Ontario Tech wins first provincial soccer title – nationals begin Thursday in Oshawa

It is a week of firsts for Ontario Tech University and its men’s soccer team.

On Saturday the Ridgebacks defeated the York Lions 2-1 at Lions Stadium in north Toronto to win their first ever provincial championships.

This Thursday, back home at Vaso’s Field, Ontario Tech will host its first ever national championships when the best men’s university soccer teams in the country come to Oshawa.

And if everything falls into place, the school will be celebrating its first ever national title Sunday after the gold medal game.

The team did not strike fear into the hearts of their opponents during the regular season with an ordinary 4-4-2 record but the players got hot at the right moment, downing Nipissing 4-1, Toronto 5-2 and McMaster on penalties to set up the Ontario final, where the Ridgebacks got a pair of first half goals from Erion Metaj and some key saves from Kevon Grant to capture their first provincial crown.

“Absolutely unreal feeling this team, this group, this coaching staff. Second to none,” said scoring star Metaj. “Honestly one of the best teams I’ve ever been a part of. Hard work gets you there. We deserve it.”

“It’s just that Ontario Tech DNA in us,” he added. “People can take us down, beat us down, but that’s OT – we come back up.”

The Ridgebacks, fourth-ranked nationally, take on fifth-ranked McGill University Redbirds Thursday at 7 p.m. in the quarter-final, with the winner taking on the winners of the top-ranked UBC Thunderbirds (14-1-3) and the New Brunswick Varsity Reds (#8) game the following day, also at 7 p.m.

The other matches have #3 St. Francis Xavier X-Men vs York (#6) and #2 Montreal Carabins vs (#7) Mount Royal Cougars on Thursday, with the winners playing at 4 p.m. Friday.

The championship game is scheduled for Sunday at 2 p.m., with the bronze medal match at 11 a.m. All games will be played at Vaso’s Field at the north-end of the Ontario Tech campus at Conlin Road and Simcoe Street.

Ontario Tech, which launched its varsity soccer program in 2009, has hosted several provincial championships, but this will be the school’s first national championships.

“Being awarded the 2024 men’s soccer championship has our campus and community buzzing,” enthused Ontario Tech Athletics and Recreation Director Scott Barker last year when the school was awarded the U Sports tournament, adding that the school and the city is  “looking forward to welcoming the nation’s best players” to Ontario Tech to help celebrate Oshawa’s 100-year anniversary.