HAMILTON (October 5, 2013) – No. 9 McMaster cruised to a 66-3 win over Waterloo at a sold-out Ron Joyce Stadium during the Marauders homecoming.
McMaster (3-3) struck for 37 points in the opening half to put the game out of reach for a struggling Waterloo (1-5) team.
Marauder`s quarterback Marshall Ferguson of Kingston, Ont., tossed five touchdowns to four different receivers while Kasean Davis-Reynolds of Mississauga, Ont., rushed for two touchdowns in the game.
The Marauder defence also forced six turnovers and registered six sacks against Waterloo in the win. McMaster defensive-back Keldyn Ahlsted of Whitby, Ont., led the way in interceptions registering three.
Ferguson finished 23 for 31 passing for 309 yards with five touchdowns in three quarters of play. Davis Reynolds amassed 74-yards on 11 attempts with 64 of those yards coming before the half.
Tyler Loveday of Kitchener caught two of Ferguson’s touchdown passes while Michael DiCroce of Hamilton posted a game high 91 yards receiving. Also scoring touchdowns were Daniel Vandervoort of Barrie, Ont., Joshua Vandeweerd of Burlington, Ont. and Declan Cross of Oakville, Ont.
Brian Chris of Waterloo had the toughest day for the Warriors tossing four interceptions and posting only 72 yards in the loss. The Marauder defence stymied the Waterloo attack allowing only 172 total yards.
Steven Ventresca of Hamilton registered two of those interceptions while Mark Mackie of London, Ont., and Michael Kashak of Courtice, Ont., chipped in two sacks apiece in the win.
McMaster’s Wayne Moore of Etobicoke, Ont. was the game’s top rusher posting 125 yards on nine carries with 116 of those yards coming in the second half. He scored the game’s final touchdown on a 49-yard run with 7:27 remaining in the fourth quarter.
After McMaster’s Tyler Crapigna of Nepean, Ont., opened the scoring on a punt-single, Davis-Reynolds punched in a one-yard touchdown to start the offensive onslaught with just 3:15 to play in the first quarter.
Ferguson tossed a 40-yard bomb to Vandervoot with no time remaining in the first quarter to make the score 15-0 at the time.
In the opening minutes of the second quarter then Ferguson connected with Vandeweerd on a five yard strike and then Davis Reynolds added his second on a nine-yard run to make the score 29-0. Ferguson would hit Loveday in the endzone at 5:24 of the second quarter to put the game at 37-0 heading into the half.
Ferguson would stay in the game until the start of the fourth quarter connecting with Loveday again as well as Cross with 2:23 remaining in the third.
Kingsley Amankwaa of Etobicoke, Ont. posted a rushing touchdown in the third while Moore added his in the fourth. Crapigna rounded out the scoring with a rouge at 7:24 left in the fourth quarter.
NOTES: The win saw head coach Stefan Ptaszek break two of his own personal coaching records at McMaster including most points scored in a game (66) and biggest margin of victory (63); His previous marks of 64 (most points) and 58 (margin of victory) came in a 64-6 win against York back on October 2nd, 2010… At halftime, McMaster honoured OIFC (Ontario Intercollegiate Football Conference) championship teams from 1962, 1963 and 1964… Announced homecoming attendance was 5,423.
X-Men 30, Mounties 9
The StFX X-Men cruised to a 30-9 victory over the visiting Mount Allison Mounties Saturday afternoon at Oland Stadium in Antigonish.
More than 4,200 fans attended the game, which was part of Homecoming 2013 celebrations at StFX.
“It was a huge win for us. We came out ready to play,” X-Men receiver Donald Tabor said after the game.
Tabor, who led the blue and white with 109 yards on eight receptions, added his team “stayed consistent” and played for four quarters.
“We have to do more of the same,” Tabor said, when asked about the X-Men keys to success for the rest of the season to be successful.
The X-Men opened the scoring on their first offensive possession with starting quarterback and Subway player of the game Tivon Cook connecting with Devon Bailey for a 12-yard touchdown.
Bailey soared for a leaping catch against the Mounties’ defense along the end-zone sideline.
With the Jeremy Ford convert, StFX led 7-0.
By the eight-minute mark of the first quarter, the X-Men led 14-0 on an Ashton Dickson touchdown and Ford point after.
Dickson caught a seven-yard pass from Cook for the major score.
With 4:31 remaining in the first 15 minutes, the Mounties sliced the lead to 14-7 on a 78-yard punt return touchdown by Michael Bohan and a Matt Rose convert.
On Cook’s third TD pass, a 20-yarder to freshman receiver Tivon Cook with 26 seconds remaining in the first quarter, the X-Men extended their advantage.
With the Ford convert, StFX led 21-7.
The only scoring of the second quarter came on a 38-yard field goal by Ford, giving the X-Men a 24-7 lead at halftime.
Things were quiet on the scoreboard in the second half, with the X-Men getting two third-quarter field goals from Ford, both from 14 yards, while the Mounties collected two points on a conceded safety by StFX.
The X-Men amassed 414 yard in net total offense, while the Mounties collected 294.
Cook was 26-for-36 for 274 yards, with three touchdowns.
Freshman Dante Djan, who played in short yardage situations and during a few series in the second half, was successful on five of six pass attempts for 43 yards.
Through the air, Bailey caught seven balls for 98 yards, while freshman Keon Hughes grabbed six for 95 yards.
On the ground, the X-Men gained 111 yards, with Dickson collecting 90 on 17 carries.
For the Mounties Brandon Leyh was six-for-14 for 57 yards, while Alex Field, who relieved the starter in the third quarter, completed six passes for 41 yards.
Mount Allison gained 211 yards rushing, led by all-Canadian Jordan Botel with 121 yards on 19 carries.
Emmanuel Musangu and Troy Trentham chipped in 40 and 35 yards, respectively, on the ground.
Defensively, the X-Men intercepted Leyh four times, including two from Justin Holland and one apiece from Hugo Rajotte and Chris Shibley.
Linebacker Samni Adereti led the team with nine tackles, while adding two quarterback sacks.
Defensive back Paulo Edwards collected 6.5 tackles, while Ron Omara and Jesse Stevens added five apiece.
Dylan Cossar, Kwame Adjei and Te Nguyen each had 7.5 tackles for the Mounties.
Christian Plante and Jacob LeBlanc collected sacks.
The X-Men coaches and players credited the Homecoming crowd for their support in the victory.
“The crowd is amazing,” Tabor said.
X-Men head coach Gary Waterman said there is a “sense of pride” with the players and coaches when playing on Homecoming weekend.
“I am happy we played well and got the victory,” he noted.
StFX president Sean Riley said the players deserve tremendous credit, noting the pressure on them to perform for the Homecoming crowd.
“They gave us exactly what we wanted,” Riley, in his last Homecoming game as StFX president, added.
After the game, the X-Men players and coaches, along with administration members, sang Hail and Health, StFX’s battle song.
The X-Men return to action Saturday, Oct. 12, when they travel to Sackville, NB to face the Mounties.
Opening kick-off is set for 2 p.m.
“It is going to be a week of adjustments and we have to be ready to play,” X-Men head coach Gary Waterman said after Saturday’s game of next week’s re-match with the Mounties.
He noted Mounties “rebound well” after losses and will be prepared to defend their home field.
Waterman added preparations will also have to be made for the Mounties’ playing surface, the only grass field in the AUS.
In other AUS football action Saturday, the Saint Mary’s Huskies (3-2) defeated the Acadia Axemen (2-3) 17-10 in Halifax.
Those teams will also battle next weekend.
Gaels 40, Golden Hawks 34
KINGSTON, Ont. (October 5, 2013) – For the second consecutive week, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks men’s football team experienced a heartbreaking overtime loss as they fell 40-34 to the No. 5 Queen’s Gaels on Saturday afternoon.
After failing to score on their first overtime possession, the Hawks looked to have stopped the Gaels when Laurier’s special teams unit blocked a game-winning field goal attempt. However, in a wild sequence, the ball was booted into the endzone and recovered by the Gaels Aaron Gazendam of Kingston, Ont., for the touchdown and the victory.
“We said at the start of the season, regardless of what our record is going to be, we’re going to be the toughest team [to play],” commented receiver Greg Nyhof after the game. “We’ve worked hard to earn that reputation and I think we have earned that reputation. We came into this game knowing that this team didn’t really respect us and I think it’s safe to say they do now.”
“Our emotion is amazing. It’s been like that all year from the first practice to our last game,” added Head Coach Michael Faulds. “Our guys are fighting and they’re never going to give up. We were just saying this is the best 1-6 football team in the country and no one wants to play us right now. We’re a dangerous football team whether its Western, its Windsor or its Queen’s, we’re going to come out swinging.”
Both Laurier (1-6) and Queen’s (5-1) put on a show for the 9,037 fans in attendance at the Gaels first Homecoming game since 2008. The hometown team got the start it wanted thanks to a 54-yard touchdown run by Ryan Granberg of Sherwood Park, Alta., and led 8-3 after the opening quarter.
The Hawks responded in the second as quarterback James Fracas of Waterloo, Ont., connected on 22- and 56-yard touchdown passes to Greg Nyhof of Georgetown, Ont., and Scott Campbell of Cambridge, Ont. Those scores gave Laurier a 20-9 lead at the half.
After a quite start to the third quarter, the two teams traded majors late in the quarter. Touchdowns by Queen’s Daniel Hislop of Scarborough, Ont., and Lauriers Rashad La Touche of Whitby, Ont., meant the Hawks led 27-16 after three quarters of play.
In the fourth, the Gaels began chipping away at the Hawks lead. A field goal would make the score 27-19 and then Queen’s tied the game with under three minutes to play thanks to a Scott Macdonell (Montreal) touchdown and a successful two-point conversion.
On their next possession, Jesse Andrews of Arnprior, Ont., scored the Gaels second rushing major of the day to take the lead. However, the purple and gold did not fold and Fracas guided the Hawks into Queen’s territory. The Hawks pivot would finish off an eight play, 81-yard drive with 15 seconds left as he connected with Nyhof for his second major of the game to tie the contest at 34.
However, as was the case last week against Windsor, a win wasn’t in the cards for Laurier in this game as the wild overtime sequence clinched Queen’s their fifth win of the season.
The running game proved to be the difference for the Gaels on the afternoon as the Hawks effectively shutdown McPhee, limiting him to just 10 completions and 204 yards. Queens backs combined for 248 yards, led by a 100-yard effort from Granberg.
For Laurier, Fracas continued to improve his stats and for the second straight week, threw for more than 300 yards. He finished the game 23-of-35 for 359 yards and four touchdowns. Running back Dillon Campbell of Whitby, Ont., led the Haw ks’ rushing game with his fifth consecutive 100-yard effort, finishing the game with 107 yards on 20 carries.
With the loss, the Hawks are officially eliminated from post-season contention for the first time since 2002. Laurier will wrap up their 2013 season at home on Saturday, October 12 when they host the McMaster Marauders (3-3). The Hawks senior players will be honoured before the game and fans can purchase five-dollar tickets with the donation of a non-perishable food item.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at University Stadium.
NOTES: Kick returned William Pitt-Doe of Mississauga, Ont., set a new Laurier single-season record for kick return yards late in the third quarter thanks to a 71-yard return…the rookie defensive back now has 560 yards on the season which ranks him fourth all-time in OUA history…rookie linebacker Nakas Onyeka of Brampton, Ont., finished the game as Laurier’s leading tackler with 6.5 tackles in the contest
Thunderbirds 28, No.10 Bisons
As Yogi Berra once said, “It was déjà vu all over again”…almost.
The Manitoba Bisons football team look to rally for another fourth quarter win over the UBC Thunderbirds during the 2013 season but fell short on a last second touchdown attempt and the visiting T-Birds prevailed with a 28-24 road win over #10 Manitoba at Investors Group Field on Saturday, October 5 afternoon.
With the win, UBC moves into a tie for third place in the Canada West football standings with Manitoba at 3-3. Both teams are one game back of second place Saskatchewan. Moving into the conference bye weekend, the last two conference games remaining will set-up a three team race for the second spot and hosting a Canada West playoff match in 2013.
With less than two minutes left, the home side started a drive on their own 44 and moved to UBC’s 22 yard line and had third and ten with less than 30 seconds left in the contest. At home earlier this season, UBC had been the recipient of a 17 point fourth quarter comeback by the Bisons when Manitoba rallied for a 36-32 win but this time the Thunderbirds stopped the drive and were victorious.
LB Riley Jones broke up a potential touchdown in the end zone as Bison RB Anthony Coombs looked to grab the ball but Jones stuck his hand in to knock away the ball at the last second and preserve the win.
Coombs said afterwards, “I lost a moment of my concentration and he made a great play on the ball in the end zone.”
Prior to the final drive by the hosts, UBC snatched the lead back earlier in the fourth with an eight play, 89 yard drive that culminated with a 15 yard pass from QB Carson Williams to Micha Theil for the eventual winning score.
Manitoba had jumped into the lead for the first time since the first quarter with a Coombs five yard reception touchdown to open the fourth but UBC responded on their very next possession and made the final score hold up over the last nine and half minutes.
The Thunderbirds held the lead for the majority of the game. The Bisons took the first lead at 3-0 but UBC scored 18 unanswered points in the second quarter (Greg Bowcott two yard TD run; David Scott 27 yard TD reception and add a field goal with a rouge) to walk into halftime with a 15 point lead.
The momentum shifted early in the second half for the home side as Manitoba forced a fumble and LB DJ Lalama returned it for a 50 yard TD fumble return and that kick started the rest of the quarter for the Herd. RB Kienan LaFrance scored on the next drive with a three yard scamper to close the lead to one point before the suspense in the fourth.
“I am very disappointed on how we came out,” commented Bison Football head coach Brian Dobie. “UBC played well and deserve credit as they outplayed us today…we need to move on and have two regular season games left to get this thing done.”
In team stats in the UBC win, Manitoba had 23 and the Thunderbirds with 24 first downs while UBC accumulated 468 total offence yards to the Bisons’ 353 in brisk fall-like conditions. In addition, Manitoba was flagged for 13 for 100 penalty yards while UBC had 7-65 and the T-Birds had the time of possession with 32:40 to 27:20.
Individually for UBC, Carson Williams was 22-40 for a game-high 348 yards and 2 TDs. Jeff Effah had 49 rushing yards and David Scott added 170 receiving yards on seven catches and 1 TD along with Josh Kronstrom with eight receptions for 92 yards and 32 rushing yards. Quinn Van Gylswyk was 2-2 in field goals and had a 39.6 punting average in some strong 26 km winds. On defence, DB Brian Rideout had 6.5 total tackles with DL Kareem Ba with 6.0 tackles plus 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. DL Donovan Dale also had 5.5 tackles with 1.5 sacks and DL Spencer Wilson added another sack.
For the home side, QB Jordan Yantz went 14-30 for 194 passing yards and 1 TD plus rushed for 85 yards on 12 carries. Coombs had 87 rushing yards on 15 attempts plus added 36 receiving yards and 1 TD on three grabs. SB Andrew Smith hauled in four balls for 60 yards and kicker Nick Boyd was 1-2 in FGs and 42.7 punting average. On defence, Bami Adewale had a game-high 7.5 total tackles with one forced fumble while DL Lauren Kroeker added 6.5 tackles. LB Riley Wiggett had 5.5 tackles and one sack and Lalama added 5.5 tackles with one fumble recovery for a TD.
With only two conference games left on the schedule, it will be a tight race until the final whistle for playoff positions. Saskatchewan host Manitoba on Friday, October 18 while UBC host Alberta (0-6) on Sat., Oct. 19 in week seven action. In the final weekend of the regular season, Manitoba plays at Alberta on Sat., Oct. 26; UBC at Calgary on Fri., Oct. 25 and Saskatchewan travels to Regina (2-4) on Sat., Oct. 26 in week eight to decide second place in the conference.
Game Notes:
– UBC DB Miguel Barker was injured and on the ground for approximately 15 minutes after a hit on Manitoba Nic Demski near the goal line early in the third quarter. No update was on his condition at this time.
– In a quirk of the schedule, Manitoba has completed their home dates in the inaugural season at Investors Group Field and finished with a 2-2 home record in 2013.
– Coombs TD was his ninth overall touchdown of the season and moved him into a tie for second in team history with 27 total touchdowns (2011: 9; 2012: 9; 2013: 9) so far in his Bison career.