VICTORIA – A strong defensive outing by the UVic Vikes men's field hockey team held off a resurgent Burnaby as the home side squeaked out a 3-3 draw on Sunday.

#Izak Brussow#'s deflection combined with a reverse flick from #James Kirkpatrick# to put the Vikes up 1-0 early on.

The visitors went on a three-goal run before the Vikes clawed their way back into the game.

In the second half, #Patrick Howell#'s sending off for a strong tackle had the Vikes battling with a man disadvantage.

Fluid ball movement and a counter attack by seniors #Leo Smyth# and #Kevin Laidman# had the Vikes on the attack in the second half. The two seniors combined for two goals to draw the game level.

Burnaby responded in the dying minutes but the Vikes' solid defence held off a short corner attempt to earn a hard fought victory.

After going winless in their opening seven games, the Vikes have only dropped one of their last five contests. Their next game is scheduled for 1:30pm at UVic Field Hockey Turf against the Surrey Lions.