*Varsity Blues women's soccer playoff preview, presented by Lebanese Garden*

The No. 8 nationally ranked University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's soccer team make their way to North Bay this weekend for an OUA quarter-final showdown against the No. 10 Nipissing Lakers on Saturday (Oct. 24) afternoon.

The Blues earned their spot in the quarter-finals after a dominant 5-0 opening round victory over the TMU Bold on Wednesday. Toronto's offence has been especially impressive of late, tallying 14 goals across their last four games which has included three wins. Those late season victories helped U of T finish with an 8-3-1 (W-L-T) record to place third in the OUA East. While the offence has ranked Top 5 in the province with 29 goals in the fall, the defence has also ranked Top 5 with just 12 goals allowed across the 12-game regular season. The Blues have used a scoring by committee approach with 10 different players registering a goal this fall. Leading the charge though has been third-year midfielders Emilija Lucic and Kimee Liu scoring seven and five goals, respectively. The strong midfield play has been critical to the success on both ends of the pitch as U of T looks to continue their dominant possession into the postseason.

Nipissing also concluded the regular season with an 8-3-1 record but held the tiebreaker over Toronto with a victory over the Blues in early September. The second meeting saw the teams battle to a draw, providing even more meaning to this third match in the postseason. The Lakers have done well on their home field, holding a 4-1-1 record in North Bay. Hannah Neville has been critical to that success, leading not just the Lakers but the OUA with 16 regular season goals. She additionally registered eight assists, illustrating the incredible playmaking ability that will test the Blues once again.

Toronto hold a 15-6-6 record versus Nipissing dating back to 2010. Five of the six Lakers wins have come in North Bay.
 
SCHEDULE
Saturday, Oct. 24 | 1:00 p.m.
Nipissing Field (North Bay, Ont.)
Live Stats
Watch
 
2026 REGULAR SEASON STAT LEADERS
Toronto
Goals: Emilija Lucic | 7 goals
Assists: Kimee Liu | 5 assists
Wins: Maria Godoy-Atrash | 6 wins
 
Nipissing
Goals: Hannah Neville | 16 goals
Assists: Hannah Neville | 8 assists
Wins: Hayden Hanley | 6 wins
 
HISTORY
Last Five:
Oct. 4, 2026 | Toronto 2, Nipissing 2
Sept. 6, 2026 | Nipissing 1, Toronto 0
Oct. 12, 2025 | Toronto 2, Nipissing 1
Oct. 12, 2024 | Toronto 2, Nipissing 0
Oct. 14, 2023 | Toronto 4, Nipissing 0