September 16, 2018
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U Sports recap (4): Top teams starting to pull away from the pack

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Friday, Sept. 14

Calgary (3-0) , 37, Saskatchewan (2-1) 28

Game Recap: Ben Matchett; Assistant Athletic Director (Communications)

SASKATOON – Adam Sinagra put up a jaw-dropping 569 passing yards to lead the No. 3 University of Calgary Dinos to a 37-28 win over the ninth-ranked University of Saskatchewan Huskies Friday night at Griffiths Stadium.

Sinagra’s total was both the second-best in school history and the second-best ever in U SPORTS football, just 58 yards behind Greg Vavra’s record of 627 also set against the Huskies way back on Oct. 7, 1983.

Two of Sinagra’s three touchdown passes went to rookie Jalen Philpot, who finished the night with eight catches for 135 yards. Hunter Karl scored the other receiving major, finishing with 131 yards on five catches on the night. A fourth-year Pointe Claire, Que. native, Sinagra completed 32 of 40 passes on the night and extended his lead atop the U SPORTS passing leaderboard with his once-in-a-generation performance.

“Saskatchewan is a hard-nosed football team, so you just have to be physically and mentally prepared, and you have to go out to do your job,” said a surprised Sinagra after being informed of his passing total. “We all did our jobs tonight – receivers, offensive line, running backs, everyone did their jobs and we got the W. It wasn’t pretty, but we got the W.

“We kind of drifted off there in the fourth, we should have put them away. But they’re a tough team to play, and we’re just glad to get the W.”

“Adam has really emerged as a premier quarterback, and he has played very well for us ever since he had to step in when Jimmy Underdahl got hurt two years ago,” said Dinos Head Coach Wayne Harris. “He’s really been a leader of this team and has owned that this year. It’s nice to see him throwing the ball so well and hitting his targets – he has a lot of great receivers there, and it has been really exciting for the first three games.”

Despite the massive offensive performance – the Dinos put up a total of 686 offensive yards on the night – the game was a tight affair, with the outcome in doubt until the fourth quarter in the battle of the only remaining undefeated teams in Canada West. The Dinos improve to 3-0 on the season, while Saskatchewan falls to 2-1.

It was a great start for the home team on the night the Huskies honoured longtime head coach Brian Towriss in a pregame ceremony. After returning the opening kickoff into Dinos territory, the Huskies got on the board first just 2:22 into the contest when Colton Klassen picked up the first of his two receiving touchdowns from Kyle Siemens. But the Dinos responded immediately, with Jeshrun Antwi racing 69 yards to the end zone less than two minutes later to even the score at 7-7.

Calgary scored back-to-back TDs to start the second quarter, with Karl and Philpot picking up 9- and 12-yard Sinagra passes, respectively, building up a 21-7 lead. Three Saskatchewan field goals ensued as the Dinos were unable to score for nearly a full quarter, but Calgary wrapped up the third quarter in style with a 30-yard Niko DiFonte field goal, followed by a highlight-reel 50-yard Sinagra-to-Philpot scoring play that made it 31-16.

The Huskies made it close with a 70-yard Klassen touchdown catch-and-run down the sidelines in the fourth, but the Dinos were able to keep the Huskies at arm’s length en route to the win.

A week after taking fewer than 40 penalty yards, the Dinos were flagged 11 times for 225 yards in the contest.

“We expected a tough game – Saskatchewan is a good team and it’s a really tough place to play,” said Harris. “Nothing comes easy here – they’re a proud team and they play physical in front of their crowd.”

The Dinos and Huskies will meet again in two weeks at McMahon Stadium. First, though, Calgary will remain on the road next week when they visit Vancouver and the UBC Thunderbirds (2-1) next Saturday, Sept. 22, while the Huskies will host Regina (2-1) next Friday night.

Box Score

 

UBC (1-2) 17, Regina (2-1) 19

Game Recap: Regina Rams

Aldo Galvan’s 10-yard field goal on the last play of the game gave the University of Regina Rams a 19-17 win over the UBC Thunderbirds on Friday night in a Canada West game at Mosaic Stadium.

Galvan’s chip shot was a chance at redemption after he had pulled his previous attempt at a game winner from 40 yards out wide left, but two 15-yard penalties by UBC’s Tom Schnitzler on the play – one for contacting the long snapper and another for unnecessary roughness – gave the first-year kicker another attempt at a game-winning field goal. Galvan made no mistake, splitting the uprights to give the Rams their second consecutive win.

“We executed well on offence between the 20s, but we almost beat ourselves with some of the mistakes we made out there,” Rams head coach Steve Bryce said. “I’m so proud of what the defence is doing right now. They’re constantly fighting and just hitting the reset button if something goes wrong, and they’re giving us chances to win games. They’ve been our heartbeat for us so far.”

The Rams fumbled the ball six times in the win. Five of those fumbles were recovered by UBC’s defence, including two inside the Thunderbirds’ five-yard line as the Rams were threatening to score. Ben Hladik alone recovered three of those fumbles for UBC, but the Thunderbirds (1-2) were only able to turn those turnovers into seven points.

Noah Picton briefly left the game in the first quarter after absorbing one of UBC’s six sacks, but finished 21-for-27 and had 313 passing yards. He moves from fourth to second on the U SPORTS all-time list in passing yards, and with 10,931 in his career is now just 546 short of Jérémi Roch’s record total of 11,477.

Rookie slotback Bennett Stusek led the Rams in receiving, catching six passes for 117 yards including a 40-yard bomb up the middle on the first offensive play of the game. Stusek also caught a 23-yard touchdown pass from Seb Britton, who took over at quarterback for the rest of the series after the hit on Picton. Kyle Moortgat had six catches for 85 yards, while Ryan Schienbein caught five passes for 86 yards.

Kyle Borsa got his first U SPORTS start with Atlee Simon injured, and responded with 19 carries for a career-high 119 yards including a nice 33-yard run for a touchdown in the first quarter. Zach Moorehad a key late sack for the Rams, while Layne Hull had a pair of pass breakups and Cole Benkic had a tackle for loss to go along with a half sack.

Michael O’Connor was 30-for-45 for UBC and finished with 332 yards and a touchdown. His touchdown pass put UBC into the lead late in the game, connecting with Trivel Pinto from 25 yards out to give the visitors a 17-16 advantage with just over two minutes to go. Pinto led all players in receiving with 10 catches for 131 yards.

Besides Hladik’s three fumble recoveries, the second-year defensive lineman was also credited with five solo tackles, a forced fumble, and a sack. Dante Vigini and Sheriden Lawley both had two sacks, while Schnitzler had the other. Vigini, James Ens, Henrique Custodio, Ryley Butler, and Jean Ventose all joined Hladik with forced fumbles.

After back-to-back trips across the Rocky Mountains, UBC will be back at Thunderbird Stadium next Saturday to host Calgary, which moved to 3-0 on Friday after a road win over Saskatchewan. The Rams (2-1) will now prepare for two consecutive road games, starting with next Friday’s matchup against the 2-1 Huskies.

NOTES: Picton passed former Queen’s quarterback Danny Brannagan on the passing yards list in the first quarter, then overtook former Western pivot Michael Faulds in the third quarter … in the “statistical oddity” category, four of the six attempted field goals on Friday were from 44 yards out.
Box Score

 

Saturday, Sept. 15

MTA (1-2) 26, Acadia (2-1) 38

Game Recap: Bailey Gilmour, Acadia Athletics Communications Office

WOLFVILLE, N.S. – In their home opener against the Mount Allison Mounties, the Acadia Axemen posted a 38-26 win over the visiting Mounties. In a game that was contested battle until the final two minutes of play, where third-year defensive back Rory Kelly scored a touchdown from an interception, guaranteeing the Axemen’s home-opening win.

The opening quarter started off strong for the Axemen, who took an early lead when second year running back Dale Wright scored the Axemen’s first touchdown in the opening five minutes of the game. Throughout the quarter, both the Mounties and the Axemen had a number of penalties, setting both teams back in the several instances. However, the Axemen came out on top with a 7-0 lead after one-quarter of play.

In the second quarter, Mounties quarterback Troy Downton answered to the Axemen’s lead by scoring a one-yard quarterback keep for the major, earning the Mounties a 12-7 lead over the Axemen.

Closing the opening half, the Axemen answered to the Mounties’ lead with third-year wide receiver Cordell Hastings pulling in a 27-yard reception for the Axemen’s second major and ending the half with a 16-12 Mount Allison lead.

The Axemen came out strong and quick to open the half, after declining the offside penalty of the Mounties, the Axemen punched in a 1-yard dive by freshman quarterback, Alex Lawrie that capped an eight play, 78-yard drive.

Sustaining a drive on Acadia penalties, Mount Allison’s, running back Chris Reid scored a touchdown that concluded a 91-yard drive, closing the Axemen lead to 23-19.

The Mounties’ Chris Reid scored his second touchdown of the afternoon on a nine play, 75-yard drive early in the final quarter, pushing Mount Allison to a  26-24 lead over the Axemen.

Acadia grabbed their third lead of the afternoon by quickly answering the Mounties with Alex Lawrie scoring his second short-yardage touchdown of the afternoon, giving Axemen a 31-26 lead.

With less than two minutes remaining in the game, defensive back Rory Kelly sealed the win by intercepting Mountie quarterback Troy Downton for Acadia’s fifth and final major of the afternoon.

“It was a grind all game, but I am just happy that the play was there, and I made it into the end zone without getting walked. It was a great team effort all game and we pulled together tight to win the game. Now, on to SMU,” noted Kelly after the game.

Second-year pivot Hunter Guenard was named the Subway Player of the Game, posting an impressive 24 completions in 29 attempts for 327 yards. Second-year Axeman Glodin Mulali led the receivers with 5 receptions for 53 yards. Dale Wright rushed for 42 yards on 13 carries and had 96 all-purpose yards that included 55 yards receiving. The Axemen had 401 yards net offense that included 327 yards in the air and 74 on the ground.

Malik Richards led the Mounties with 53 yards rushing. The Mounties churned out 140 yards in rushing and 263 yards in receiving. Josh Hicks pulled in seven receptions for a team-high 79 yards.

The Axemen improve to 2-1 and head to Halifax next Friday, September 21 to take on the 3-0 Saint Mary’s Huskies at Huskies Stadium starting at 7:00 p.m. The 1-2 Mounties return home and host the 2-1 StFX X-Men next Saturday afternoon.

Box Score

 

Toronto (0-3) 3, McMaster (2-2) 37

Game Recap: Michael Grobe, McMaster Athletics

HAMILTON (September 18, 2018) – The McMaster Marauders evened their record at 2-2 after dropping the University of Toronto Varsity Blues 37-3 on Homecoming Saturday at Ron Joyce Stadium.

After going 168 minutes without an offensive touchdown, the Marauders offence awoke in the second half, scoring 29 points, including two touchdowns in a six-minute span. They added another touchdown late in the fourth quarter, and handed Toronto its ninth consecutive loss, dropping its record to 0-3 for the 2018 season.

Quarterback Andreas Dueck of Winnipeg broke the touchdown drought when he connected with Blake Reason of London, Ont., on an eight-yard pass in the third quarter. Six minutes later, Dueck would connect with Tommy Nield of Guelph, Ont., on a 25-yard strike to push the score to 27-3 at the time. 

The duo of Dueck and Nield connected again with 5:49 remaining in the game on a deep, 31-yard pass to bring the score to 34-3 and sink the Varsity Blues hope of a comeback. 

Dueck, making just his third start in his university career, had the confidence in the Marauder offence and knew it was just a matter of time before they would break through, after going almost three games without a touchdown.

“It was great to be able to show people that our offence can produce.” said Dueck “There’s still obviously a lot to work on, with the first half that we had. And I had a number of throws that I’d like to have back. But it was a good afternoon for us after a rough start to the season to get our feet under us as an offence.”

“It’s been a tough couple of games, so to get the floodgates open and get the offence moving was a huge relief.”

Nield and Dueck shared player of the game honours, with both players registering career highs. Nield hauled in 233 yards on 10 receptions and pushed his way into the OUA single game record books with the 10th highest total of receiving yards. His mark sits behind Kevin Reid (Guelph, 1994) and Andy Fantuz (Western, 2002), who registered 243, and places him ahead of Paul de Pass (Western, 2013) by one yard (232).

“He’s a heck of a player,” said Dueck of Nield, who was his favorite receiving target. “Clearly, after today, everyone can see that. He’s a gamebreaker and the kind of player that you want on the field with the ball in his hands. He’s a big play guy, and he showed that today.”

For his part, Dueck finished the game with a career high 372 yards, tossing three touchdowns on 22 completions.

“I think the connection with myself and [Dueck] worked really well,” said  Nield, also in his second season with McMaster. “It’s mostly about the reps in practice. He threw some great balls today, and I was lucky to be the one to come down with them.”

Prior to the touchdown by Reason in the third quarter, the Marauders last major came back on opening day against Guelph, when Jackson White tossed a three-yard pass to Michael Bazzo of King City, Ont.

McMaster’s defence bounced back after last week’s tough loss to Western, holding Toronto to 289 offensive yards while forcing four turnovers. They also registered four points by pinning Toronto’s offence in the endzone and causing two safeties.

Dueck credited the McMaster defence for keeping the Marauders in the game, which allowed their offensive unit to find their grove after a nearly three-week touchdown drought. 

Nate Edwards of Ancaster, Ont., and Mitch Garland of Hamilton tallied seven total tackles to lead the defensive pressure for the Marauders, while Eddy Nyongwa of Winnipeg and Jake Porter of Welland, Ont., split the interceptions. 

“Our defence is the best in the country in my opinion. They hold teams and do everything they can,” said Dueck. “We have the best defensive coaches in the country. That’s been the identity of McMaster football, that we’re a defensive team. But we’ve have the pieces in place for an explosive offence and one that can drive the field and make plays. We just haven’t been able to click, but days like today make you think that we can contribute.”

Kicker Adam Preocanin of Burlington, Ont., continued his consistent play, hitting four field goals including kicks from 43, 40, 13 and his longest of the season, a 48 yarder, to close the scoring. 

The Varsity Blues pivot, Clay Sequeira of Pierrefonds, Que., tossed 194 yards in the loss while leading his team in rushing with 55 yards. Daniel Diodati of Etobicoke, Ont., was Toronto’s top receiver with 77 yards.

BY THE NUMBERS: 
9 – consecutive years McMaster has won its Homecoming game at Ron Joyce Stadium.
499 – total number of offensive yards registered by McMaster
29 – points scored by the McMaster in the second half of today’s game
83 – number of rushing yards posted by running back Jordan Lyons in today’s game (Burlington, Ont.) 
4,027 – total attendance

LOOK SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS:  Nield’s 233 receiving yards goes down as the second best game for a wide receiver in school history. His performance trails only Mike Bradwell (’08) who posted 256 yards receiving against Guelph on October 20th, 2007. The second-year receiver pushed Konrad Gloge’s (’05) mark of 221 into third place in the Marauders record book, who tallied his mark exactly 17 years before Nield’s, on September 15, 2001 versus Windsor.

MVP: Dueck and Nield were awarded the Mark Timpany Memorial Trophy as the game’s most valuable player during the annual Homecoming game. The two players sparked the Marauder offence in the fourth quarter connecting twice on touchdown passes with Dueck posting another touchdown pass in the third. Both players’ games were the best of their young careers.

HALL OF FAME: McMaster University honoured its 2018 Athletics Hall of Fame induction class on Saturday morning at the McMaster Students Centre’s CIBC Hall. This year’s inductees included student-athletes Sheldon Francis (’08, Wrestling), Stefanie Howorun (’08, Wrestling), Jesse Lumsden (’08, Football) and Michele Oliver (’81, Swimming) alongside the 1997 national-title-winning Marauders baseball team. Find full biographies of the 2018 inductees HERE.

UP NEXT: A big test awaits the McMaster Marauders next week, as they host the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks. Laurier has a 2-1 record and sits a half game ahead McMaster along with Ottawa. The game will likely have playoff implications, with five of the 11 OUA teams having two wins to this point. Kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m. at Ron Joyce Stadium. Tickets for the game can be purchased online at: https://mcmaster.universitytickets.com

Box Score

 

Guelph (2-2) 26, Windsor (0-4) 20

Game Recap: Windsor Lancers

The Windsor Lancers returned to the friendly confines of Alumni Field looking for their first win of the season against the visiting Guelph Gryphons. Despite playing with a backup QB and a rough first half, the Lancers battled hard, coming up just short in their comeback bid, 26-20.

GAME STATS
In his debut, rookie quarterback Colby Henkelthrew for a respectable 200 yards and a touchdown on 19 of 28 passing. Guelph’s Theo Landers went 9 for 13 for 145 yards and a touchdown.

Landers was the most productive rushers as well racking up 164 yards on the ground on just 11 carries. The Lancers were paced by their QB as well as Henkel racked up 51 yards on 10 carries.

Defensively, Luke Korol was a monster for the Gryphons recording 14 solo tackles and two sacks for seven yards. Andrew Beatty led the way on defense for the Lancers with seven tackles.

GAME FLOW
The Lancers had their work cut out for them with Sam Girard our for the game with a hairline fracture in his non-throwing hand, however, Windsor went into the game confident Henkel could handle the game plan as usual. The Lancers defense came out firing, keeping the Guelph offense at bay for the most part.

Unfortunately with the Lancers trailing 5-3, Theo Landers ran 90 yards to set up Guelph’s first major when Alain Cimankinda pushed his way into the endzone. Later Kade Belyk took a short pass all the way to the house with the help of some poor tackling. At halftime the Lancers trailed 20-3.

In the second half, the Blue & Gold came out much stronger, and after a Guelph field goal, got their first major of the day when Henkel rushed in on a one yard QB sneak. Following another Guelph field goal, Henkel found the endzone again with a 28 yard strike to Tristan Carter to pull the game to 26-20.

Unfortunately for the Lancers, they could muster no more offense and ultimately fell to the Gryphons, 26-20.

UP NEXT
The Lancers head into their bye week, and will host the Toronto Varsity Blues for Alumni Weekend on Saturday September 29th. Kick-off is set for 1:02pm and tickets are available online at www.goLancers.ca/tickets.

Box Score

 

Queen’s (2-2) 39, Carleton (3-1) 42

Game Recap: Mike Pattison (Sports Information Intern)

OTTAWA, Ont. (September 15, 2018) – The Queen’s Gaels (2-2) fell 42-39 to the No.8 Carleton Ravens (3-1) during a Saturday afternoon thriller in Ottawa.

The Gaels came back from a 19-point deficit to force overtime, however a Ravens’ rushing touchdown put a stop to the Gaels’ plans.

GAME FLOW
After Carleton missed a field goal on their opening drive, the Gaels were the first team to find the end zone as Hobbs found Matteo Del Brocco for a 16-yard touchdown pass.

With momentum on the Gaels’ side early on, the Ravens responded with a miraculous play of their own. Carleton running back Nathan Carter, fumbled the ball however, Chad Manchulenko scooped up the loose ball for a 65-yard touchdown.

The Ravens struck again as Mike Arruda found Phil Iloki for a 6-yard touchdown pass to give Carleton a 15-7 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Queen’s brought the game to within a single point when Hobbs found Del Brocco again in the end zone, this time from ten yards through the air.

After the Ravens bumped their lead to 18-14 on a field goal, Nate Hobbs would commit a costly turnover as his pass landed in the hands of Cole Hepburn and was returned to the 1-yard line. The Ravens would punch it in for the score off a Mike Arruda quarterback keep adding to a 25-14 lead.

The Ravens would eventually take a 33-19 lead for a game-high 19-point advantage. But the Gaels had no plans in going down quietly.

Queen’s would score three touchdowns in the second half while keeping the Ravens out of the end zone. It was the Nate Hobbs’ show as he lead the Gaels with a pair of passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown.

First, Hobbs found Del Brocco for their third touchdown connection of the game. The touchdown was Del Brocco’s fifth of the season which already matches his career-high set from last season.

Later, Hobbs kept the ball himself and scrambled for his fifth rushing touchdown of the season 15 yards out.

Finally, Hobbs hit Jeremy Pendergast for a final-minute touchdown tying the game 36-36. The Gaels outscored the Ravens 22-4 in the final 30 minutes to force overtime.

OVERTIME WOES
The Gaels had a chance to win the game in overtime, but Nick Liberatore’s 38-yard field goal attempt sailed and the game continued.

Given a second opportunity in overtime, Liberatore converted a 42-yard field goal to give the Gaels a temporary 39-36 lead.
However, the Ravens ended the game with a 7-yard touchdown run from Mathieu Pickens.

HOBBS MAKES MORE HISTORY
With his first passing touchdown in the first quarter, Nate Hobbs reached 50 career-passing touchdowns as a Queen’s Gael.

His second passing touchdown of the game was enough to move up in the record books. His 51st career-passing touchdown was enough to pass Cal Connor for fourth in Queen’s history.

BY THE NUMBERS
413 – Nate Hobbs showed off his elite talent as he led the Gaels in rushing yards (62) as well as having a strong game through the air (351
101 – A new career high for first year receiver Richard Burton who broke off a 42-yard catch and run in the first half.
17 – The Ravens took 17 penalties throughout the course of the afternoon. The lack of discipline opened the door for the Gaels to get back into the game.

UP NEXT
The Gaels will remain on the road next weekend as they do battle with the No.10 Guelph Gryphons (2-2). Game time is set for 1:00pm on September 22 and all the action can be seen live on OUA.tv
Box Score

 

Waterloo (3-1) 34, Laurier (2-1) 32

Game Recap:  Jamie Howieson, Laurier Athletics

WATERLOO, Ont. (September 15, 2018) – For the first time since 2002, the No. 4 Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks men’s football team suffered a defeat at the hands of their University Ave. rivals as they lost 34-32 to the Waterloo Warriors on Saturday at University Stadium.

In a back-and-forth contest, the Golden Hawks and Warriors put on an offensive display for the 1736 fans in attendance on a hot and sunny afternoon. Combining for over 1150 yards of offence, the two squads breathed life into a rivalry that was in need of a boost after the Hawks had posted 14 consecutive wins over the black and gold.

After falling behind early, Laurier quarterback Tristan Arndt of London, Ont., found his big weapons in the receiving core as a pair of majors from Brentyn Hall of Toronto, and another from Kurleigh Gittens Jr. of Ottawa, had the Hawks in front 22-17 at the break.

A Levondre Gordon (Mississauga, Ont.) touchdown midway through the third quarter extended Laurier’s lead to 12 but from that point on, the Warriors took over.

Waterloo’s next possession saw them go 15 plays and 92 yards in almost eight minutes and although it only resulted in a field goal, gave the visitors the momentum.

Following a Nathan Mesher (Waterloo, Ont.) field goal, Dion Pellerin of Abbotsford, B.C., found the endzone with a short touchdown run to cut the Hawks’ lead to five.

Then, with Laurier leading 32-27 late in the fourth quarter, Waterloo quarterback Tre Ford of Niagara Falls, Ont., hit Tyler Ternowski of Hamilton, over the middle for an 88-yard touchdown, vaulting the Warriors into the lead.

Laurier had a pair of opportunities to even the score but time ran out on the hosts as they fell to 2-1 on the season while Waterloo moved to 3-1.

TOP PERFORMERS
Laurier
– Arndt had a career day for the Hawks as he finished the game 20-for-32 for 417 yards, a new career high, and three touchdowns. He also added 46 yards on the ground
– Gittens Jr. and Hall both had over 100 yards receiving on the day with Gittens Jr. finishing with 144 yards while Hall had 123

Waterloo
– Ford had another impressive afternoon for the Warriors, finishing the game 26-for-35 for 472 yards and three majors while adding 88 yards rushing
– Ternowski was the big target again for his quarterback, hauling in 10 catches for 251 yards

THE GITTENS JR. SHOW
– with his 29-yard kickoff return to open the game, Gittens Jr. moved into first all-time in Laurier’s record books with 1008 yards, passing Will Pitt-Doe’s previous mark of 982 yards
– Gittens Jr.’s 144 receiving yards vaulted him past both Andrew Baechler and Joe Nastasiuk into second on Laurier’s career list. His 2326 yards now trails only Stefan Ptaszek’s 3126 yards for first place all-time in team history

COACH’S QUOTES – Michael Faulds
Overall thoughts on the game
“We knew it was going to be a hard fought game and that we were going to get Waterloo’s best. They were the better team today and the better coached team. They have a talented quarterback and a great receiving corps.”

Lessons learned from the loss
“The Yates Cup and the Vanier Cup aren’t decided on September 15th so we’re going to find out how we’re going to respond. Adversity isn’t a bad thing, we’ve faced it before and we have the type of leaders and coaching staff that are just going to work that much harder going forward.”

UP NEXT
The road doesn’t get any easier for Laurier as they head to Hamilton next Saturday to take on the McMaster Marauders (2-2). Kick off is set for 1 p.m. at Ron Joyce Stadium.

Box Score

 

York (1-3) 3, Western (3-0) 76

Game Recap: David Stol, Western Mustangs

LONDON, Ont. – Western quarterback Chris Merchant once again proved integral in leading the Western Mustangs football team to a 76-3 victory over the York Lions on Saturday afternoon in TD Stadium.

Merchant had yet another stellar game for the purple and white at home, throwing for 270 yards and three touchdowns on the day. Running back duo Cedric Joseph and Alex Taylor also dominated against the Lions, scoring a pair of touchdowns each against the Lions’ defence. On the other side of the ball, the Mustangs’ defence proved once again to be dominant, holding York to just three points while defensive back Bleska Kambamba earned his way on the score sheet with a pick six in the second half.

“I don’t see why our defensive potential shouldn’t be just as high as last season,” said Kambamba. “That’s just the Western way. Every year we reload and get our new recruits ready for the season. I don’t see why we can’t keep this momentum going and get better every week. That’s the biggest thing we did last season – every week we got better as a team and got better with our communication. We have that same mentality this year. We get better every week.”

“I’m happy with how everybody played pretty much top to bottom,” said Mustangs head coach Greg Marshall. “Obviously, there are improvements to be made, but we got a lot of guys into the football game today which is always important. You never know when we’re going to need one of our younger guys to step up, so it’s good for them to get their reps in when we have a lot of points on the board.

With the win, the Mustangs improve to a perfect 3-0 on the season as they sit atop the OUA standings, edging out the 2-1 Laurier Golden Hawks for first place in the division. The Lions’ loss will drop their record to 1-3 on the season, as they look to improve next week against the Ottawa Gee-Gees.

The purple and white received the kickoff to begin the game and found themselves on the 27-yard line to begin the drive. An enormous run from Taylor would allow Merchant to connect with Harry McMaster for the touchdown later in the drive to give Western the early 7-0 lead.

The Mustangs’ staunch defence quickly forced the Lions into a turnover on downs on the ensuing drive, setting Joseph up in good position to punch in Western’s second touchdown of the game and extend the lead to 14-0 for the purple and white. York would put together a promising drive to end the quarter, giving themselves terrific scoring position with no time remaining on the clock, but a strip from Western’s Mackenzie Ferguson would allow the Mustangs to head into the second quarter with a 14-0 lead.

Western and York would trade field goals midway through the second quarter, moving the Mustangs’ advantage to 17-3 late in the first half. However, Joseph would find a hole in the Lions’ defensive line once again in the first half, breaking free for the 57-yard touchdown and extending the lead to 24-3 for the Mustangs. The Mustangs would add three more touchdowns to their total before the end of the half as they cruised into halftime with a 46-3 lead.

Western picked up right where they left off in the second half, as Kambamba started off the third quarter with a pick six to extend the Mustang lead to 53-3 early in the third quarter. The remainder of the second half was much of the same, as Western’s defence carried them to the finish line and the eventual 76-3 victory.

“I thought we did a great job today, all things considered,” said McMaster. “Obviously the scoreboard reflects that, but the performance from some of the guys off the sideline. It’s great to play with the other guys on offence. Chris and I have better chemistry than ever, so it’s great to be able to put points on the board with these guys.”

“I said at the beginning of the year, our goal is to get better every week,” said Marshall. I told the guys that if we played better than we played last week against McMaster, we’ll win. If we play better next week against Waterloo than we did today, then we’ll win. We have to clean up a couple little things, everyone has to work on a few things, and that’s how we operated last year. We always got better and everyone improved. That’s going to be important again this year, because every team is going to be fired up to go against us.”

Western will be back in action next Saturday, September 22, where they will take on the Waterloo Warriors in their first meeting of the season on the road in Waterloo, Ont.

Box Score

 

Concordia (2-1) 33, McGill (1-2) 26

Game Recap: Earl Zukerman, McGill Athletics

MONTREAL — Jarryd Taylor hauled in five passes for 160 yards and two long touchdowns, igniting a Concordia comeback as the Stingers rallied in the fourth quarter for a 33-26 victory over McGill in the 50th annual Shaughnessy Cup classic at Percival Molson Stadium, Saturday.

It was a wild affair that featured 10 quarterback sacks (eight by McGill) and four lengthy touchdown plays, beginning with a blocked Concordia field-goal attempt that was returned 64 yards into the endzone by McGill linebacker Christian Mbiya on the final play of the opening quarter, putting the Redmen head.

The Stingers responded with a 107-yard kickoff return for TD by Quaysie Gordon-Maule, narrowing the gap to 16-10. Midway through the third quarter ConU quarterback Adam Vance hooked up with the aforementioned Taylor for an 80-yard TD bomb to give the Stingers a 19-16 lead. Taylor also snared a 26-yard TD toss to tie the game at 26-26 only 66 seconds into the final quarter.

The victory put Concordia into sole possession of third place in the RSEQ standings with a 2-1 record. McGill, 1-2, dropped to fourth in the five-team Quebec conference.

The Redmen are 22-27-1 in Shaughnessy Cup play overall, including a 17-27 mark in 44 meetings against the Stingers and a 5-0-1 record in six matchups with the Loyola Warriors. The Cup is named after legendary coach Frank Shaughnessy, a McGill Sports Hall of Fame inductee who introduced the forward pass to football in Canada during a 1921 McGill exhibition game vs. Syracuse at Molson Stadium. He lobbied for 10 years before the league formally adopted the forward pass in 1931. Shaughnessy was the first full-time head coach in Canadian university football and guided McGill for 17 years, including Yates Cup league championships in 1913 and 1919. Later, he coached at Loyola College, which eventually merged in 1974 with Sir George Williams University to form Concordia University.

McGill is now 37-45 in 82 lifetime meetings against Concordia since the series began in 1975, including a 20-19 home-field record at Percival Molson Stadium. McGill’s last home win over ConU was in 2013 when the Redmen prevailed 32-19. Since then, Concordia has won five consecutive games on McGill turf.

Box Score

 

Bishop’s (0-4) 2, StFX (2-1) 42

Game Recap: Marty Rourke, Bishop’s Sports Information

ANTIGONISH, N.S. – St. Francis Xavier quarterback Bailey Wasdal threw two touchdowns and ran for another as the X-Men topped the Bishop’s Gaiters 42-2 on Saturday afternoon in Antigonish, N.S.  The win improves the X-Men to 2-1 while the Gaiters fall to 0-4 in the AUS football standings.

St.FX took the opening drive and marched the length of the field for a touchdown, capped by a five-yard Wasdal run. After a Bishop’s two-and-out, the X-Men doubled their lead thanks to a 40-yard Greg McDonald touchdown catch on second and long. The first quarter ended 14-0 as Bishop’s settled in.

Both offenses sputtered early on in the second frame. Bishop’s conceded a safety early on and X-Men kicker Keiran Burnham tacked on a 12-yard field goal. The Gaiters were able to shift field position and forced St. FX to concede a safety that put Bishop’s first points on the board. That came after Gaiters’ punter Arnaud Dandin (Paris, France/Cégep de Thetford)pinned St. FX inside their five-yard line. Burnham tacked on a single on the last play of the first half for a 20-2 halftime lead.

Stephen Casey (Boucherville, Que./Champlain College St-Lambert) started at quarterback for the Gaiters and was able to put together a pair of nice drives to open the third quarter but Bishop’s could not get points out of it.  On the Gaiters’ first possession of the third stanza a measure on third down came up less than an inch short and the X-Men took over. The Gaiters second possession resulted in a missed field goal.

St.FX went to work on the ground moving the ball and wearing down a tired Gaiters defense. They were also able to catch the Gaiters off-guard and complete two long passes that led to majors.

The X-Men punched in their fourth touchdown of the game on the first play of the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach at 34-2.

Aarron Franklin (West Covina, Calif./Citrus College) recorded his first U SPORTS interception in the fourth quarter for the Gaiters. Franklin finished with four tackles and the interception.

The hosts tacked on a pair of field goals and were conceded another safety to make the final 42-2.

Wasdal finished the day 17-28 for 256 yards, the two touchdowns and an interception. He also rushed seven times for 37 yards.

For Bishop’s, Casey went 15-29 for 133 yards in the air. He added 22 yards on the ground on five carries. Bishop’s was just 1-for-8 on third down while the X-Men went 2-for-3. St. FX had four plays of 30 yards or more while Bishop’s had just one.

Next Up:
The Gaiters (0-4) will enjoy their first bye week of the season next weekend as they look to get healthy. They are next in action on Saturday, Sept. 29 at 2 p.m. on Coulter Field when the Mount Allison Mounties (1-2) are in town as part of the annual homecoming festivities.

Social Corner:
Stay up-to-date with everything Bishop’s Gaiters at www.gaiters.ca or on social media by using #GaiterNation and @BishopsGaiters.

Box Score

 

Montreal (2-1) 43, Sherbrooke (0-4) 11

With files from: Benoit Mongeon, Coordonnateur des communications, Carabins de l’Université de Montréal

Montreal, September 15, 2018 – The Carabins of the University of Montreal reached the end zone five times in the first half to finally beat Vert & Or 43-11 on Saturday afternoon in Sherbrooke.

The attack of the Blues was imposed from the first offensive sequence of the game.

It was running back Asnnel Robo (Supply Chain Optimization, HEC Montreal) who opened the ball by completing a nice offensive push with a three-yard run. Robo finally finished the day with nine carries for 104 yards and two majors. His second came after a 71-yard run in the middle of the field.

After the first half, the score was 40-1 in favor of Danny Maciocia’s protégés. This is the third time in history that the team has scored at least 40 points in the first half.

If the attack on the ground was successful, the passing game was productive for the Carabins.

Quarterback Dimitri Morand (Communication Sciences) joined Regis Cibasu (Administration, HEC Montréal) and Louis-Mathieu Normandin (CPA Accounting, HEC Montréal) in the end zone, as well as passing himself two yards for the major.

The second year pivot has completed his first six passes of the game to set the pace. The connection between him and Cibasu was obviously good as the eight receptions for 163 yards from the receiver showed. Morand, pulled out of the game early in the fourth quarter, finished the day with 19 completions in 26 attempts for 283 yards, including two touchdowns and one touchdown. He was intercepted once.

“The attack has finally unlocked, launched the offensive coordinator Gabriel Cousineau. We knew we were close and that it was a question of details. In the first half we took the momentum and it was good. You have to learn how to finish the matches better, but I’m happy to have seen a lot of players in action. “

“We had synchronism in attack, added Danny Maciocia. Dimitri managed very well and we can say mission accomplished after 30 minutes of play. “

Normandin’s six-point finish was his 12th in the Blues uniform, a new team record. Mikhail Davidson held the old mark with 11.

“It’s fun to learn,” said Normandin! I’m not a guy who looks at records and waits for prizes, but it feels good when it goes. I am even happier with our victory. Now we will prepare for our next opponent. “

Kickers Louis-Philippe Simoneau (Occupational Health and Safety) and Michael Arpin (Economics and Politics) each made a successful placement.

On the defensive side, the players also answered the call. In total, the favorites of the crowd got only 164 yards of gain against 502 for the Blues.

Defensive lineman Benoit Marion (Industrial Relations) made his presence felt with 4.5 tackles and a sack. Redha Kramdi (Arts and Sciences) had an interception.

At the very end of the match, Vert & Or reached the end zone. This is the first touchdown conceded by the Carabins defense this season.

“We play good football, admitted the head coach who also acts as defensive coordinator. The beauty of all this is that we have been able to take on a number of players to give them an opportunity to fetch time. We always want to dwell on details and we will continue to do so. “

Next Saturday, the Carabins will visit the Concordia Stingers.

Box Score

 

Alberta (0-3) 21, Manitoba (1-2) 37

Game Recap: John Gaudes, Bison Sports

Thanks to an exhilarating fourth quarter for the home squad, the Manitoba Bisons got their first win of the Canada West football season, 37-21 over the Alberta Golden Bears at Investors Group Field.

After managing just six, nine, and three points through the first three quarters respectively — in a game that remained close — Manitoba broke out in the closing 15 minutes. They rattled off 19 points in the frame, including two receiving touchdowns from fifth-year receiver Dylan Schrot, to take a two score lead and seal the game.

No slouch in Manitoba’s first two losses, Schrot managed to better himself with his Week 3 performance. He caught six balls for 141 yards and two touchdowns, with a long play of 51 yards. The big day puts him tied for first in the Canada West conference in receiving yards (370).

Schrot is also on a pace in rarified air in Bison football history, as the record for receiving touchdowns in a season is seven — set by Mike Faisthuber in 2000 and Nic Demski in 2013. Schrot has five touchdowns through three games.

“Here is he again, for 141 yards on only six receptions, and he’s been doing that every game,” said Bisons head coach Brian Dobie. “He’s unquestionably one of the best receivers in Canada West and on this football team.”

“I think as an offence, once you start clicking, once you have that momentum, you’ve got to build off that energy. We seem like a momentum team,” said Schrot.

On the Alberta side, it was a much better offensive performance than their previous two games, as they put together 427 yards of total offence compared to an average of 271.5 against Saskatchewan and Regina. Still, two key interceptions by quarterback Brad Baker proved to be difference-makers. Baker would finish 16-for-35, with 253 yards and a touchdown in addition to his turnovers.

Both of Baker’s picks were thrown to second-year cornerback Arjay Shelley. The first came at a key point in the game. With the Golden Bears already up 7-6, Baker completed a 42-yard pass to Daniel Bubelenyi with ten minutes left in the second quarter. Setting up Alberta in the red zone with a chance to take an eight-point lead, Baker threw the pick to Shelley and stymied the Golden Bears’ momentum.

From there, both teams traded jabs until Manitoba’s big fourth quarter. Bisons quarterback Des Catellier threw his first of three touchdowns to Jesse Walker to end the first half, giving Manitoba a 15-7 lead at the break. Catellier finished 20-for-31 with 306 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception.

The Golden Bears answered in the third, though, as Brent Arthur banged in two field goals before running back Jonathan Rosery punched in Alberta’s second major of the game. At that point in the fourth, Alberta was up 21-18.

Then came the Schrot show. Scoring two nearly identical catch-and-run touchdowns in two minutes, the fifth-year receiver quickly swung momentum in Manitoba’s favour. With the first score coming with 7:37 left, and the next coming with 5:53 left, the Bisons had a 34-21 lead in what seemed like a blink of an eye.

A Brad Mikoluff field goal, his fourth of the game, gave the game its final score. The Bisons are now 1-2, while Alberta falls to 0-3.

“It just wasn’t a game where we were in a good rhythm,” summed up Dobie. “We never got rhythm, but we made plays and found ways to win. That’s what I said [to the team], it’s adversity. I don’t care who you play, if you can win versus adversity, then that’s big.”

In another example of deja-vu, Bison football will play Alberta again next weekend — this time on the road at Foote Field. The game will kick off at 8 p.m. on Friday, September 21. 

Box Score

 

Source: usports.ca

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