October 25, 2008
OUA FOOTBALL ROUNDUP: MASON SETS PLAYOFF RECORD
GUELPH, Ont. - Ottawa Gee-Gees third-year running back Davie Mason (Brampton, Ont.) set a new Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) and Ontario University Athletics (OUA) football playoff record on Saturday, rushing for 327 yards in a 42-37 victory over the Guelph Gryphons at Alumni Stadium.
Mason (pictured) carried the ball 31 times, with his longest gain a 56-yard run for a touchdown. It was one of three touchdowns scored by Mason in the game, all on the ground.
The old CIS/OUA single-game playoff record of 317 rushing yards was established on Nov. 7, 1981 by Greg Marshall of the Western Mustangs against the Laurier Golden Hawks in a 53-11 victory.
Although the Gee-Gees topped the Gryphons in nearly every offensive category (gaining 605 yards to Guelph's 382), the game was largely a back-and-forth battle which saw numerous lead changes.
Guelph quarterback Justin Dunk (Guelph, Ont.) nearly led the Gryphons to their second straight trip to the semi-finals as he gained 337 total all-purpose yards to go along with four trips to the end zone. However, the show was stolen by Mason, who time and again answered the call for Ottawa and converted on several crucial third-downs.
Mason would secure his first score of the day five minutes in the second quarter when he charged the ball in from three yards out, making the score 18-3 in favour of Ottawa. The Gee-Gees had been controlling the game with their tight defence and their successful rushing game until Dunk hit slot-back Zack Stacey (Burlington, Ont.) for a clutch 28-yard touchdown. Stacey, being shadowed by four Ottawa defenders, somehow came down with the ball enabling Guelph to claw their way back into a game that seemed to be getting out of reach.
With the score 18-10, and with what seemed to be momentum on the Gryphons side, Mason took a Josh Sacobie (Fredericton, N.B.) hand-off on Ottawa's next possession and silenced the crowd at Alumni stadium with a monster 56-yard score.
Guelph refused to go down. They would reel off 24-straight points throughout the end of the second and into the third quarter, starting with a Nick Fitzgibbon (Puslinch, Ont.) rushing score from two-yards out. This play was only possible as a result of a Dunk pass that sailed 55 yards and into the hands of a streaking Jedd Gardner (Niagara Falls, Ont.) down the middle. Rob Maver (Brampton, Ont.) would follow up on Fitzgibbon's short yard touchdown with a 39-yard field goal to end the half at 25-20, still in favour of the Gee-Gees.
The second half started off on a bang as a faulty-handed Gee-Gees return man could not handle Maver's opening kick-off. The ball was subsequently recovered by a Guelph defender which set up Dunk for his only rushing touchdown on the day, a one-yarder to put Guelph in the lead for the first time on the day.
With the score now at 27-25 and in Guelph's control, the Gryphon offence went right back to work after an Ottawa punt by Jason Peterson (Niagara Falls, Ont.). Dunk took this opportunity, marching up the field and eventually hitting Gardner on a crossing route who scampered 10 yards and into pay dirt to make the score 34-25 Guelph.
Just as Guelph refused to quit, neither did Mason and the rest of the Gee-Gee offence. With 4:25 left on the clock in the third quarter, Mason took a Sacobie hand-off and sprinted for roughly 30 yards. But much to the chagrin of the Gee-Gee faithful, Guelph defensive back James Savoie (Niagara Falls, Ont.) took matters into his own hands and stripped Mason of the ball as he was being tackled. The ball was then recovered, giving Dunk a chance to put the game out of reach, with the ball on Guelph's 35. Unfortunately for Dunk, he would throw his second interception of the game, in which he zipped a pass intended for Gardner and into the hands of a diving Gee-Gee defender, all the while with pressure in his face from pass-rushing lineman.
Ottawa would finally capitalize on such a golden chance as Sacobie hit receiver Brad Sinopoli (Peterborough, Ont.) for a 16-yard score, bringing his team back into the game with the score now at 34-32. Mason continued on with Ottawa's momentum five minutes later as he took yet another of his 31 touches on the day, and plunged the ball into Guelph's end zone from four yards out, enabling Ottawa to take the lead.
The Gryphons did have success on their next possession, but had to settle on a 20-yard Maver field-goal, putting them just two points behind Ottawa at 39, with just six minutes left in the fourth quarter. But this was as close as the Gryphons would come as Gee-Gees kicker Matthew Falvo (Welland, Ont.) would nail a 33-yarder to cap off the final score, 42-37 in favour of Ottawa.
With the win the Ottawa Gee Gees will now travel to Queen's to play the Gaels next week at 1 p.m. in an OUA semi-final. The Gryphons seasons ends with a 4-5 overall record.
Source: Gryphons Athletics
Photo credit: Michael P. Hall
NO. 8 LAURIER 29, MCMASTER 0
WATERLOO, Ont. – Ryan Lynch rushed for 229 yards as the No. 8 nationally-ranked Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks shut out the McMaster Marauders 29-0 in an OUA quarter-final football game in front of 1,404 fans on a damp, wind blown day.
"We were outplayed and out coached," said McMaster head coach Stefan Ptasek. "Coach Van Moerkerke did an excellent job with his defence today."
McMaster was held to 259 yards of offence and had five turnovers. Laurier recovered both their fumbles and had 378 yards with 343 of those on the ground.
"We really came together and played well," said Lynch (Waterloo, Ont.) who led the contest rushing. "The credit really goes to our offensive line as they made some amazing blocks for me."
Both Laurier touchdowns in the game came through the air as both Shamawd Chambers (Markham, Ont.) and Brian Malott (Kitchener, Ont.) scored the majors for the purple and gold. Chris Mamo (London, Ont.) also went three for five while kicking field goals. His longest was from 38 yards away. Quarterback Luke Thompson (London, Ont.) had a modest day completing 10 of 15 for 69 yards and two scores. Chambers was the only receiver to record more than one catch for Laurier with five for 31 yards.
McMaster's only chance to score was on a 45-yard field goal attempt which ended up hitting the uprights. Marauder quarterback Ryan Fantham (London, Ont.) went 14 for 25 for 165 yards with three interceptions. His number one target was Kevin D'Hollander (London, Ont.) who caught seven passes for 104 yards in the loss.
The Laurier defence stood strong in the game recovering four fumbles and nabbing three interceptions.
"Coach V really challenged us to play better after the last game against McMaster," said cornerback Taurean Allen (Etobicoke, Ont.) who pulled down one of the Hawks picks. "We're really excited to go down and take on the Mustangs."
Mitchell Bosch (Langley, B.C.) led the team with eight tackles (six solo, four assisted) and a fumble recovery, followed by Peter McDougall (Oshawa, Ont.) with seven (five solo, two assisted), Dustin Hayman (Toronto, Ont.) with six (six solo).
The Marauders were led on defence by Denver Brown (Bowmanville, Ont.) with six (four solo, four assisted) followed by Elliot Hudecki (Hamilton, Ont.) who had 5.5 tackles (five solo, one assisted). Mike Wysocki (Mississauga, Ont.) was also a standout with 5.5 tackles, one sack, one forced fumble and one knockdown.
The Golden Hawks will now advance to the OUA semi-final against the Western Mustangs in London. The game will take place on Nov. 1 at 1 p.m. at TD Waterhouse Stadium.
Source: Golden Hawks Athletics
Mason (pictured) carried the ball 31 times, with his longest gain a 56-yard run for a touchdown. It was one of three touchdowns scored by Mason in the game, all on the ground.
The old CIS/OUA single-game playoff record of 317 rushing yards was established on Nov. 7, 1981 by Greg Marshall of the Western Mustangs against the Laurier Golden Hawks in a 53-11 victory.
Although the Gee-Gees topped the Gryphons in nearly every offensive category (gaining 605 yards to Guelph's 382), the game was largely a back-and-forth battle which saw numerous lead changes.
Guelph quarterback Justin Dunk (Guelph, Ont.) nearly led the Gryphons to their second straight trip to the semi-finals as he gained 337 total all-purpose yards to go along with four trips to the end zone. However, the show was stolen by Mason, who time and again answered the call for Ottawa and converted on several crucial third-downs.
Mason would secure his first score of the day five minutes in the second quarter when he charged the ball in from three yards out, making the score 18-3 in favour of Ottawa. The Gee-Gees had been controlling the game with their tight defence and their successful rushing game until Dunk hit slot-back Zack Stacey (Burlington, Ont.) for a clutch 28-yard touchdown. Stacey, being shadowed by four Ottawa defenders, somehow came down with the ball enabling Guelph to claw their way back into a game that seemed to be getting out of reach.
With the score 18-10, and with what seemed to be momentum on the Gryphons side, Mason took a Josh Sacobie (Fredericton, N.B.) hand-off on Ottawa's next possession and silenced the crowd at Alumni stadium with a monster 56-yard score.
Guelph refused to go down. They would reel off 24-straight points throughout the end of the second and into the third quarter, starting with a Nick Fitzgibbon (Puslinch, Ont.) rushing score from two-yards out. This play was only possible as a result of a Dunk pass that sailed 55 yards and into the hands of a streaking Jedd Gardner (Niagara Falls, Ont.) down the middle. Rob Maver (Brampton, Ont.) would follow up on Fitzgibbon's short yard touchdown with a 39-yard field goal to end the half at 25-20, still in favour of the Gee-Gees.
The second half started off on a bang as a faulty-handed Gee-Gees return man could not handle Maver's opening kick-off. The ball was subsequently recovered by a Guelph defender which set up Dunk for his only rushing touchdown on the day, a one-yarder to put Guelph in the lead for the first time on the day.
With the score now at 27-25 and in Guelph's control, the Gryphon offence went right back to work after an Ottawa punt by Jason Peterson (Niagara Falls, Ont.). Dunk took this opportunity, marching up the field and eventually hitting Gardner on a crossing route who scampered 10 yards and into pay dirt to make the score 34-25 Guelph.
Just as Guelph refused to quit, neither did Mason and the rest of the Gee-Gee offence. With 4:25 left on the clock in the third quarter, Mason took a Sacobie hand-off and sprinted for roughly 30 yards. But much to the chagrin of the Gee-Gee faithful, Guelph defensive back James Savoie (Niagara Falls, Ont.) took matters into his own hands and stripped Mason of the ball as he was being tackled. The ball was then recovered, giving Dunk a chance to put the game out of reach, with the ball on Guelph's 35. Unfortunately for Dunk, he would throw his second interception of the game, in which he zipped a pass intended for Gardner and into the hands of a diving Gee-Gee defender, all the while with pressure in his face from pass-rushing lineman.
Ottawa would finally capitalize on such a golden chance as Sacobie hit receiver Brad Sinopoli (Peterborough, Ont.) for a 16-yard score, bringing his team back into the game with the score now at 34-32. Mason continued on with Ottawa's momentum five minutes later as he took yet another of his 31 touches on the day, and plunged the ball into Guelph's end zone from four yards out, enabling Ottawa to take the lead.
The Gryphons did have success on their next possession, but had to settle on a 20-yard Maver field-goal, putting them just two points behind Ottawa at 39, with just six minutes left in the fourth quarter. But this was as close as the Gryphons would come as Gee-Gees kicker Matthew Falvo (Welland, Ont.) would nail a 33-yarder to cap off the final score, 42-37 in favour of Ottawa.
With the win the Ottawa Gee Gees will now travel to Queen's to play the Gaels next week at 1 p.m. in an OUA semi-final. The Gryphons seasons ends with a 4-5 overall record.
Source: Gryphons Athletics
Photo credit: Michael P. Hall
NO. 8 LAURIER 29, MCMASTER 0
WATERLOO, Ont. – Ryan Lynch rushed for 229 yards as the No. 8 nationally-ranked Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks shut out the McMaster Marauders 29-0 in an OUA quarter-final football game in front of 1,404 fans on a damp, wind blown day.
"We were outplayed and out coached," said McMaster head coach Stefan Ptasek. "Coach Van Moerkerke did an excellent job with his defence today."
McMaster was held to 259 yards of offence and had five turnovers. Laurier recovered both their fumbles and had 378 yards with 343 of those on the ground.
"We really came together and played well," said Lynch (Waterloo, Ont.) who led the contest rushing. "The credit really goes to our offensive line as they made some amazing blocks for me."
Both Laurier touchdowns in the game came through the air as both Shamawd Chambers (Markham, Ont.) and Brian Malott (Kitchener, Ont.) scored the majors for the purple and gold. Chris Mamo (London, Ont.) also went three for five while kicking field goals. His longest was from 38 yards away. Quarterback Luke Thompson (London, Ont.) had a modest day completing 10 of 15 for 69 yards and two scores. Chambers was the only receiver to record more than one catch for Laurier with five for 31 yards.
McMaster's only chance to score was on a 45-yard field goal attempt which ended up hitting the uprights. Marauder quarterback Ryan Fantham (London, Ont.) went 14 for 25 for 165 yards with three interceptions. His number one target was Kevin D'Hollander (London, Ont.) who caught seven passes for 104 yards in the loss.
The Laurier defence stood strong in the game recovering four fumbles and nabbing three interceptions.
"Coach V really challenged us to play better after the last game against McMaster," said cornerback Taurean Allen (Etobicoke, Ont.) who pulled down one of the Hawks picks. "We're really excited to go down and take on the Mustangs."
Mitchell Bosch (Langley, B.C.) led the team with eight tackles (six solo, four assisted) and a fumble recovery, followed by Peter McDougall (Oshawa, Ont.) with seven (five solo, two assisted), Dustin Hayman (Toronto, Ont.) with six (six solo).
The Marauders were led on defence by Denver Brown (Bowmanville, Ont.) with six (four solo, four assisted) followed by Elliot Hudecki (Hamilton, Ont.) who had 5.5 tackles (five solo, one assisted). Mike Wysocki (Mississauga, Ont.) was also a standout with 5.5 tackles, one sack, one forced fumble and one knockdown.
The Golden Hawks will now advance to the OUA semi-final against the Western Mustangs in London. The game will take place on Nov. 1 at 1 p.m. at TD Waterhouse Stadium.
Source: Golden Hawks Athletics
