reinforce their lead over the third place Queen’s Gaels, and solidify their spot in the OUA East quarterfinals.
The scoring started early. In the fourth minute, rookie striker Jack Wadden connected on a cross from veteran left back Devon Bowyer to score his third goal of the season. The Blues continued their stellar offense throughout the half, and in the twenty-second minute, Nirun Sivananthan set up fellow striker Russell Rodrigues with a through ball. Rodrigues placed his shot in the bottom right corner to beat UOIT keeper Travis Martin — scoring the definitive goal of the game. The score remained 2–0 in favour of the Blues at the end of the half.
The Ridgebacks, however, came out strong in the second half. In the sixty-sixth minute, UOIT was awarded a direct free kick, just outside the eighteen-yard box. Fabio Campoli, capitalized on the penalty and beat Blues keeper Rab Bruce-Lockhart, cutting the Blues’ lead to one.
Despite the relentless pressure from the Ridgebacks, the Blues’ back line and Bruce-Lockhart persevered to pulled off a 2–1 win.
With this win, the Varsity Blues improve their record to 10-3-2 and stay in second place in the OUA East.
The Varsity Blues close out their regular season on October 24 against city rivals Ryerson Rams. The game is scheduled for 3:15 PM at Downsview Park.
