LONDON, Ont. – A goal from Giulia Geraci in the 81st minute powered the Western Mustangs to a win over York in their season opener, defeating the Lions 1-0 on Friday afternoon at Mustangs Field.
 
"I thought we had a great first half, second half they made some adjustments and made it difficult for us," said Mustangs head coach Martin Painter. "We struggled to deal with those, I think some of our immaturity showed, credit to York I think we're fortunate to win."
 
"It was a great goal by Giulia, great to see a first-year player score that goal. For the most part we defended well, but I think second half York was the better team. We were happy with enough things [we did], but we have lots to work on. It's early days, but we'll take the three points."
 
The win is Western's first over the Lions since the 2014 season, when the Mustangs defeated York 1-0 in the regular season finale.
 
Geraci's goal was the first OUA regular season goal of her career, and said that "it feels amazing" to score in her regular season debut.
 
"It was hard to get into the game at first, but the girls made me feel really confident and really welcoming, so I felt very supported by the girls," said Geraci.
 
The first half was a closely played affair, with the Mustangs holding a slight advantage. Western outshot their opponents 4-3 over the first 45 minutes.
 
York held the advantage for the majority of the second half, outshooting the Mustangs 4-1. Their best chance came in the 78th minute when Yoana Peralta sent a shot high towards the corner, but Mustangs goalkeeper Megan Girardi made a fantastic save to keep the Lions off the board.
 
The save swung the momentum in the Mustangs favour, and with the home side pressing Geraci notched the first goal of her OUA career to secure the win for the purple and white.
 
"I was dribbling at the defender, she charged at me so I did a little touch around her and got in front of the net, I was at a really tough angle so I just shot it as hard as I could to put it in the back of the net," said Geraci on her goal.
 
Next up for the Mustangs is a matchup with the Guelph Gryphons, a team the Mustangs went undefeated against last season, earning one win and one draw. Game time for Sunday's contest is set for 1 p.m. at Mustangs Field.
 
"Guelph's going to be a very strong team," said Painter. "They have a lot of older players, they're a much older team than us, and they always have some pace up front so they're difficult to deal with. It'll be another tough challenge. We've got a day to rest, then back at it Sunday."