It took some time but, the Nipissing Lakers varsity soccer teams are both in the win column after putting in 90-minute efforts as they blanked the outmatched Royal Military College Paladins, Sunday.

In their 2-0 win, the Lakers men's squad dictated the pace and controlled the time of possession. The Lakers continued to dominate position and created a number of scoring opportunities when Alagie Gaye headed a beautiful cross to open the scoring 17 minutes into the match. The Lakers (1-4-1) continued to put pressure on RMC (0-2-0), but couldn’t put the ball past the iron.

The Lakers hung on to the one goal lead until the 55th minute,  when Mustafa Zafarzadeh found the top right corner passed the outstretched RMC keeper from 20 yards out.

“The team played well today,” said assistant coach Tony D’Agostino. “We played within our system, and defensively, we maintained our shape throughout the match limiting the RMC scoring opportunities.”

On the women’s side, the Lady Lakers played a solid game controlling the match from start to finish in a 4-0 victory. The ladies came out with some intensity, knowing the three points were crucial if they are to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Didiane Chollet provided the offensive spark by heading in her first of three goals at the 36 minute mark for a 1-0 halftime lead. The Lady Lakers (1-5-1) then dominated the second half, creating numerous chances and capitalizing on three to put the game beyond reach.

 The Lakers’ defense, anchored by Julia McAvoy, played solid, limiting RMC (0-3-0) to two scoring chances while keeper Kristine Snedden earned the shutout victory.

“We played a very strong team game today,” said head coach Vito Castiglione. “The girls came out hungry especially after yesterday's match. Our defense was very solid and our offense was clicking today, which was nice. A well deserved win for the team. Now we would like to carry this momentum into our next matches.”

Saturday, the Lakers teams were swept by two technically sound Queen’s teams.

In the men’s game, Queen’s (3-1-1) topped Nipissing 3-1, while the Golden Gaels (4-0-1) blanked the Lakers 4-0 in the women’s game.

The men’s match featured a fit, technically sound and physical Queen’s squad. The high tempo game featured some great runs that kept Lakers goalie Ed Swan very busy as he faced many tough shots.

Mike Zanetti opened the scoring for Queen’s, but it was short lived as the Lakers' Eric Yung responded at the 26 minute mark, scoring his first of the season. The scored remained the same until the 50 minute mark when Chris Gencarelli put Queen’s up 2-1.  The contest remained closely contested as Swan saved a penalty kick, but Matt Hulse put the game out of reach in the 87th minute. 

“The boys worked hard today, but due to an inability to finish, we did not get the desired result. To their credit, Queen’s has a very impressive back line.” added D’Agostino. “

The Lady Lakers were simply outplayed by a very quick and well disciplined Queen’s team. Queen’s Eilish McConville notched her first of two goals at the eight minute mark.

In the second half, Queen’s was the better club and if it wasn’t for the excellent play of Snedden the score could have been much worse.

“The Queen’s team played a solid match today. We started out well but they capitalized on their chances and we didn’t. We will learn for this and the next time we face them we will make some adjustments.” added Castiglione.