CIS football Friday roundup

Source: Pierre Arsenault, Mount Allison Athletics

SACKVILLE - The Mount Allison Mounties defeated the Saint Mary's Huskies 29-15 in AUS football action on Friday night at MacAulay Field.  The Mounties once again used a quick start to get the upper hand and never surrendered the lead, as they ran their winning streak to 3 straight games against Saint Mary's at MacAulay Field.

On Mount Allison's 2nd possession of the game, the Mounties drove from midfield starting with a 27 yard completion from Brandon Leyh to Rodreke Joseph.  Leyh was back in the lineup this week after missing last week with a knee injury.  Three plays later Leyh found Matt Rose from 15 yards out to put the home side up 7-0.

The Mounties used a blocked punt by Troy Trentham on Saint Mary's next position to get the ball back at the Saint Mary's 20 yard line.  After 2 incomplete passes Renaud Labrecque connected from 28 yards out, giving the Mounties a 10-0 lead.  The score stayed that way until 10 minutes into the 2nd quarter when Donovan Saunders, also back in the lineup after missing last week with a knee injury, intercepted a Jack Creighton pass and returned it 29 yards to the Saint Mary's 36 yard line.  That led to a 29 yard field goal attempt by Labrecque that sailed wide left but still earned a rouge for the Mounties, making the score 11-0.

Saint Mary's got on the board shortly after when Creighton found Matthew Magee in the end zone for a 1 yard score.  The Mounties responded before the end of the half, marching 50 yards with a drive capped off by Jordan Botel's 5 yard touchdown.  This left the score at the end of the first half 18-7 for Mount Allison.

Saint Mary's benefitted from a fumbled punt return to get some good field position early in the 3rd quarter, but the Mounties defense was able to hold the Huskies to a field goal from 27 yards by Chase Kodejs.  After failing to move the ball on their next possession, the Mounties defense went back to work.  Rookie Devonte Sampson scooped up a tipped Jack Creighton pass and scampered 60 yards for the major, pushing the Mounties lead to 25-10.  Saint Mary's picked up points by forcing a safety and connecting on another field goal from 18 yards by Kodejs, but then surrendered 2 safeties of their own to round out the scoring at 29-12.

The Mounties defense was the story of the night, registering 7 quarterback sacks with 3 coming from Jordan Redding, 3 from Dylan Cossar and one from Kwame Adjei.  The Mounties defense also had 3 interceptions, including Sampson's sixty yard return for a touchdown.  On offense, Brandon Leyh was 13 of 27 for 195 yards and 1 touchdown.  First year Mountie Rodreke Joseph had 5 catches for 72 yards.  For the Huskies, Ben Rossong was 3-9 for 56 yards before giving way to Jack Creighton.  For his part, Creighton was 12 of 23 for 151 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions.

With the win, the Mounties move into a tie for 2nd place with Saint Mary's and Acadia, all at 1-2.  StFX leads the conference with a 2-1 record but lost 40-11 at home to Acadia earlier tonight.   The Mounties now travel to Acadia next Saturday for a 7PM start.  That game can be seen live on Eastlink and on www.austv.ca.

Source: Krista McKenna, StfX Sports Info

ANTIGONISH, N.S. - The third interception of the game by fifth-year senior Brett Backman late in the fourth quarter was the exclamation point on a 40-11 win for the Acadia Axemen over the StFX X-Men in AUS football action Friday night in Antigonish.

With 1:42 remaining in regulation at Oland Stadium, the defensive back returned a Clay Masikewich pass 64 yards, untouched, for a touchdown.

The major score, with the Ryan Begin conversion, highlighted a second half in which the visiting Axemen outscored the X-Men 30-3.

“We wanted to bounce back from a tough start [to the season],” Backman told Bill MacLean after the game during the StFX Varsity Club webcast on Bell AUS TV.

It was the first interception return for a touchdown in Backman’s university career.

The Axemen opened the scoring on their first drive of the game, marching 75 yards on eight plays, with the TD coming on an 11-yard pass from Evan Brown (14-25-221), his first of three on the night, to Sabastian Robinson (2-30). The wide receiver’s only two receptions resulted in six points for the Axemen.

With 1:03 left in the first quarter, the quick-strike X-Men offense tied the score, when Devon Bailey (4-100) soared for a Masikewich (18-37-249) pass, taking it 74 yards for a touchdown.

On the ensuing kickoff, Hayden Peters scored a rouge, giving the X-Men an 8-7 lead.

Early in the second quarter, the Axemen conceded a safety, but the points for the X-Men were negated by an offside call.

Late in the half, Begin scored the only points of the second quarter, booting a 34-yard field goal.

The Axemen took a 10-8 lead to the locker room in a mistake and penalty-filled first half for both sides.

A Begin rouge on the opening kickoff of the third quarter, giving the visitors an 11-8 lead, started a streak of 22 unanswered Axemen points in just over ten minutes of playing time.

Although Acadia could not capitalize on a blocked punt, they did take advantage of Backman’s second interception of the game (his first came on the final play of the first half). The turnover culminated in a 29-yard touchdown pass from Brown to Tristan Hercules (3-53).

After Peters failed in a first-down run attempt off a fake punt attempt by the X-Men, the Axemen rode back-to-back running plays by Thomas Troop (8-60), including a six-yard touchdown, to a 25-8 lead with 9:17 remaining in the third quarter.

With 4:35 left in the stanza, Robinson caught his second touchdown, extending the Axemen advantage to 32-8, after another point-after from Begin.

The X-Men wrapped up the third-quarter scoring on a 34-yard Jeremy Ford field goal, cutting the disadvantage to 32-11.

The Axemen scored the only points of the fourth quarter on the Backman interception return and a Begin rouge.

Acadia amassed 430 yards in total offense, including 196 on the ground.

StFX could only muster 17 yards rushing as part of 249 total yards in the game.

Veteran Taylor Renaud was the top receiver for the Axemen with three catches for 54 yards.

Jordan Catterall collected the most catches (five) for the X-Men, collecting 37 yards, while freshman Keon Hughes caught four balls for 48 yards.

On the ground for the X-Men, tailback Ashton Dickson gained 35 yards on nine carries.

Defensively, Alex Graham led the Axemen with five tackles, while Derek Naugler and Brayden Guy chipped in four apiece.

Acadia sacked Masikewich three times, including 1.5 from linebacker Jessie St. James.

For the X-Men, Ron Omara led the way with nine tackles, while Brett Hubbeard and Hugo Rajotte chipped in eight and seven, respectively.

Samni Adereti recorded the only sack for StFX.

In other AUS football action Friday, the Mount Allison Mounties defeated the visiting Saint Mary’s Huskies 29-15 in Sackville, N.B.

The X-Men (2-1) return to action Friday, Sept. 27, when they visit Halifax to face the Huskies (1-2), while the Axemen (1-2) will host the Mounties (1-2) in Wolfville Saturday, Sept. 28.

Both games are scheduled to kick-off at 7 p.m.

Source: Earl Zukerman, McGill Sports Info

MONTREAL – Isaac Lauzon, a freshman from Gatineau, Que.,  rushed for 134 yards and a pair of touchdowns as the Sherbrooke Vert & Or defeated McGill 44-26 before 1,785 in CIS football at Percival Molson Stadium, Friday.
 
It marked Sherbrooke's first win of the season and improved their record to 1-3, while the Redmen evened their record at 2-2 in the RSEQ conference. The Vert & Or, which hasn't lost to McGill since 2009, extended their win streak over the Redmen to six straight, improving to 10-5 lifetime in head-to-head meetings.
 
Sherbrooke took advantage of seven McGill turnovers, including a blocked punt that led directly to a touchdown. They jumped into a 21-0 first quarter lead, highlighted by Carl Gagnon-Bisaillon's 70-yard pass-and-run scoring play from quarterback Jérémi Roch before the game was five minutes old. A seven-yard TD toss to Gabriel Goulet at 10:31 put Sherbrooke ahead 19-0.

Lauzon tallied both of his majors in the final quarter, one on a two-yard plunge midway through the stanza and the other on a 76-yard breakaway on the final play of the game after it appeared that Sherbrooke was going to run out the clock and kneel down.
 
Roch went the distance, making 12 of 27 passes for 174 yards, a pair of TDs and one interception.
 
McGill, which had a 22-18 edge in first downs, outscored Sherbrooke 26-24 the rest of the way but it was too little, too late.
 
The teams combined to generated 763 yards of net offence, including 401 by the Vert & Or.
 
Senior Jonathan Collin of Greenfield Park, Que., started at quarterback for McGill but completed only 12 of 23 passes for 119 yards and was intercepted twice, which led to him being benched in the second half. Understudy Pierre-Luc Dussault of Quebec City added a spark to the McGill offence. He was good on 16-of-28 attempts for a game-high 207 yards and one pick. He also led the Redmen in rushing with 41 yards on eight carriers.
 
The Redmen will travel to Concordia for the Montreal Shrine Bowl on Sept. 28, while Sherbrooke returns to Montreal to take on the No.4-ranked Carabins on Sept. 29.

COMPLETE STORY TO FOLLOW ONLINE AT: http://www.mcgillathletics.ca/news/2013/9/21/Football_0921130918.aspx

Video courtesy Sherbrooke Athletics

Source: Ben Matchett, Calgary Sports Info

CALGARY – Andrew Buckley threw for 512 yards while Mercer Timmis picked up four touchdowns and Chris Dobko added his name to the record books as the University of Calgary Dinos scored a dominant 48-24 win over the University of Manitoba Bisons Friday night at McMahon Stadium.

No. 5 Calgary improves to 4-0 on the season while dropping the eighth-ranked Bisons to 2-2 in the only meeting between the two teams this season.

The Dinos offence exploded in the first half, jumping out to a 34-10 lead at the break before grinding out the win in the final two quarters while holding the vaunted Manitoba offence at bay for most of the game, giving up just 17 points before a last-minute major gave Calgary 24. And the explosion didn’t take very long.

After going two-and-out on the opening drive, Buckley found Brett Blaszko for a 91-yard score just 2:46 into the game to set the tone. It was the third-longest passing play in school history and gave the Dinos an early lead. Two more big plays came before the half was out with Buckley finding Rashaun Simonise for a 56-yard major – the first of his CIS career – while Mercer Timmis had a 32-yard scamper to go with a one-yard plunge before the halftime gun sounded.

At the break, Buckley had exactly 400 passing yards and the Dinos had a 24-point lead.

“We were hoping that our offence would be able to put up some points,” said Dinos head coach Blake Nill. “We still have to get better at finishing consistently, but we made some big plays in the first half and to answer right away in the second half was huge. I couldn’t be happier with the offence.”

The Dinos’ game plan on defence was clearly to limit the effectiveness of the fearsome duo of Anthony Coombs and Nic Demski, and for the most part they succeeded. Coombs did pick up two touchdowns, one in the final seconds of the opening half and another midway through the third quarter, but the Bisons were unable to pick up any of the big plays they’ve been known for so far this year. Despite that, Coombs had big numbers: 22 carries for 120 yards on the ground, along with six catches for 115 yards and two majors. Demski added 103 yards on five catches – but it wasn’t enough for the Bisons, who scored just 24 points despite moving the ball 580 yards in the game.

“It was a bend-but-don’t-break effort, and that’s all we can expect from the kids on defence,” said Nill. “We focused on those two (Coombs and Demski) … we knew we couldn’t stop them completely, but we wanted to limit them, and for the most part we did.”

Doctor Cassama was key to Calgary’s defensive effort, recording 10 solo tackles along with a pair of assists. Michael Schmidt had six more for Calgary.

While the Bisons were unable to stretch the field, the Dinos used the big play to their advantage, and the entire offence got in the act. Blaszko and Simonise had the big plays, while Timmis picked up 118 rushing yards and four more touchdowns, bringing his total to nine in the 2013 season. But the night belonged to receiver Chris Dobko, who became the University of Calgary’s all-time leading receiver with 146 career catches, breaking Don Blair’s old record of 138 with a nine-catch, 203-yard night through the air.

“It’s pretty amazing that Chris is the all-time leading receiver,” said Nill. “I’ve probably given Chris as hard a time as any player I’ve had, but over the last year and a half he has matured tremendously and I couldn’t be happier for him.”

Blaszko added 138 receiving yards, while Buckley – making just his third CIS start – had the 20th-best game by a quarterback in Canadian university history and the third-best Dinos performance, completing 24 of 36 passes for 512 yards and three touchdowns on the night.

Manitoba’s defence was led by Bami Adewale with 8.5 tackles, followed closely by Thomas Miles with seven.

The Bisons return to Investors Group Field next weekend to host the Regina Rams. Calgary, meanwhile, puts its undefeated record on the line next Saturday in Edmonton as the Dinos face off against the Alberta Golden Bears (0-4) at Foote Field. Kickoff goes at 5 p.m.

Source: Daniel Herrick, Saskatchewan Sports Information Student Assistant

SASKATOON - The No.7 University of Saskatchewan Huskies defence shut down a potent University of Alberta Golden Bears offence in a 39-17 win on Homecoming Friday night in Saskatoon at Griffiths Stadium in PotashCorp Park.

The Huskie defence showed their strength early against a Bears offence that came into the game as the third best scoring team in the conference. Saskatchewan held Alberta to just 236 yards in the affair. 

The green and white pass rushers, wearing brand new homecoming jerseys replicating the 1914 Huskie rugby squad, made their presence felt in the Bears backfield all evening recording eight sacks.

Joel Seutter finished the game with 2.5 tackles and two sacks. Seutter also forced a fumble and broke up a pass. Ben Rush added 3.5 more tackles, 2.5 sacks and recovered Seutter’s forced fumble.

The Huskies offence got off to a hot start led by quarterback Drew Burko, who went 7-for-8 and a pair of touchdown passes in the first quarter. He finished the game 32-for-46 with 373 yards and two touchdowns. Mitch Stevens and Kit Hillis both caught nine passes in the game for 106 and 59 yards respectively. Shane Buchanan rushed for 87 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries.

Saskatchewan scored on their first possession on a Burko pass to Dexter Janke for nine yards at 3:41. Burko would then connect with freshman Mitch Hillis for his first conference touchdown, a 20-yard reception, at 10:19.

The Huskies took a 19-0 lead before Alberta got on the board with a Stephen Fabian 42-yard field goal at 0:48 in the second quarter. Alberta would tally again at 10:40 in the frame with a 60-yard dash by running back Ed Ilnicki.

Saskatchewan kicker Denton Kolodzinski hit a field goal to give the Huskies a 22-10 halftime lead. Buchanan would rush for his first of two touchdowns for the only points of the third quarter on a five-yard dash at 13:08..

Ryan Schwartz who struggled passing walked into the end zone on third and goal at 4:17 of the fourth quarter giving the Golden Bears a glimpse of hope at 29-17.  But Buchanan would snuff out any chance of an Alberta comeback with a 29-yard scamper at 8:53 in the final quarter. Kolodzinski also hit another field goal for the 39-17 final.

Schwartz finished the game 17-of-35 for 163 yards and added 45 yards on the ground. Tylor Henry was his favourite target on the night, catching six passes for 59 yards.  Ilnick rushed for 108 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.

With the win, Saskatchewan keeps pace with the top of the Canada West standings moving to 3-1, sititng in second place. The Bears drop to 0-4 with the loss.

Saskatchewan will travel to Vancouver to take on the UBC Thunderbirds on September 28, while Alberta returns home to host the Dinos.