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Justin Santos outruns a defender against the University of Toronto during a game last month. (Josh Kim/Rams Athletics)

Leading 3-0 at halftime, the Rams men’s soccer team made a handful of substitutes to give some players their first minutes in an Ontario University Athletics (OUA) game. The decision nearly came back to bite them, as the game against the Nipissing Lakers finished 3-2.

Nipissing had the first chance of the game five minutes in, but the shot from the centre of the box was deflected wide of the goal. After that one chance, the Rams dominated the possession for the rest of the first half.

Still, it took the Rams 30 minutes to capitalize on that possession and score their first goal. Then, the floodgates opened. First-year midfielder Justin Santos scored his first OUA goal after Rams captain Abdallah EL-Chanti turned with the ball on the edge of the box and set up Santos for the finish.

“It felt great,” said Santos, “I hadn’t been able to hit the scoresheet until today, it’s always good to get the first one down.”

Less than two minutes later, Luca Di Marco sent a ball through the Nipissing defence to EL-Chanti who managed to put the ball past the goalie, but was foiled by a defender. After the shot, the goalie rushed El-Chanti and fouled him, resulting in a penalty kick which the Rams’ captain promptly converted down the middle for the teams’ second goal.

Santos’ scored the Rams’ last goal of the game. Santos nipped the ball off of Nipissing center back Mladen Ruzic and scored — his second of the game.

At halftime, the Rams made the team’s five fateful lineup changes.

“The biggest thing was the mentality, to be honest I blame myself. I took my foot off the gas pedal,” head coach Filip Prostran said, “I take full responsibility for making things interesting in the end.”

Nipissing scored its first goal when fourth-year midfielder Jack Collins was brought down in the box by Rams second-year forward Tomas Castaldo. Fifth-year defender Cody Vaillancourt took the penalty, scoring by sending Rams goalie Praveen Ahilan the wrong way.

The Rams had a few wasted opportunities to score, including a couple penalty shots that the referee waved off. In the 90th minute the Rams were awarded a penalty that was saved, resulting in a corner kick. The kick then hit the crossbar and Nipissing stormed down the field to score one last goal in what was their final kick of the game.

The Rams travel to Sault Ste. Marie next weekend to take on the Algoma Thunderbirds.

University president Mohamed Lachemi said on-campus practices will continue for Ryerson Rams teams this year

*The Ryerson Rams women’s basketball team prepares for a game against the Carleton Ravens during the 2019-2020 season. (Courtesy of Ryerson Rams Twitter account).*

Ryerson plans to continue accommodating practice spaces for its varsity teams despite the cancellations of all Ontario University Athletics (OUA) conference games and U SPORTS winter national championships due to COVID-19, according to university president Mohamed Lachemi.

“Pending no further restrictions, Ryerson Athletics plans on making space for our student
athletes to practise on a go-forward basis,” Lachemi said in an email on Monday.

Lachemi said the university is following “the direction of Toronto Public Health Services” to ensure all facilities and individuals entering these areas are safe and adhering to public health protocols.

Earlier this month, Lachemi said access to on-campus practice facilities is an experience the university hopes to offer to student-athletes despite the lack of games being played this year in Ryerson’s OUA conference.

While accessibility to the Mattamy Athletic Centre (MAC) and other supporting facilities will remain available, Lachemi said there are no expectations for student-athletes or teams to practice. Teams and athletes can choose whether they feel it is appropriate and safe to continue their practices, which occur at least three times a week according to the Ryerson Athletics website.

*The Mattamy Athletic Centre will continue to be open for Rams teams to practice despite the cancellations of all OUA games this season. (Courtesy of Ryerson Rams Twitter account).*

Despite having national championships and OUA games cancelled until March 31, Lachemi said the athletic directors from all Ontario universities are having online meetings on a bi-weekly basis to discuss proposals for teams to safely return to play. The conversations on the future of OUA and other U SPORTS conferences post-March 31 are still in their preliminary stages, according to Lachemi.

U SPORTS winter national championships were cancelled on Oct.15 when their board of directors and the four conferences deemed it unsafe for athletes to travel and for universities to host games during the pandemic. This follows the decision in June to cancel all U SPORTS fall national championships.

The Atlantic University Sport (AUS) conference and Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) have not announced official cancellations and are reportedly attempting to host games within their respective conferences.

U SPORTS’ frequently asked questions page states that conferences are permitted to host their own conference championships during the pandemic. OUA and Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CW) officially cancelled their seasons on Oct.15.

At least three conferences are required to host national championships, according to the U SPORTS official statement on the winter cancellations.

The eligibility years for student-athletes in the conferences cancelling their games will not be affected this season.

The affected sports listed on the U SPORTS website include hockey, basketball, volleyball, wrestling, swimming, and track and field.

Rams men’s soccer team avoids late push from Nipissing to sweep series against Lakers

Ryerson outlines COVID-19 plan for varsity athletes in wake of game cancellations