September 10, 2018
by

U Sports RECAP (3): Nail biters and blowouts

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Friday, Sept. 7

Windsor (0-3) 22, York (1-2) 29

Game Recap: York Lions
The York Lions notched their first victory of the 2018 season at home on Friday night, as they picked up a 29-22 win against the visiting Windsor Lancers. The Lions started strong scoring the first 21 points of the game and their defense pushed back in the second-half to secure the victory and take their record to 1-2 on the season.

“I’m ecstatic about the win,” said Lions head coach Warren Craney. “Offensively our quarterback Brett Hunchak managed the game like a pro. He utilized the clock and sustained drives and I’m definitely proud of our whole group. It’s a real big win for the program.”

After an opening drive by Windsor resulted in a missed field goal by Lancers kicker Clark Green, Lions ace return specialist Alex Daley ran back the missed kick 75 yards to give the Lions good field position on the Windsor 40-yard line. York opened the scoring a few plays later on a one-yard touchdown plunge by running back Kayden Johnson to give the Lions a 7-0 lead.

On the Lions next possession, quarterback Brett Hunchak hit his brother Colton Hunchak with an 11-yard pass to push the Lions to midfield and re-write the York record books for the second game in a row. Colton set the York all-time receptions record (126) with the catch, leap frogging both Adam Adeboboye and Will Austin who were previously tied for the record. Last week against Guelph, Brett set the Lions all-time marks for career passing yards and completions. A few plays later, the brothers connected again for a six-yard touchdown pass to give the Lions a 14-0 lead.

After a blocked punt by Lions defensive back Xavier Rogers on Windsor’s next possession gave the Lions the ball at the Windsor nine-yard line, the Lions quarterback scampered nine yards and crossed the goal line for his first rushing touchdown of the season. A Dante Mastrogiuseppe extra point gave the Lions a 21-0 lead before the game was 16 minutes old.

The Lancers got on the board with a 22-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Sam Girard to receiver Tristan Carter on the Lancers next possession, and picked up two safeties before the first half came to an end to cut the Lions lead to 21-11 at the half.

The Lancers quickly cut into the Lions lead further with another touchdown pass by Girard, this time to Brandon Speller to leave the Lions with a three point lead. York bounced back though with a long 81-yard drive later in the third quarter to restore their ten point advantage. Hunchak completed seven passes on the drive, including three to Lions wide out Eric Kimmerly, and found Daley in the end zone for a six-yard touchdown pass with just over two minutes remaining in the third quarter.

Windsor threatened throughout the fourth quarter but could only manage a field goal as the Lions defence came up big on a number of occasions to hold off Lancers and lead the Lions to the victory.

“I’m very happy with how our defence played,” said Craney. “When they needed to make a play, they made a play. When it counted they really buckled down and made some amazing stops on the goal line and they made some amazing stops in the fourth quarter. I’m real proud of all the guys on defence.”

The Lions secondary played a key role in limiting Girard to his lowest passing yard total of the season, after coming into the game as the OUA’s leading passer. Jacob Janke (7.5 tackles, 1 pass break up), Desi Dixon (5 tackles, 1 pass break up) and Kadeem Thomas (4 tackles, 1 pass break up) all had big games for the Lions defence. Defensive end Rossini Sandjong-Djabome and line backer Damian Jamieson each had five tackles for the Lions as well.

Leading the offence was B. Hunchak who threw for 263 yards and two touchdowns, and was also the Lions leading rusher with 66 yards on seven carries. C. Hunchak had another big game for the Lions with nine catches for 116 yards and a touchdown, and Kimmerly had the best game of his York career, setting career-highs with eight catches and 71 yards.

The Lions will make a trip to London, Ont. for their next game to take on the defending Vanier Cup champions the Western Mustangs on Saturday, Sept. 15. Kick-off is set for 1pm.

UBC (1-1) 7, Calgary (2-0) 57

Canada West, meet Tyson Philpot – a name you’ll hear plenty in the next few years.

The rookie receiver put on quite the offensive show as the University of Calgary Dinos dominated the UBC Thunderbirds 57-7 in the team’s home opener Friday night at McMahon Stadium.

The Surrey, B.C. native had four catches for a total of 186 yards and two touchdowns, including a remarkable 107-yard score that broke the record for the longest offensive play in school history. After just two U SPORTS contests, the 2017 B.C. high school player of the year is second in the conference in receiving, trailing only teammate Hunter Karl – and that by just three yards per game.

“It’s amazing,” said Philpot following the game. “Being in my freshman year and breaking the school record in my second game is amazing. I just got to keep breaking records.”

Philpot contributed to half of quarterback Adam Sinagra’s 372 passing yards on the night, and the duo was nearly impossible to stop.

“We’re showing that we have great chemistry,” said Philpot. “With me being a rookie we aren’t the closest off the field, but we’re going to continue to get closer and try to get that Vanier and build something here.”

Despite the Dinos’ success throwing the football against UBC, Philpot admitted to not expecting his team’s passing game to be as good as it was, and praised his quarterback’s efforts.

“We knew they have some studs on defence and that we would have to work hard for everything. I have to give a shout-out to Adam Sinagra for balling out and getting us the ball.”

With the Dinos’ being ranked fifth and the Thunderbirds sixth in the Canada West, this particular game was significant to the team and especially Philpot due to his roots.

“It was huge for us,” said Philpot. “Coming into the game we knew that they are our closest competition in (Canada West) and since I’m from B.C. this was an important game for me. I’m glad our team put on and we were able to get the win.”

Philpot, the first-year open studies student, was much more active in the game against UBC compared to last week’s game in Regina where he caught only one pass for 47 yards. The Dinos’ high-powered offence has been put on display early on in the season, scoring 106 points in their first two games of 2018 while surrendering just 42.

Next up for Philpot and his squad are the 2-0 Saskatchewan Huskies, whose defence has given up only four more points than the Dinos this season with 46. The Huskies are off to a hot start and edged Manitoba 48-46 in a shootout Friday night in Winnipeg.

“Back to work tomorrow,” said Dinos Head Coach Wayne Harris. “We’ll watch the film on Saskatchewan – they’re always tough at home. They always have a great crowd at their home field, and it’ll be a battle – it has always been a tight game right to the finish.”

Philpot and Sinagra will look to continue their passing dominance next Friday in Saskatoon and improve to 3-0 on the season. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. MT from Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon, live on CanadaWest.tv and TELUS Optik 997/998.

Saskatchewan (2-0) 48, Manitoba (0-2) 46

In a short season, close losses hurt that much more. For Manitoba, it’s been two in two weeks, as a high-scoring game Friday night against rival, #10-ranked Saskatchewan ended in a 48-46 loss.

This, after a loss to #6-ranked UBC that came down to the last five minutes, as a Thunderbirds score gave a close game its 30-20 final.

True to a great rivalry, Manitoba is now 17-16 against the Huskies over the last 23 seasons. With the loss, they fall to 0-2 this season, while surprising Saskatchewan — ranked sixth in the preseason Canada West coaches’ poll — improve to 2-0.

“I loved our fight, I mean how could you not love our fight?” said Bisons head coach Brian Dobie. “The UBC game was really a three-point loss and this one was a two-point loss. I mean, that hurts, but we’re 0-2.”

The centerpiece for the Bisons in their home opener, attended by 2,175 fans at Investors Group Field, was quarterback Des Catellier. Throwing the ball early and often, he finished with 425 yards on 33-for-48 passing. Unfortunately, his four touchdowns came aside three interceptions, one of which was run back for a touchdown.

Scoring wasn’t hard to come by in this game, beginning in the first quarter. Bisons receiver Macho Bockru had the first major of the game, receiving a five-yard pass from Catellier with 10:48 left in the first to put Manitoba up 7-3. After a 17-yard Joey Trumpy receiving touchdown at the end of the quarter, Manitoba answered with their receiver — as fifth-year Dylan Schrot continued his scorching play from Week 1 with another touchdown. Schrot had 87 yards on nine receptions in the game, following up his 143-yard performance against UBC.

Bettering him was Bockru, though, who had the best game of his three-year tenure with the Herd, tallying a game-high 185 yards and two touchdowns on nine catches, including a long reception touchdown of 68 yards early in the third quarter to bring the Bisons within seven.

“Everyone was executing and doing what they had to do,” said Bockru. “It’s a shame it didn’t go our way in the end but we play like that next time, it’ll go our way.”

Scoring just moments after that, fifth-year Schneider Charles grabbed a tipped ball and ran it to the house, tying the game at 34.

Then, Manitoba’s momentum was stymied. The critical play of the game was one of Catellier’s interceptions, as he missed Huskies corner Payton Hall coming on a double with Manitoba in the red zone, and the Saskatchewan half back ran it back 90 yards for the Huskies score. At that point, Manitoba was trying to take a lead. It ended up being 48-37 for Saskatchewan.

After that point, Manitoba continued to battle. A Brad Mikoluff field goal with 3:23 left, one of four boots on the evening, made it a one-possession game at 48-40. On their last drive of the game, Manitoba got into scoring position thanks to a brilliant running play by their quarterback.

Then, fifth-year Dylan Schrot grabbed a receiving touchdown to make it 48-46. Needing to go for two, Catellier and receiver Shai Ross couldn’t make a connection to tie the game up.

That gave the game its final score, as the Huskies now find themselves unbeaten in the young 2018 season. Leading the charge for Saskatchewan was fifth-year running back Tyler Chow, who had a game-high 134 yards on 18 carries. At quarterback, fifth-year Kyle Siemens had 306 yards passing, four touchdowns, and one interception (24-for-35).

With that, Manitoba looks ahead to an exciting home-and-home series against Alberta, with the first game going at Investors Group Field at 2 p.m. on Saturday, September 15. Tickets are available on Ticketmaster; University of Manitoba students, high school students, and fans 12-and-under get in free.

Regina (1-1) 51, Alberta (0-2) 13

Game Recap: Regina Rams

The University of Regina Rams were nothing short of dominant in the second half on Friday night, turning a one-possession game at halftime into a 51-13 victory over Alberta at Foote Field.

It was a one-point game until late in the second quarter, when Noah Picton found Bennett Stusek for the rookie slotback’s first career touchdown which put the Rams up 21-13 at halftime. But it was all U of R from there, with the defence pitching a shutout in the final two quarters and the visitors scoring three second-half majors to put the game away.

Picton and Schienbein both had massive games for the Rams. Picton was 32-for-41 and finished with 449 passing yards and three touchdown throws while also running one in himself for a major, while Schienbein tied his career high with 13 receptions, had 176 receiving yards, and set a new career high with three touchdown catches.

Stusek, Daniel Scraper, and Kyle Moortgat also had big games for the Rams. Scraper more than doubled his career totals with six catches for 90 yards, Moortgat finished with six catches for 73 yards, and Stusek continued the strong start to his U SPORTS career with four catches for 91 yards including the major.

Cole Benkic, Robbie Lowes, and Ryan Warner all had sacks for the U of R defence.

The Rams (1-1) will head back to Regina and prepare for a big Week 3 home game against UBC, which is also 1-1 after a road loss to Calgary on Friday.

CHART CLIMBING
Picton moved from fifth up to fourth on the U SPORTS all-time passing yards list, overtaking former McGill quarterback Matt Connell during the game. He’s now at 10,618 for his career, just behind third-place Dan Brannagan (10,714) and second-place Michael Faulds (10,811).
AT RUNNING BACK
Atlee Simon led all Canada West players in rushing in Week 1, but was injured on the first play of the Rams’ second possession and didn’t return. Kyle Borsa and Tyree Range handled the running back duties from there, with Borsa finishing with 10 rushes for 44 yards and Range running eight times for 29 yards.
DEFENSIVE HIGHLIGHTS
Besides the three sacks, Tanner Schmekel also had a tackle for loss and Cord Delinte and Grey McKen assisted on a tackle for loss on an unsuccessful early third-down gamble. Alberta’s only touchdown of the game came after a long Golden Bears punt return gave them a start on Regina’s 35-yard line. Alberta gambled on third down a total of six times during the game, with the Rams defence stopping three of those attempts.
QUOTABLE: COACH BRYCE
“I thought Alberta played very hard in the first half. They were very aggressive early on, and their crowd was fantastic tonight. I think we gave them a little bit of hope in the first half, and we had some mistakes they took advantage of. But I think we calmed down in the second half and sorted some stuff out in the locker room.”

Saturday, Sept. 8

SMU (3-0) 25, MTA (1-1) 13

Game Recap: MTA Communications
In week three of AUS football, the Saint Mary’s Huskies topped the Mount Allison Mounties 25-13 Alumni Field in Sackville, NB. The Huskies secured the win with a late TD in the 4thquarter for a 25-12 victory.

The visitors opened the scoring late in the first quarter when quarterback Kaleb Scott found Brody Bernier-Lawson for a 13 yard touchdown.

The Huskies recovered the ensuing kickoff and immediately took possession of the ball again in Mounties territory. Four plays later, Jonathan Cimankinda grabbed a 10 yard touchdown reception to run the score to 14-0.

The hometown Mounties answered back quickly with consecutive scoring drives of their own to draw close. First, the Mounties drove 80 yards on 8 plays before finding the end zone on a 2 yard completion from senior quarterback Troy Downton to Malik Richards. Freshman James Parker converted the extra point and the Mounties moved to within 7 points at 14-7.

After a quick stop by the Mounties defense the offense went back to work, driving 74 yards on 15 plays to get themselves deep into Huskies territory. Parker then calmly kicked his first career AUS field goal, connecting from 10 yards to move the score to 14-10.

The Huskies would add to their lead before the half time when Brian Hope kicked a 29 yard field goal to bring the score to 17-10.

The only point of the 3rdquarter came when kicker Brian Hope punted a ball out the side of the Mounties end zone. This moved the score to 18-10 heading into the 4thquarter.

The Mounties moved to within 5 points of the lead halfway through the 4thquarter on a field goal of the day, but the Mounties would get no closer as Kaleb Scott ran for a touchdown with less than 2 minutes remaining.

QB Kaleb Scott, threw for 220 yards with 2 TD’s and added another TD on his 70 yards rushing.  Brad Herbst and Jordan Angove both recorded interceptions.

Saint Mary’s (3-0) is on bye week next weekend The Mounties (1-1)  travel to Acadia for Week 4 action against the Axemen (1-1).

Carleton (2-1) 21, Waterloo (2-1) 18

Game Recap: Waterloo Warriors
In one of the most stunning upsets of the 2017 OUA football season, the upstart Waterloo Warriors marched into Ottawa and claimed a heart-stopping victory over the Carleton Ravens. One year later, the Ravens returned the favour in equally dramatic fashion.

Mike Domagala’s 22-yard field goal with 8 seconds left on the clock was the difference, as the seventh-ranked Ravens squeaked out a 21-18 victory over the Warriors at the annual Black and Gold day game on Saturday afternoon at Warrior Field.

The Carleton victory overshadowed a furious fourth-quarter comeback from Waterloo, who scored 15 straight points in the final stanza to knot the game at 18-18. The Warriors were once again led by the outstanding play of quarterback Tre Ford (Niagara Falls/), who completed 29 of 39 passes for 321 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while adding 104 yards rushing. Gordon Lam (Kitchener/) also had a big day for Waterloo, making 8 catches for 122 yards, while Mitch Kernick (Elmira/) added 9 receptions for 98 yards.

Mike Arruda was not quite as efficient, but just as effective for the Ravens – the second-year pivot completed 16 of 28 passes for 272 yards and two touchdowns of his own. His most dangerous target on the day was Dominic Walker, who hauled in 5 passes for 130 yards and a pair of scores, including a 95-yard pass-and-catch in the third quarter.

The Arruda-Walker combination was dangerous right out of the gate, as the two hooked up for an 11-yard touchdown just over two minutes into the first quarter. But both defenses dug in after that, and Carleton carried an 8-0 lead through 15 minutes of play.

The Warriors were able to move the ball as the first half wore on, but they weren’t able to turn their drives into touchdowns – young kicker Mike Bushell (London/) missed field goals of 26 and 28 yards, instead settling for singles both times. After another single point on an onside punt attempt from Ford, the Warriors trailed 8-3 at halftime.

When play resumed, the Ravens took advantage of some Waterloo turnovers in the third quarter to widen their lead. After Ford’s electric scramble on a third down play ended with a lost fumble, Arruda hooked up with walker on a 95-yard bomb down the right sideline to make the score 15-3. Then, on the ensuing kickoff return, Tyler Ternowski (Hamilton/) was stripped of the ball, leading to a 21-yard field goal from Domagala.

But the Warriors offense, which outgained Carleton 490 yards to 346 yards on the day, finally converted ball movement and time of possession into points early in the fourth quarter. Brandon Metz (Cambridge/) earned the hosts their first touchdown on the day, as his 1-yard catch capped off a 10-play, 101-yard drive that made the score 18-10 for the Ravens. Then, with under 7 minutes to play, Ternowski hauled in a 5-yard screen from Ford for his nation-leading seventh touchdown catch of the year. The Warriors went for two and the tie, and Ford’s scrambling ability enabled Kernick to get open in the back of the endzone, knotting the score at 18-18.

Each defense made big stops in the following possessions, but the Ravens were able to get the ball back and methodically work their way into field goal range as the clock ticked down. Domagala made no mistake from 22 yards, and the Warriors were unable to complete a miracle lateral series on the game’s final play.

The loss drops Waterloo to 2-1, while the victory improves Carleton’s record to that same 2-1 mark. The Warriors will now turn their attention to another of Canada’s top teams, as they’ll travel down University Avenue to face the Laurier Golden Hawks in the Battle of Waterloo. Kickoff at University Stadium is slated for 1pm on Saturday, September 15.

Toronto (0-2) 7, Queen’s (2-1) 43

KINGSTON, Ont. (September 8, 2018) – The Queen’s Gaels picked up their first home victory of the year with a 43-7 win over the Toronto Varsity Blues.

The Gaels put on a show for the 1,755 fans that were on hand to celebrate Kids Day at Richardson Stadium.

GAME FLOW
The Gaels took the opening kickoff of the game to the house as first year Nathan Langley ran for a 110-yard return touchdown.

After a quiet first quarter, the Gaels exploded in the second putting three touchdowns on the board.

Nate Hobbs scored a pair of rushing touchdowns and then found Matteo Del Brocco for a 27-yard strike through the air. The catch was Del Brocco’s second receiving touchdown and Hobbs’ fourth passing touchdown of the season.

The Gaels went into the half with a commanding 28-0 lead.

Hobbs’ lone mistake of the afternoon came in the third quarter. As he lobbed a deep pass down field, Toronto’s Caleb Zigby came up with the interception and returned it 62 yards for the touchdown. The touchdown was the Varsity Blues only scoring play of the afternoon.

With the Gaels up 38-7, Jake Puskas put the final nail in the coffin with a 9-yard touchdown scamper.  It was Puskas’ strongest performance of the season as he picked up 85 yards on just six carries.

HOBBS MAKING HISTORY
With his pair of rushing touchdowns, Hobbs became Queen’s all-time leader in career rushing touchdowns by a quarterback. His 11-career touchdown passes Cal Connor (10) in the school’s record books.

He also has the top spot in Queen’s all-time rushing yards by a quarterback with 751 yards.

MUST-SEE MOMENTS
Nathan Langley got the game started with a bang.

BY THE NUMBERS
151 – The Gaels had their best game of the season on the ground as they rushed for a combined 151 yards.
27 – QB Nate Hobbs got back on track completing 27-39 passes on the afternoon. He also threw for 386 yards.
101 – Despite only recording 50 yards receiving so far in his career, Benjamin Arhen had a breakout game hauling in 101 yards on four receptions.
241 – The Gaels held the Varsity Blues’ offence to just 241 yards throughout the game. They were able to keep dynamic quarterback Clay Sequiera to just 13-28 with 141 yards passing.
KIDS DAY
It was Kids Day at the Stadium and fans were treated to a pre-game celebration and post game chance to run through the Gaels tunnel.
FINAL SAY
“The next four weeks will basically define our season. The games we’ve won so far are the ones I think most people thought we were going to win but now our season starts. These four games are going to really determine where we place and all the rest of it.” – Pat Sheahan, Head Coach.
UP NEXT
The Gaels will head back on the road for a matchup with the No.7 Carleton Ravens. Game time is set for 1:00pm on Sept. 15. All the action can be seen live on OUA.tv.

Guelph (1-2) 10, uOttawa (2-1) 12

Game Recap: uOttawa Gee-Gees

The University of Ottawa Gee-Gees scored ten points on their first two drives and relied on impeccable defence to defeat the Guelph Gryphons 12-10 Saturday afternoon at Gee-Gees Field.

“They competed, I give our special teams and defence a lot of credit,” said Gee-Gees head coach Jamie Barresi. “Again we had some self-inflicted issues that if we just correct those things, we will be much better.”

Guelph was looking to take the lead very late in the game, when kicker Gabriel Ferraro lined up a 54-yard field goal attempt. The Ottawa special teams unit came though with a clutch play, as Cody Cranston flew around the edge and blocked the attempt, sealing the victory.

The Gee-Gees had an optimal start to the day. Quarterback Sawyer Buettner, in his first start for the Garnet and Grey, guided Ottawa on a 12-play drive that was capped off by Dawson Odei punching the ball in from the one-yard line to give his team the lead.

Ottawa got a huge momentum boost on the ensuing kickoff. Guelph’s Ryan Isenor muffed the kick and linebacker Kyle Rodger leaped on the ball, giving the Gee-Gees possession deep in their offensive territory. A 12-yard Campbell Fair field goal made the score 10-0 early.

The Gee-Gee defence frustrated Guelph all day, limiting the visitors to only 269 yards of offence and 13 first downs.

The Gee-Gees only major breakdown resulted in the Gryphons lone touchdown of the game. Receiver Zeph Fraser found himself wide open, and quarterback Theo Landers linked up with him for an 85-yard catch-and-run. From that point forward, the defence as stingy, holding Guelph to a Ferraro field goal from 45 yards out late in the fourth quarter.

The game was actually decided by a routine part of the game, caused by more quality defence from the Gee-Gees. Pinned deep in their own half following a duo of key defensive plays by Tramayne Stephen and Reshaan Davis, the visitors elected to concede a safety.

The five-point advantage was enough for Ottawa, who consistently established pressure in the Guelph back-field. The Gee-Gees tallied a total of seven sacks in the game, the team’s most since they registered nine against Queen’s in week two last season.

“We have a lot of talent everywhere on the defence,” said safety Luke Greise, who lead the team with 5.5 tackles and a sack. “Each week a guy steps up and does their 1/12th, every week it’s someone different and that’s going to help us keep winning.”

The Gee-Gees offence performed well as a whole, accumulating 477 yards of offence. Odei led the way with 189 all-purpose (153 yards rushing, 36 receiving) – by far the best performance of his career. Odei’s performance was also the most of any Gee-Gees running back in five seasons, eclipsing the mark of 152 that Mack Tommy racked up in the 2014 Panda Game.

“A lot of credit goes to the offensive line,” said the second-year Oshawa, Ont. native. “Without them, we wouldn’t have been able to do any of it. With that work up front, I was able to get my 30 carries and keep getting my yards, that’s all that there is to it.”

Buettner threw for 228 yards and spread the wealth among his receiving corps. No receiver had more than four catches, but nor did any of them have less than three receptions.

The Gee-Gees improve to 2-1 on the year after three U SPORTS Top 10 matchups to start the season. Next up, will be a well-deserved bye week to re-collect following the busy first weeks of the season.

“It is a really competitive league, so getting a break now will be huge for us,” said Barresi. “We get a chance to get some guys healthy and it kind of puts us ahead a little bit.”

The Gee-Gees will continue looking to climb the OUA standings on Sept. 22 as they welcome the York Lions (1-2) to Gee-Gees Field.

Sherbrooke (0-3) 20, Concordia (1-1) 22

Game Recap: Concordia Stingers

On the last play of the game, Stinger quarterback Adam Vance rolled out to his left and rifled the football 25 yards down field into the hands of receiver James Tyrrell for a touchdown giving Concordia a 22-20 victory over the Sherbrooke Vert & Or before 2307 fans on Saturday afternoon.

Despite the enthusiastic home-opener crowd, the Stingers trailed the Vert & Or the entire game. Sherbrooke had a 9-0 lead at the half and a 12-5 advantage after three quarters.

It was only in the final stanza that Concordia’s offence came to life. Vance completed nine of 13 passes for 250 yards and the winning TD in the fourth quarter.

Overall, the Stingers rolled up 20 first downs and 537 yards of offence. Vance ended up completing 20 of 34 passes for 441 yards on the day. His favorite target was wide receiver Jarryd Taylor who caught eight passes for 258 yards. Tyrrell finished the game with three receptions for 78 yards and the major.

Sherbrooke’s offence was good for 14 first downs and 160 yards on the day.

Defensively, lineman Lukas Redguard led the Stingers with eight total tackles, including three for losses.

The Stingers now have a 1-1 win-loss record. They cross the city to visit the McGill Redmen in the Shaughnessy Cup game next Saturday at 1 p.m. The Vert & Or fall to 0-3 and host the Montréal Carabins, also next Saturday.

Acadia (1-1) 39, Bishop’s (0-3) 9

Acadia Axeman quarterback Hunter Guenard connected twice with Cordell Hastings for touchdowns and five times total on the day on route to a 39-9 victory over the Bishop’s Gaiters on Saturday afternoon on Coulter Field in AUS Football action.

The victory improved Acadia’s record to 1-1 while Bishop’s fell to 0-3.

Axemen Running back Dale Wright, who was the 2017 AUS Most Outstanding Player, rushed for a touchdown and a total of 78 yards.

After controlling most of the game, Bishop’s was able to put a major on the board when third-string quarterback Kyle Sheahan (Ottawa, Ont./Mother Tersea H.S.) scored on a one-yard sneak.

Jadin White-Frayne ran the ensuing kickoff back for the Axemen to cap their scoring and win 39-9.

Bishop’s quarterback Dylan Tucker (Campbell River, B.C./Langley Rams (BCFC)) played the majority of the game as starter Mathieu Demers (Lévis, Que./Cégep LImoilou) went down to injury early in the first quarter. Tucker rushed for 24 yards, and threw for 102.

Players of the Game:
Acadia – Cordell Hastings
Bishop’s – Zach Graveson (Ile-Bizard, Que./Champlain-Lennoxville) (Subway Player of the Game)Next up:
The Gaiters will travel to Antigonish, N.S. for a match up against St. Francis Xavier on Saturday September 15th, 2018 at 2 p.m.
Social Corner:
Stay up-to-date with everything Bishop’s Gaiters on social media using @BishopsGaiters and #GaiterNation. Also be sure to check out www.gaiters.ca.

Laval (3-0) 12, Montreal (1-1) 7

The first duel of the season between the Red and Gold Football Club and the Carabins was a reflection of past clashes. Saturday in Montreal, Laval University failed to score a touchdown, but his defense has held up to sign a 12-7 win.

Kicker David Côté is responsible for all points on his team, who has made four successful attempts. Laval (3-0) now sits alone at the top of the RSEQ standings.

Two interceptions by Gabriel Ouellet resulted in points on the board for the Rouge et Or in this game. In the first quarter, Ouellet captured a pass from Gabriel Archambault at 22 Carabins. A few games later, David Côté was 3-0 Laval with a 40-yard field goal. Laval retired in the dressing room ahead by 6-0 (37 yards from Côté) and Gabriel Ouellet reoffended in the third quarter with a theft at the expense of Dimitri Morand at 32 of the blues. Once again, David Côté’s leg was precise on 34 yards to make 9-0 Laval. Recall that Ouellet had equaled a Canadian brand with four interceptions in the same meeting on October 21, 2017, against these same Carabins.

Montreal made things exciting at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Two punishments cost the Rouge et Or a lot in this first attack sequence, while the Carabins took the opportunity to advance deep into the Laval zone to ultimately score a touchdown, the work of quarterback Dimitri Morand on a stroke of a yard. David Côté restored a 12-7 lead to a 26-yard field goal with 1:52 left in the game, and the Reds defense held on.

Note that in this meeting, two members of the Rouge et Or have registered or improved records. Mathieu Betts has managed a quarterback, which gives him 29.5 career. He is ahead of Leroy Blugh, former glory of Bishop’s Gaiters, the third in the history of the RSEQ. Only Sean Clark of Ottawa (30.5) and Jim Aru of Queen’s (31.5) are ahead of him.

For his part, Hugo Richard became the quarterback having accumulated the most yards in the history of the Rouge et Or, ahead of Benoit Groulx. Richard now has 8700 yards in career, good for the fourth level of the RSEQ.

“We are happy with the win, but we have left some great opportunities on the field. We will learn from that. I am happy with the defensive, especially as it is our trademark. She will definitely help us later. It should be noted that this is the biggest rivalry in Canada. We are aware that the Carabins are a good team and they lacked big chunks. The team that will progress the most by the next meeting will win. “- Glen Constantin, head coach

Dan Basambombo led both teams with 11.5 tackles including 11 solo, including two quarterback sacks that resulted in 25-yard losses, and forced a fumble.

Next game: Sunday September 23rd, 1pm
Opponent: McGill Redmen
Location: TELUS-UL Stadium
Tickets: reservatech.net

McMaster (1-2) 6, Western (2-0) 44

LONDON, Ont. – Fourth-year running back Cedric Joseph recorded three touchdowns in Western’s 44-6 home-opener victory over the McMaster Marauders on Saturday afternoon in TD Stadium.

“Overall, I saw a lot of good things out there today,” said Mustangs head coach Greg Marshall. “Early in the season and after the way we played in week one, we bounced back today against a really good football team. Last year in week two and week three, we weren’t as far ahead as we are this season. We put in a good effort, I thought Chris [Merchant] did a really nice job, and our special teams made some really great plays.”

With the win, the Mustangs improve to 2-0 on the season as they sit second in the OUA early in the season. The Marauders’ loss drops them to 1-2 on the year, putting them in seventh place in the OUA standings, as they look to improve next Saturday against the Toronto Varsity Blues.

Joseph notched his first three touchdowns of the season in the Mustangs’ home-opener against the Marauders while racking up 103 yards on 16 attempts. Western quarterback Chris Merchant also had a stellar game, throwing for 354 yards with no interceptions.

“It felt great to be back for our home-opener,” said Merchant. “It’s always great to have a big crowd out there and it was fun to have the new students come out and cheer us on. Whenever you can come out to that and play well it’s really nice. We always appreciate the support from everybody.”

“It was a long trip out to Ottawa for our first week so it was great to be back home,” said Joseph. “I love playing at home. Western-nation always comes out – the band, the cheerleaders, the crowd – it’s just always a great atmosphere.”

The Mustangs kicked off to begin the game but offered little ground to the Marauders as McMaster began their offensive drive on the 18-yard line, ultimately forcing a punt on the first series of the game. Western’s passing game found success early behind the play of Merchant, as he picked the Marauder defence apart on their first drive of the game while Joseph quickly earned the purple and white a 7-0 lead with his first touchdown of the game.

The Mustangs continued to break down the Marauder defence throughout the opening frame, as Western’s Marc Liegghio chipped in a field goal in their final drive of the quarter, leading to a 10-0 lead for Western heading into the second.

McMaster gave Western it’s first defensive challenge of the game early in the second quarter but would ultimately have to settle for a field goal, cutting the Western lead to 10-3. However, a short punt from McMaster allowed Western to return into scoring position soon after, as Liegghio once again converted the field goal to extend the Mustang lead to 13-3 midway through the second quarter.

Joseph continued to rack up yardage against McMaster, while Alex Taylor finished off the drive with his first touchdown of the game and extended Western’s lead to 20-3. But the Mustangs were not finished scoring in the half, as Merchant connected with Harry McMaster for an incredible 55-yard touchdown as Western headed into halftime with a convincing 27-3 lead.

McMaster managed to keep the Mustangs off the scoreboard on their first drive of the half, but Western’s Daniel Valente quickly earned the Mustangs another chance to score with an interception midway through the quarter. Valente’s interception would eventually allow Joseph to punch in his second touchdown of the game as Western extended their lead to 36-3. McMaster once again converted on the field goal attempt on the ensuing drive, but Joseph’s third and final touchdown led to the eventual 44-6 victory for the purple and white.

“McMaster brought a lot of pressure early, but Chris [Merchant] did a good job of getting the ball away quickly, we made some plays early, and it worked out in our favour,” said Marshall. But we’re going to be playing teams that can do some things even better than McMaster, so we always have to keep working.”

“We’re always finding ways to improve our game weekly and make sure that there’s some growth after every game,” said Merchant. “It helps us match our opponents and we’re always looking to get prepared for the next week. We want to be able to play as fast and as smooth as possible.”

The Mustangs will be back in action next Saturday, where they will host the York Lions in what will be there first and only meeting of the regular season. The game is scheduled to kick off at 1:00 P.M. EST and fans can catch the action live on OUA.tv

Source: usports.ca

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