CIS football Saturday roundup

ANTIGONISH, N.S. - On the strength of a dominant opening half, the Acadia Axemen cruised to a 43-10 win over the host StFX X-Men in AUS football action Saturday afternoon.

More than 1,700 fans at Oland Stadium in Antigonish, NS, watched the Axemen jump out to a 3-0 lead at 4:19 of the first quarter on a 17-yard field goal from Ryan Begin. The scoring drive came after Brett Backman recovered a fumble by X-Men receiver Devon Bailey.

Running back Brett Haenni (13 rushes, 64 yards) stretched the visitors’ advantage to 10-0 on a nine-yard run at 12:15 of the first quarter. Touchdown receptions by AJ Durling (nine yards) and Mike Squires (31 yards), along with a conceded safety by the X-Men, extended the Axemen advantage to 26-0 midway through the second quarter.

X-Men quarterback Cory Wensley (20-for-32, 220 yards) led the blue and white on their first scoring drive that culminated with a field goal by Anthony Alix at 11:58 of the second quarter, which cut the Axemen lead to 26-3.

Quarterback Kyle Graves (18-for-27, 299 yards) connected with Squires on a second touchdown at 13:48, which gave the Axemen a 33-3 lead heading to the locker room for halftime. Graves, the Subway player of the game, had three touchdown passes.

In the second half, Begin kicked two third-quarter field goals, and a second X-Men conceded safety while pinned deep in their own zone on a punt attempt, gave the Axemen a 41-3 lead.

At 7:40 of the fourth quarter, the X-Men notched their first touchdown on a 37-yard pass from Wensley to Justin McLean, cutting the lead to 41-10 in the fourth quarter. A third X-Men safety on a punt attempt gave the Axemen a 43-10 lead, the final margin of victory.

For the Axemen, Taylor Renaud was the leading receiver with five catches for 87 yards. Bailey was the leading receiver for the X-Men with eight catches for 127 yards, while freshman Ashton Dickson rushed for 19 yards on eight carries. The Axemen amassed 413 total yards, while the X-Men gained 209.

With the win the Axemen are 1-0, while the X-Men fall to 0-1 to open the AUS season. The Axemen are at home in Wolfville, NS, Saturday, Sept. 17 to host the McGill Redmen, while the X-Men travel to Montreal to face the Concordia Stingers on the same day. Both are Atlantic-Quebec conference interlock games.

Source: StFX Sports Info

LENNOXVILLE, Que. – Despite a 300-yard passing performance by Jordan Heather (Oromocto, N.B.), the Bishop's Gaiters suffered a 25-18 loss to the Concordia Stingers today before 1,708 fans at Coulter Field. Heather went 25-for-45 for 327 yards, as he had the first 300-yard game of his career.

The third-year quarterback also threw for a pair of touchdown passes. He opened the scoring as he hooked up with David Haddrall (Kingston, Ont.) on a 15-yard pass midway through the first quarter. Heather's second touchdown came early in the fourth quarter on a 53-yard pass and run play to Alexander Fox (Montreal West, Que.) Fox also enjoyed a career day, making six catches for 128 yards, and rolling up a total of 256 all-purpose yards. Mathieu Paquette (Magog, Que.) rounded out the Gaiters' scoring with a 31-yard field goal and a single.

Concordia took the lead for the first time at on Kris Robertson's 56-yard punt return at 13:57 of the first quarter, putting the visitors up 9-7. A single and Concordia's second safety touch of the day combined to give the Stingers a 12-10 lead.

Concordia put the game away in the third quarter, as Terrence Morsink found Sanchez Deschamps for a 17-yard touchdown at 3:51 of the third, giving the visitors a 19-10 lead. Keegan Treloar added a pair of field goals later in the half to round out the scoring. He finished with nine points.

Morsink finished with 137 yards passing, as he went 16-for-35 with an interception. Deschamps was the Stingers' leading rusher, with eight catches for 68 yards. Edem Nyamadi led the Concordia ground game with 17 carries for 63 yards.

For Bishop's, in addition to Heather and Fox's strong performances, Steven Turner (Brampton, Ont.) made six catches for 73 yards, while Haddrall had five receptions for 54 yards, including his scoring play. Heather finished as the Gaiters' leading rusher, with 22 yards on three carries.

Concordia outgained the Gaiters 311-302, led by 183 rushing yards, and made 24 first downs to the Gaiters' 21. The Stingers also had the edge in the turnover battle, as they forced four Bishop's turnovers while committing only one of their own. Penalties continued to plague the Gaiters, as they were whistled 22 times for 133 yards, while Concordia committed six fouls for 65 yards.

Defensively, the Gaiters were led by Jermaine Lewis-Parris (Brampton, Ont.), who made 6.5 tackles. Ryland Smith had the Gaiters' only interception, while Kiron Clarke made the Gaiters' only sack of the day. Concordia was led by Max Caron, who had 9.5 tackles, including two tackles for loss, a blocked kick and a fumble recovery.

Concordia's next game is Saturday, September, 17 when they host the StFX X-Men. The Gaiters' next game is also on Saturday, as they visit the Mount Allison Mounties. Kickoff at Macaulay Field in Sackville, N.B. is set for 2 p.m. Atlantic (1 p.m. Eastern).

Source: Bishop's Sports Info

QUEBEC - The No. 1 Laval Rouge et Or had a successful home opener on Saturday with a 24-14 win over the No. 6 Montreal Carabins in front of 16,046 spectators. 

TORONTO - The York University Lions football team suffered a heart-wrenching 10-8 loss to the Toronto Varsity Blues in the 42nd annual Red & Blue Bowl held on Saturday (Sep. 10) in front of 1,217 fans in attendance at York Stadium.
 
It was the lowest scoring game in Red & Blue Bowl history. The previous record was 20 points, which came in a 14-6 Lions win in the 33rd Red & Blue Bowl.
 
Fans of mixed allegiance in attendance for the game were treated to an evenly contested affair that saw three different lead changes, and a late Lions comeback that ultimately fell short. The Lions are now 0-2 to start the season, but continue to offer fans hope that a win is within arms reach. 
 
Nick Coutu (St. Catharines, Ont.) and Dimitar Sevdin (Toronto) split duties at quarterback for the Lions. Coutu went 4-9 for 21 yards before being replaced late in the second quarter by Sevdin, who went 9-22 for 131 yards on the day.
 
Blair Yachetti (Burlington, Ont.) led the Lions in rushing with 83 yards on 20 carries, and Nathaniel Griffith (Brampton, Ont.) led all Lions receivers with three catches for 75 yards, his longest reception a game-high 48 yards.
 
On defence, rookie defensive back Marcus Grandison (Toronto) led the Lions in tackles for the second straight game with 6.5, followed by second-year defensive back Cory Bellerdine (Ottawa) and rookie linebacker Hussein Hazime (Toronto), who both collected six tackles on the day.
 
Blues quarterback Andrew Gillis (Toronto) went 19-39 for 268 yards with one interception on the day. Alex Pierzchalski (London, Ont.) led all receivers with nine receptions for 127 yards, and Aaron Milton (Whitby, Ont.) ran for a game-high 118 yards on nine carries. Adam Fehler (Toronto) led the team in tackles with 6.5. James Bodanis (Toronto) recorded the only sack of the game.
 
The Lions had the only real scoring chance in a scoreless first quarter. After Milton was stuffed by rookie linebacker Hazime on an early third-and-one gamble by the Blues, fourth-year kicker Dror David (Richmond Hill, Ont.) had a chance to put the Lions up three with a 37-yard field goal, but he couldn't capitalize, sending his kick wide left of the uprights. Neither team would come close to finding the scoreboard again before the end of the quarter, keeping the score deadlocked at zeroes heading into the break.
 
The Blues opened the scoring early in the second quarter, earning a single point on a rouge. Andrew Lomasney (Toronto) added a 17-yard field goal moments later to put the Blues up 4-0.
 
The Lions had a chance to pull within one late in the quarter, but David could not convert on a 33-yard field goal, missing wide right and sending the Lions into halftime down by four.
 
The first half was an evenly contested affair both in terms of possession and offensive production. The Blues held the ball just one and a half minutes longer than the Lions – 15:45 versus 14:15 – and gathered just 41 more yards of total offence – 166 versus 125.
 
The Blues would strike first following the half. After missing wide left on his first field goal opportunity of the third quarter, Lomasney quickly made amends, hitting a 24-yard field goal that put the Blues up 7-0.
 
With less than three minutes remaining in the quarter, however, the Lions flipped the script and took control of the game. With the Blues facing third-and-long from deep within their own territory, the Lions defence forced a safety, earning two points and cutting the Blues lead to 7-2.
 
Carrying momentum into the fourth quarter, the Lions drove deep into Blues territory on their second possession of the quarter, setting up a 41-yard field goal attempt for David. David stepped up and converted his first field goal of the game, cutting the Blues lead to just 7-5.
 
Rookie defensive end Zack Davis (Niagara Falls, Ont.) brought an abrupt end to the Blues' following possession, forcing a fumble from the hands of Rolli Adenmosun (Prince George's, Md.) and recovering the pigskin deep within Blues territory. David would capitalize on Davis's great defensive play with his second field goal of the game, this time from just 17 yards out, to give the Lions an 8-7 lead.
 
With less than one minute remaining in the game, however, the Blues regained the lead on a 37-yard field goal from Lomasney. The Lions were unable to respond on their following possession, giving the Blues the 10-8 win and their fourth straight Argo Cup.
 
The Lions will be looking for their first win of the season next Saturday (Sept. 17) when they visit the Waterloo Warriors (0-2). Kickoff is at 1pm.
 
Source: Cody Powell, York sport writing assistant

HAMILTON, Ont. - In a rematch of their 2010 Ontario University Athletics semi-final, the #2 Western Mustangs came away with a 48-21 victory over the #3 McMaster Marauders in front of a capacity crowd of 5563 on their first trip to McMaster's Ron Joyce Stadium Saturday.

Tyler Varga Kitchener, Ont.) powered the Western offence rushing for four touchdowns while carrying the ball 25 times for 149 yards in the win.
 
In the battle of the quarterbacks and Hec Crighton favourites McMaster's Kyle Quinlan (South Woodslee, Ont.) won the statistical battle throwing for 307 yards on 21 of 35 passing with two touchdowns and one interception. He was also McMaster's top rusher running the ball six times for 45 yards and a touchdown. It was Western's Donnie Marshall that would come out with the win putting up solid numbers of his own. Marshall completed 14 passes on 23 attempts for 235 yards and an interception. He rushed the ball 14 times for 79 yards as well.
 
McMaster struck first in the ball game completing a 10 play 100 yard drive that ended with Kyle Quinlan connecting with Matt Peressini in traffic across the middle for the touchdown. Peressini finished the game with seven catches for 77 yards and a touchdown to lead the McMaster receivers.
 
Western immediately responded on their next drive needing just four plays and a 1:27 to travel 85 yards, capping the drive off with a nine yard Nathan Riva (LaSalle, Ont.) touchdown run.
 
Then the Western offence started to roll. Back-to-back touchdown runs from Varga would give the Mustangs 21-7 lead with time running out in the half.
 
With under three minutes in the second quarter, Quinlan connected on with Brad Fochesato (Windsor, Ont.) for a 48 yard reception to setup an opportunity in the score zone. A Western pass interference call prolonged the drive, but Western made three consecutive stops on the goal line to keep McMaster out of the end zone and down 14 at the half.
 
The Marauders would not roll over. Out of the locker room on their first drive of the half a 34 touchdown catch by Mike DiCorce (Hamilton, Ont.) got the Marauders back within a touchdown, 21-14, at the 10:00 minute mark in the third quarter.
 
The Mustangs answered with another Varga touchdown run to build their lead back to 14 points.
 
The dagger proved to be an interception by Western's backup defensive lineman Darryl Waud (Hamilton, Ont.) who rumbled for 33 yard touchdown return. The Marauders would score again on a one yard touchdown run by Quinlan but McMaster wouldn't get any closer.
 
Varga rushed for his fourth touchdown and Riva added a late touchdown to put things completely out of reach for McMaster.
 
Ryan Chmielewski was the McMaster McDonald's player of the game finishing with 13 tackles and a sack. DiCorce led the Marauders in all-purpose yards catching five passes for 88 yards, rushing for 24 , and he returned a punt for 28, to give him a total of 140 in the game.
 
The Marauders will look to rebound next Saturday, September 17th when they travel to Windsor for their first night game on the 2011 schedule. Kickoff is at 7:00 pm at Windsor Stadium.

Source: McMaster Sports Info

OTTAWA - In front of 5,367 screaming fans at Frank Clair Stadium on September 10, the Gee-Gees football team had a convincing victory against the Queen’s Gaels in uOttawa’s home opener. The Gee-Gees have now started 2-0 for the second time in as many seasons.
 
The game started off as a typical defensive struggle. The two teams combined for only three first downs in the first 15 minutes of the match as the only scoring came from a 47 yard field goal by Queen’s kicker Dan Village and a rouge from a missed field goal by fourth-year Gee-Gees kicker Matt Falvo, Welland, Ont. The Gee-Gees trailed 3-1 after the first quarter.
 
After Village added a rouge of his own early in the second quarter, uOttawa’s potent offence finally woke up. First, third-year running back Brendan Gillanders, Orleans, Ont., broke a 22 yard run down the sidelines. Gillanders had a terrific day on the ground, finishing with 161 yards on 24 carries.
 
“It just feels absolutely amazing to contribute in any way possible to help the team win,” said Gillanders.
 
On the ensuing Gee-Gees drive, fourth-year uOttawa quarterback Aaron Colbon, Ottawa, Ont., found fourth-year receiver Bogdan Raic, Kanata, Ont., for a 47 yard touchdown strike. The Gee-Gees then stretched their lead to 15-4 when third-year receiver Simon Le Marquand, Gatineau, Que., caught a pass from Colbon in the corner of the endzone for another Gee-Gees touchdown. Colbon threw for 146 yards and two touchdowns, and did not throw an interception. Ottawa led 16-4 at halftime.
 
“It’s a tough defence to go against. Considering that, I think he had a slow start, a little bit, but then he moved the ball and got into a rhythm,” said Gee-Gees head coach Jean-Philippe Asselin of Colbon.
 
“I think everyone was kind of nervous,” said Colbon. “I think we just had to get settled down a little bit and get into our groove and we started scoring.”
 
The Gee-Gees continued to outplay the Gaels after the intermission, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Ottawa pressured Queen’s quarterback Billy McPhee all game long, and a crushing sack on McPhee was delivered by third-year defensive lineman Rob Griffiths, Burlington, Ont., midway through the third quarter.
 
“The defence won this game, in my mind,” said Asselin. “We only scored two touchdowns on offence, but when they score six points, that means our offence had the ball a lot. I think our defence was great.”
 
Falvo increased uOttawa’s advantage to 19-6, with a 12 yard field goal, in the fourth quarter. The Gee-Gees would never relinquish the lead, winning the game by the same score.
 
The Gee-Gees will now travel to London next weekend to take on the Western Mustangs (2-0 OUA) in a rematch of the 2010 Yates Cup. The game is set for Saturday, September 17 at 1:00 p.m.

Source: Ottawa Sports Info

WATERLOO, Ont. - The Guelph Gryphons spoiled the Waterloo Warriors home opener handing the black and gold a 65-13 loss at Warrior Field on Saturday, September 10.  A capacity crowd was on hand to watch the Gryphons and Warriors battle as part of the annual Black and Gold game and re-opening of Warrior Field.

Following a week one performance of eight points, the Gryphons offence came out firing taking advantage of the young Warriors defence and putting up at least 10 points per quarter.  

Standout receiver Jedd Gardner (Niagara Falls, Ont.) opened the scoring for Guelph at 4:30 of the first quarter on a determined 38 yard run.  Waterloo would get on the board two minutes later on a lengthy punt from kicker Alex Cowle (Napanee, Ont.) for a single point making the score 7-1 for Guelph.

Following several defensive stops by Waterloo, the flood gates opened for the Gryphons offence with Carl Trivieri (Toronto, Ont.) catching an 18 yard pass by quarterback Chris Rossetti (Mississauga, Ont.) at the 12:42 minute mark to give the Gryphons a 14-1 lead heading into the second quarter.

Following a 16 yard field goal by kicker Daniel Ferraro (Mississauga, Ont.), Trivieri once again found the end zone on a 20 yard pass by Rossetti to give the visiting squad a commanding 24-1 lead. 

Before the half was over Guelph would connect for the longest passing touchdown of the game with Dillon Dimitroff (Burlington, Ont.) putting the Gryphons up 31-1 on a 43 yard reception followed by an eight yard touchdown run by Rob Farquharson (Niagara Falls, Ont.) to send Guelph to the locker room up 38-1.

The third quarter saw much of the same with Guelph controlling possession and wasting little time going up 45-1 on a 33 yard pass by second string quarterback Lucas Nangle (London, Ont.) to fourth year receiver Saxton Lindsey (Markham, Ont.).  Following a Gryphon field goal, Waterloo would notch their first major of the game as Warrior quarterback Evan Martin (Kitchener, Ont.) would connect with Luke Balch (London, Ont.) on third down.  A missed two point conversion left Guelph in the lead 48-7.

Any hope of a comeback would be denied by Guelph’s punt returner Trivieri who dazzled the fans with the play of the game running the ball back 78 yards for his third major of the game.

Up 55-7 going into the fourth quarter, Guelph’s receiver Kevin Campbell (Pickering, Ont.) would add to the lead on a 16 yard run to put the Gryphons up 62-7.  Guelph would add one more field goal before Waterloo would score their second touchdown of the game late in the fourth as Christian Lewis corralled his first touchdown as a Warrior making the final 65-13 for Guelph.

Next up for the Warriors (0-2) is a meeting with the York Lions (0-2) at Warrior Field on Saturday, September 17 with kickoff set for 1:00pm while the Guelph Gryphons (1-1) travel to Toronto to battle the Varsity Blues (1-1) at 1:00pm.

Source: Waterloo Sports Info

WATERLOO, Ont. - In what can only be described as a wild finish, the No. 8 Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks (1-1) lost a shocker to the Windsor Lancers (2-0) 41-40 in their home opener Saturday night at University Stadium.

With the game tied at 40 with 28 seconds left on the clock, the Lancers drove down to Laurier's 20 yard line, setting the stage for the Lancers to win the game. Kicker Dan Cerino of Stoney Creek, Ont., punted the ball to the back of the endzone on the final play of the game in the hopes of scoring a single point. The ball was caught by Golden Hawks receiver Dillon Heap of Waterloo, Ont., and kicked back into play. However, it fell right to Cerino who finished off what he started, kicking the ball through the endzone to hand the Lancers the unlikely victory.

What made the win even more unlikely was the fact that the Hawks led the game 33-22 late in the third quarter following a 92 kickoff return touchdown by Laurier's Felix Odum, of Pickering, Ont. Instead of backing down however, the Lancers scored 19 fourth quarter points to earn the win.

Windsor was led by backup quarterback Austin Kennedy of Windsor, Ont., who came into the game in the second quarter after starter Sam Malian of LaSalle, Ont., was forced from the game with an injury. Kennedy finished the game 25 of 37 for 443 yards and five touchdowns while also leading the Lancers in rushing, racking up 112 yards on ground.

The Golden Hawks started the game well as they found the endzone just five minutes into the contest. Heap, who scored the game's opening touchdown in Week 1 against York, was left wide open by the Lancers defence and quarterback Shane Kelly of Basking Ridge, N.J., made them pay, connecting with Heap for the 30 yard score.

After Windsor conceded a safety, the purple and gold stretched their lead to 16 when Anton Bennett of Toronto, caught a nine yard touchdown pass. The Lancers would add a touchdown and a single of their own to pull within eight points at halftime.

The third quarter saw the two teams traded a pair of touchdowns, setting up a wild fourth quarter.

Kennedy connected with Evan Pszczonak of Amherstburg, Ont., followed by a Cercino 24 yard field goal and a Laurier conceded safety. The Golden Hawks answered back when Kelly found Mark Surya of Burlington, Ont., in the endzone with less than two minutes to play. But it was Kennedy again engineering a response, driving Windsor down the field in just 48 seconds, eventually finding Cory Fernandes of Mississauga, Ont., in the endzone to tie the game. 

A quick two-and-out by the Hawks set up the fireworks in the final second of the game.

For the Hawks, Kelly finished the game 21 of 33 for 242 yards and three touchdowns. Bennett racked up 132 rushing yards in the game. Heap was the top receiver as he had five receptions for 84 yards.

Lancers receiver Jordan Brescacin of Tecumseh, Ont., was the main beneficiary of Kennedy's big game, hauling in 10 catches for 193 yards and two touchdowns. Fernandes also topped the 100 yard receiving mark, with 136 yards on five receptions.

The Golden Hawks will try to rebound next week in Kingston when they travel to Queen's to take on the Gaels (0-2). Game time is set for 1:00pm.

NOTES: The loss was the Golden Hawks first to the Lancers since 2006 when they lost 38-29 in Windsor...Odum's third quarter kickoff return touchdown was the first of his career...at 92 yards, Odum's return was the fifth longest in team history...Attendance at the game was 5,126

Source: Laurier Sports Info