GUELPH, Ont. – Friday night at the Gryphon Soccer Complex, the Gryphons men's soccer team picked up a thrilling 3-2 victory over the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks. Gryphon midfielder
Parmpreet Johal scored the match-winner in the 78th minute, lifting Guelph to their third win in four regular season games played this season. The Gryphons, ranked No. 5 nationally, improve to 3-0-1 (wins-losses-draws) on the season, and sit just two points back of York for top spot in the OUA West Division. With the loss, the Golden Hawks fall to 0-5-0 on the season.
Despite the fact that Laurier entered Friday night's match winless through their first four matches of the season (after being swept by Waterloo and Western in the first two home-and-home matchups of the season), the Golden Hawks gave the No. 5-ranked Gryphons all they could handle. After the Gryphons jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the 19th minute on a goal from
Damian Truong, his third of the season, the Golden Hawks equalized in the 36th minute. The score would not stay that way for long, as the Gryphons were able to respond immediately, with Truong scoring his second of the night just moments later to restore the Gryphon lead. For Truong, a human kinetics major from Winnipeg, it marked his 4th goal of the 2022 season after having also scored two goals in the Gryphons season opener Sept. 4 at Algoma. Truong now ranks 3rd in the OUA in goals, behind only Waterloo's Sebastian Guerreri (5) and Ontario Tech's Chris Campoli (8).
After the Golden Hawks were once again able to draw level, this time on a goal right before the halftime whistle, the game was tied 2-2 and would stay that way until the 78th minute. That is when the Gryphons would re-take the lead for good, with
Parmpreet Johal (Brampton, ON) scoring his 1st of the 2022 season to secure all 3 points for the Gryphons. Friday night's game was part of a "Gryphon Soccer Alumni Day" celebration, with both women's and men's soccer alumni in attendance Friday night to support the Gryphon varsity soccer programs. The Gryphons and Golden Hawks will meet again on Sunday afternoon in Waterloo, with the Hawks set to host U of G for a 3:15pm kickoff at University Stadium.
