The University of Toronto Varsity Blues men's lacrosse team defeated the McMaster Marauders 9-7 on Friday night (Oct. 26) in Hamilton, Ont.

The last time these two teams played, Toronto had to come back from a 6-2 deficit to win by one on a goal with only three minutes left in the game.  This time, McMaster had the extra incentive of playing for a potential playoff spot. 

As in the previous game, the play of the Blues draw man Kaden Jackson was key.  Jackson was able to win the majority of the draws, assisted by his teammates on the draw, primarily Sean Power and Zach Holmes, to get critical possessions.   

The Marauders scored first to open the game but it was quickly answered by Blues attack AJ Masson.  The teams exchanged goals the rest of the period with middie Nick Pison and attack Darren Elliott scoring for the Blues.  Pison scored again with only 10 seconds left in the quarter as Toronto took a 4-3 lead.  This was the first time in almost four games that Toronto has had their top four scorers on the field at the same time due to injuries.   

McMaster scored twice to start the second quarter.  Nick Pison scored twice more, bracketing another McMaster goal.  Masson scored his second of the game as the Blues took a slim 7-6 lead into the second half. 

The Toronto defence shut down the Marauders in the third period, clearing the ball from their zone efficiently and giving the offence scoring opportunities.  Toronto goals were scored by Masson and Pison as the Blues led 9-6 after three periods.

 The Blues weathered some heavy pressure from McMaster in the fourth quarter and they did score once but Toronto maintained long possessions in the offensive end and picked up the two-goal victory. 

Nick Pison led all scorers with five goals, while AJ Masson had three.  In his first game back after missing the previous three games, team leading scorer Jason Barnable had three assists.   

The Blues next play in the Baggataway Cup quarter-final game against the No. 2 ranked team coming out of the East division on Friday, November 9 at 7:00 pm at Varsity Stadium.

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