Photo Courtesy: Nav Mohan - 94.9 Radio Western

GOJHL

The St. Thomas Stars played in just one game this past weekend, losing to the LaSalle Vipers 5-2 on Friday evening. The Stars gave up two goals in the first period but responded with two of their own in the second, coming off the sticks of Brady Elder and Jake Robinson, respectively. The Vipers would strike with a quick go-ahead goal under three minutes into the third period and would coast their way to the 5-2 final from there. The Stars’ next game will be on Thursday in Sarnia.

The Komoka Kings swept their weekend set, first beating the Sarnia Legionnaires 6-3 on Thursday evening. Joel Mazzilli would be the star for the Kings that night, racking up three goals and two assists. The Kings would follow up the offensive bonanza with a close 2-1 win over Sarnia on Saturday. Mazzilli would score again for the Kings, picking up the game-winning goal shorthanded in the third period.  Mazzilli is currently ranked ninth in GOJHL scoring with 59 points (23g, 33a), but is second amongst Western Conference players (Cal Davis, London, 60 pts). The Kings will be back at it on Wednesday night when they play London at the Western Fair Sports Centre at 7pm. The Nationals haven’t played since January 9^th.

Western Mustangs

Hockey

The Western Mustangs’ men’s hockey team were gunning for their eighth consecutive win on Friday morning when they hosted the Laurier Golden Hawks for the annual School Day Game. Hundreds of London-area elementary school students packed the Thompson Arena stands, with the atmosphere utterly deafening. They would be disappointed though, as the Mustangs came out flat, losing 5-1 while giving up 50 shots on goal in the process. It would be a quick turnaround for the purple & white though, as they hosted York on Saturday night. They would get back in the win column, beating York 2-1 after Cordell James scored the go-ahead goal shorthanded with 55 seconds left in the third period. With the win, the Mustangs leapfrog the Lions to take sole possession of third in the OUA West. York will have its chance at redemption on Friday when they host the Mustangs in the back half of a home-and-home.
The women’s hockey team managed to climb their way up the standings this weekend, winning both of their games at Thompson Arena. Saturday’s game against the Laurentian Voyageurs saw April Clark further her lead in the OUA scoring race, notching a natural hat trick in a 6-0 final for Western. The Mustangs would follow it up with a 2-1 win over the second-place Nipissing Lakers, where Clark would score yet again to give her four goals over two games, and 17 on the season. She is now six points clear of the next-leading scorer in the OUA. The ladies will hit the road this weekend for games at Queens and UOIT.
 

Basketball

The Mustangs basketball teams swept all four games of a weekend doubleheader against the Algoma Thunderbirds. The women’s team were excited to finally see their two seniors Julia Curran and Maddy Horst suit up together for the first time in the regular season on Friday night. Curran put up 11 points and six boards, while Horst put up just 7 points on 3-4 shooting in just 19 minutes of court time. The star for the Mustangs on Friday though was actually rookie Brett Fischer, who had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the double-double. Laura Graham also had 14 points over 34 minutes of court time in her team’s 70-67 win. The ladies would follow that up on Saturday with a 51-45 win over Algoma. They continued to enjoy the presence of their seniors in the lineup, with Julia Curran injecting herself back into the rebounding game, hauling in a game-high 13 boards. Laura Graham would lead the way again for the Mustangs with 15 points.

As for the men’s team, they too swept the Algoma Thunderbirds this past weekend. The Mustangs came in atop the OUA West division, with a thin half-game cushion. They would get a little more breathing room on Friday, with a decisive 90-75 win over the T-Birds. Marko Kovac led the way with 25 points on a stellar 8-15 shooting from the field after coming off a broken hand. The men’s team continued to flex its muscles on the Thunderbirds, taking their second game 92-70. Omar Shiddo would be the star for the Mustangs in that one, going 10-16 from the field for a game-high 27 points. Julian Walker also had a monster night, racking up 21 points on 8-10 shooting, and bringing down 5 boards. Fifth-year Jedson Tavernier also made good work of his 15 minutes of play, putting up 8 points and 5 rebounds. The Mustangs now sit two points clear of Brock atop the OUA West standings. Both teams will be back in action on Friday when they host the Waterloo Warriors at Alumni Hall.

Volleyball

The Mustangs volleyball teams played in their first matches of 2019 this past weekend, playing at Brock and McMaster. Both teams would face identical results, with the men’s and women’s team taking down the Badgers in three and four sets respectively. They would the both lose to the McMaster Marauders on Sunday, with the ladies falling in four sets while the men were handled in three. The volleyball teams will not be in action again until January 25th when they host the Trent Excalibur.