The University of Toronto Varsity Blues men's lacrosse team notched a 17-11 victory in their home opener on Saturday, September 22 against the Wilfred Laurier Golden Hawks. 
 
It was a rematch of their season opener two weeks prior, which Toronto won handily 14-8.  But this was a different game and a more determined Laurier team.  It was a see-saw battle until the fourth quarter.
 
Laurier opened the scoring but Toronto responded on Zach Holmes first career goal.  The Blues scored three more times on two goals by Nick Pison and one by AJ Masson.  Laurier also scored again for a 4-2 Toronto lead at the end of the first quarter. 
 
After the first quarter it looked like U of T was on its way to pulling away again but Laurier opened the second quarter with two scores and won that period 4-3. Pison had his third goal of the game. Jackson Hickey and Darren Elliott added singles.  The key play for Laurier was their ability to kill off a two and a half minute penalty without Toronto scoring.  The score at the half was 7-6 for Toronto. 
 
Laurier came out strong to open the third quarter, scoring two straight goals to take the lead.  The Blues responded with three straight goals of their own by Pison, Elliott and Masson. Elliott added another goal later in the period, while Laurier added two more.  The score after three quarters was a close 11-10 in favour of U of T.
 
It seemed a switch was turned on in the fourth quarter and the Blues started to pour it on, outscoring the Golden Hawks 6-1 in the frame.  Toronto draw man Kaden Jackson finally figured out the Laurier draw men, which led to important possessions for U of T.  Attack Jason Barnable, who had been relatively quiet all game, came alive with two goals and four assists in the quarter. Elliott added his fourth goal, Pison his fifth and Middie Davis Bottomley finished the scoring with two goals.  It all added up to a 17-11 Blues victory.
 
Barnable led all scorers with two goals and seven assists.  Pison had six points on five goals and an assist.  Elliott had four goals, Masson and Bottomley scored two each and Hickey and Holmes with singles. 
 
The Blues take on defending champion Western University Sunday at Varsity Stadium at 5:00 pm. 
 
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