NOVIA, BOGACKI NAMED ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
Men's track and field athlete Daniel Novia and women's hockey player, Jessalyn Bogacki were named York’s male and female athletes of the week, respectively, for the week of Jan. 30.
Novia, a psychology student from Mississauga, Ont., won two medals, one gold and one silver, and set two records at the McGill Team Challenge in Montreal this past weekend. The second-year thrower, finished first in the weight throw with a personal-best distance of 20.26 metres, which set a new York record and a new meet record. He also finished second in the shot put with a season’s best throw of 16.03 metres.
His performances helped the Lions finish first in the men’s standings and second overall in the team competition. Novia is ranked No. 1 in the CIS in the weight throw and his best distance of the year is nearly a metre and a half better than the rest of the field. He is also ranked No. 7 in the shot put.
The Lions will return home this weekend for the 41st annual York Open event at the Toronto Track and Field Centre on Saturday, Feb. 4.
Bogacki stopped 38 of the 39 shots she faced this weekend and earned her first shutout of the season as the Lions went 1-1 against Laurier and Waterloo on the road.
The second-year goaltender was perfect in a 4-0 victory over the Warriors, stopping all 20 shots she faced between the pipes. She was also stellar the previous day, coming in to the game in relief of starting netminder Sydney McMurter after just seven minutes of play and allowing the Golden Hawks just one goal on 19 shots as the Lions nearly erased a three-goal deficit before going down 5-3 to the No. 1-ranked team in the CIS.
Bogacki is fifth in the OUA in goals against average (2.12) and seventh in save percentage (.915), and Sunday’s win vaulted the Lions into a three-way tie for third place in the OUA standings with four games remaining.
The next action for the women's hockey team is this weekend as the Guelph Gryphons visit Canlan Ice Sports to take on the Lions on Saturday (Feb. 4).
