TORONTO — Even before the match began, there was something different in the air.
With the excitement that came with the city of Toronto painted blue and the Downsview Park sidelines decked in pink, it shouldn't come as a surprise that the home team was given the green light on the pitch.
The Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold men's soccer team defeated the Laurentian Voyageurs 4-2 to extend its win streak to four on Saturday afternoon.
TMU improved to 18-0-2 at home since 2023 and 7-1-2 on the season.
Both teams passed with flying colours on defence in the opening ten minutes of the match. Despite their best efforts, the Bold and Voyageurs had no choice but to remain patient on-ball in the face of defensive units that refused to break their shape.
While Bold forward Cyrus Rollocks has dazzled on offence throughout the year, it was his exceptional play on the other side of the pitch that stood out early against the Voyageurs. TMU's leading scorer launched himself into the air to turn away early threats on back-to-back corners.
TMU's Kaostubh Bolla also prevented a possible goal when he got in the way of a Voyageur who managed to race past several defenders.
Laurentian finally caught the TMU defence red-handed when striker Maliq Olanrewaju pounced on a rebound just outside of the six-yard box. With players in disarray after another corner, there was nothing the Bold defence could do but watch the Voyageurs celebrate on their home pitch. The goal was also the first time TMU had given up the opening point since their 1-0 loss to the University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Sept. 19.
The silver lining that came with conceding the first goal of the game was that it seemed to ramp up TMU's intensity on the pitch, something Bold head coach Filip Prostran noticed.
"We conceded early and then started playing with the right sense of urgency," said Prostran. "The reaction was really good."
First-year standout midfielder Brandon Verburg harnessed the team's intensity when he tucked a free kick into the far right post corner for the equalizer in the 20th minute. For Verburg, it was a matter of making up for his prior transgressions.
"I knew I could have gotten out to the guy," said Verburg of Laurentian's first goal. "I felt like I owed something to our team."
Verburg wasn't done yet and later curled a crosser from the left wing, which connected with six-foot-four Bold defender Noah Bickford, who appeared out of the blue to put the home team up 2-1.
Verburg has tallied two goals and two assists in the last four games. It was Bickford's second goal of the season and his first since the home opener victory on Sept. 4.
TMU maintained its pressure in the second half, culminating in a penalty kick and a golden opportunity for rookie midfielder Jamie Benayon-Abraham to get his first OUA goal. Moments later, Benayon-Abraham confidently shot the ball past the sprawling Voyageurs keeper to make it 3-1. This was the third consecutive game the rookie had recorded a goal or an assist.
"We know we have to do our job when our time comes," said Verburg. "We have twenty guys who can all play a big role."
A pair of Bold sophomores teamed up for the fourth goal when Noah Pickering bullied his way past the defence and found midfielder Nico Barros, who tapped in a volley to extend the lead to 4-1.
Laurentian striker Sam Howard didn't let his team immediately wave the white flag when he scored in the 85th minute to cut the deficit to two.
The Bold play in their final home game of the year against the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks on Oct. 6. Kickoff begins at 6:15 p.m. live on oua.tv.
