Info for
Quick links
Download our Mobile app
Icon for Apple. App Store Icon for Android. Google Play

Lords make history with fourth straight softball championship

The Durham Lords women’s softball team reached a pair of milestones on October 20 by winning the 2018 Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) championship. Durham College (DC) not only became the first program to win a 20th OCAA league sport championship, it also became the first women’s softball team to win four straight OCAA gold medals.

The Lords went undefeated in the four-team championship, defeating Humber College 8-3 before defeating St. Clair College twice by scores of 4-1 and 6-2.

“The girls played well and when you have eight freshmen come in and everyone gets on the same page like they did, that is something special,” said DC head coach Jim Nemish. “They never wavered all year and all weekend, leading to a positive result.”

Lords player Ashley Black was also named OCAA Pitcher of the Year on Thursday and was awarded championship MVP, while Emily Glendinning was named a championship all-star after throwing a complete game of her own against St. Clair.

“This this was a complete team effort from the outfield, to the infield, to our role players off the bench,” said Nemish. “Everyone wanted to do their best for each other and that’s special. I’m proud of the girls and what they accomplished this season.”

Lords softball program claims silver at CCSA national championship

On October 7 the Durham College (DC) women’s softball team won silver in the Canadian Collegiate Softball Association (CCSA) national championship in Saskatoon, competing in three games on the last of a three-day competition.

The podium result is the best finish for the Lords at the annual CCSA competition since 2012.

The Lords opened the day with a tightly contested 3-2 win over the Western Mustangs to advance to the bronze medal/championship semi-final. There they dropped the Calgary Dinos 5-1 to earn their place in the gold medal match.

Facing off with the Regina Cougars, the Lords ran out of steam, falling 8-1 in the championship final to end the arduous day on the second step.

DC returns to conference play on Friday, October 12 in Hamilton against the Mohawk Mountaineers, their last regular season double-header before the OCAA championship in Kitchener on Friday, October 19 and Sunday, October 20.

Lords win first pre-season match on newly-turfed Vaso’s Field

In the first match played on Vaso’s Field since it was upgraded with artificial turf, the Durham College (DC) women’s soccer team walked away with a win against the St. Clair Saints on August 25.

The new FIFA-certified infill artificial turf is the first of its kind to be installed at a post-secondary school in Canada and offers an improved playing surface for varsity and intramural sports leagues and community recreation groups using the multi-sport facility.

“Today was a special day and I feel honoured that the DC women were the first team to play a match on the field and did the school proud in our victory,” said head coach Alex Bianchi. “This is a tremendous facility we now have, the field surface is really, really good and will serve present and future players very well. This facility is second to none and I’m excited to call this field ours.”

Lords players Vanessa Juras, Madison Haigh, and Shae-Lynn Young each contributed to the win with goals against the Saints, giving DC an easy 3-0 victory, and Jenna King earned the clean sheet for the Lords with seven saves.

CCAA men’s soccer national championship returning to Durham College

Durham College (DC) is pleased to share that it has been named host of the 2019 Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) men’s soccer national championship. Held at Vaso’s Field at the Oshawa campus Wednesday, November 6 to Saturday, November 9, 2019.

“It’s an exciting time for the school, the program and the players,” said head coach Dave Ashfield. “We got back to the national championship for the first time in 18 years last season and feel like we’re building a great, winning culture again at Durham. We want to show that to the nation and also show our top college players our newly renovated Vaso’s Field, which will be amongst the best facilities in the country.”

The upgrade to Vaso’s Field, which is scheduled to be completed in August, will feature on-site change rooms and the conversion from natural grass to a FIFA-certified sports field with artificial infill turf by AstroTurf Inc., making it the first in Canada with the new product. In addition, the current lighting system will be replaced with new energy efficient LED stadium lighting.

The eight-team tournament will feature conference champions from the Pacific Western Athletic Association (PACWEST), Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC), OCAA, Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) and Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) as well as two wildcard teams and the host Lords.

“We are very proud to be hosting our 15th CCAA national championship in our school history,” said Ken Babcock, director, Athletics, DC. “A highly committed host committee is dedicated to making this prestigious event memorable for all.”

For more information on the 2019 CCAA men’s soccer national championship, please visit the Durham Lords website.

Durham College upgrades its sport facilities with artificial turf

Durham College (DC) will score a winning goal when FIFA-certified artificial turf is installed at Vaso’s Field, offering an improved playing surface for varsity and intramural sports leagues and community recreation groups using the multi-sport facility.

Scheduled for installation this fall, the leading-edge infill artificial turf is the first of its kind to be installed at a post-secondary school in Canada. The renovation will also include new energy-efficient LED stadium lighting, eight change rooms, varsity team rooms, a press box with television broadcasting capabilities, a VIP viewing box and bleachers that will accommodate up to 500 fans.

All the upgrades will allow the campus to accommodate more major provincial and national events, even in the rain.

This project is coordinated by the DC Athletics department in conjunction with the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT), Durham College Students Inc. and the UOIT Student Union.

Vaso’s Field is named in honour of Vaso Vujanovic, a legendary soccer coach who led the Durham Lords to multiple provincial championships. The Lords are a member of the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association and the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association

DC Lords take silver in both men's and women’s volleyball

For the first time in Durham College’s (DC) long and storied athletics history both the men’s and women’s volleyball teams won silver medals in the same year at the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) championships.

For the men’s team this was the first OCAA medal for the program since 2006 and the fourth silver medal for the program overall, with championships coming in 1988 and 1996.

At the OCAA championships the women’s team played for the gold medal game against the Humber Hawks, who have been the reigning champions of the OCAA for the past decade.

The women finished the year with 26 overall wins, breaking the previous record of 24 set by the 1999 team which went on to win bronze at the OCAA championship that year.

 

Golden Again! DC wins their 18th OCAA women’s softball title

Durham College won their unprecedented 18th Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) women’s softball title last weekend with an 11-6 victory over the St. Clair Saints in the gold medal game.

A week prior, Durham’s spot at the championship was in jeopardy as they sat in fifth place with eight games remaining in the regular season. The Lords reeled off seven wins over that time to qualify for the championship, where they went 3-0 outscoring their opponents 28-7 en route to the gold medal victory.

“Our bats came alive,” said head coach Jim Nemish. “The coaching staff told the girls that their pitching and defence was where we wanted it to be but they just needed to believe in themselves at the plate. Everyone started hitting and it became contagious. I am so proud of the way we rallied.”

Durham earned a berth in the gold medal game with a 10-3 win over Fanshawe and an 8-4 victory over St. Clair. The Saints beat Fanshawe 7-1 on Saturday morning to get back into gold medal contention.

In the top of the first inning in the finals, St. Clair loaded the bases with none out. Durham managed to get two fly outs and a ground out to keep the Saints off the board.

“That was a real turning point,” said Nemish. “The game could have easily gone the other way but we managed to stay composed and escape the inning.”

Ashley Black (Waterloo, Ont.), who was the Lords hottest pitcher down the stretch, threw the complete game managing to shut down the Saints offence in the first four innings. Following the tournament she was named a championship all-star. Rebecca Ropp (Milverton, Ont.) was 3-for-4 in the championship game with two runs and four RBIs. She was named championship MVP.

Durham finishes the year with a 24-11 overall record, giving Nemish 471 career victories in 28 years on the bench.

For more information please visit durhamlords.com.

DC to host the inaugural National College Baseball Invitational

Durham College will host the top intercollegiate baseball teams in the country at the 2016 Canadian College Baseball National Championship from Thursday, October 27 to Saturday, October 29.
 
Six teams will participate in the championship that features 13 games over three days.
 
“We are very excited to host a national college baseball championship for the first time,” said Durham College athletic director Ken Babcock. “Baseball is growing throughout the country and we felt it was necessary to host a national championship at the collegiate level. With a national championship on the line, teams will be going all out on the field making for some thrilling action for fans to appreciate.”
 
The teams vying for the national championship will include the St. Clair Saints (Windsor, Ont.), John Abbott Islanders (Montreal, Que.), Fanshawe Falcons (London, Ont.), Holland Hurricanes (Charlottetown, P.E.I.), Humber Hawks (Toronto, Ont.), and the host Durham Lords (Oshawa, Ont.).
 
“Durham College and Ritson Field will be excellent venues to host this year’s national championship,” said Durham Lords head baseball coach Sam Dempster. “The program has a rich history that is second to none and I’m certain that nationals will be a success for all of the participants involved.”
 
First pitch for the championship will take place at 1 p.m. as the Lords match-up against the St. Clair Saints at Kinsmen Civic Memorial Stadium. Action will run through the weekend with the national title game set for Saturday, October 29 at 5 p.m.
 
The Lords have hosted award-winning and highly regarded national championships in the past including men’s volleyball (1990 and 2003), women’s volleyball (1990), men’s soccer (1999), women’s soccer (1999), men’s and women’s golf (2001 and 2002), baseball (2009), men’s basketball (2011), golf (2012) and women’s softball (2015).

For more information visit www.durhamlords.com.

Durham College men’s soccer nationally ranked

After their strong start to the season, the Durham College (DC) men’s soccer have landed themselves in the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) rankings. Released by the CCAA on September 21, the Lords have moved into the national rankings in the 14th position.

Ranked fourth in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) polls, Durham has a 2-1-0 record to start conference play including a 2-1 comeback victory over the Fleming Knights on the road Saturday.

“We are very proud of our men’s soccer program’s success this season,” said Ken Babcock, director of athletics. “Since becoming head coach, Dave (Ashfield) has made our program an annual contender in the OCAA and CCAA. It is a good start to the year, but the team knows they will have to continue to work hard in order to achieve their year-end goals.”

The Lords only loss came to No. 3 ranked Algonquin, as they dropped a 2-1 decision to the Thunder on the road.

Overall Durham has posted a 6-2-0 record including a pair of wins against National Junior College Athletic Association opponents.  

The last time DC’s men’s soccer was nationally ranked was in Dave Ashfield’s first year as head coach when the Lords reached the 12th spot in October of 2014.

That season, the team had their first OCAA final four finish since 1999.

Durham is set to host two games at home this weekend as they welcome the St. Lawrence Vikings (Saturday) and Cambrian Golden Shield (Sunday) to Vaso’s Field. Kickoff is at 3:15 p.m. and 2:15 p.m. respectively.

DC athletes/coach receive provincial awards

Durham College (DC) volleyball players, Jessica Broad, Kristen Curtis, Matt McGirr and Andrew Watson, and women’s head coach, Tony Clarke, were recently recognized with awards at the Ontario Collegiate Athletic Association (OCAA) championship banquets.

Broad and Curtis were both named East Division first team all-stars, while McGirr was named an East Division second team all-star, and Watson was named to the OCAA all-rookie team.

Clarke was named  East Division coach of the year after leading the Lords to a 17-1 record and their first east division title since the 2012-2013 season. In two seasons with the women’s volleyball program, he has posted an impressive 30-6 conference record. Clarke was also selected by the league as a nominee for the Canadian College Athletic Association coach of the year award.

The women’s and men’s teams are currently competing in the OCAA championships. For more information please visit durhamlords.com.