NRHSAA football roundup Oct 2

The defending champion A.N. Myer Marauders senior football team (2-0) remained unbeaten in Niagara Region High School Athletic Association Tier 1 action with a 49-0 victory over the Sir Winston Churchill Bulldogs (1-1).

Myer has outscored the opposition 104-0 in its first two games.

Contributing to the victory for Myer were: Evan Goforth with TDs on a kick return, punt return and pass; Thomas Somerville with three TD passes and a QB scramble for a touchdown; Graham Walters and Luca Valvo with TD receptions; Dillon Finnerty with a pick 6; Dylan devries with two interceptions; and, Noah Walters with an interception.

“Overall it was stellar defence and special teams played very well,” Myer head coach Dave Buchanan said.

HORNETS 20 SAINTS 0

The Stamford Hornets opened their NRHSAA Tier 2 season with a 20-6 victory over the St. Catharines Collegiate Saints (0-2).

Powering the Hornets to the win with touchdown runs were Sean Perry, Haruto Marceline and Anessu Lundy.

For the Saints: Kadmiel Patrong was 4-7 passing for 72 yards and had three rushes for 67 yards and a major; Colton Joyce had 17 carries for 74 yards; Malcolm Bonner had six carries for 18 yards and a fumble recovery; strong offensive line play was provided by Aarron Goertzen and Lucas Hamilton; and, the defence was lead by Grade 10 player Raimer Eaton and Grade 9 athlete Nico Ricciardelli.

“Miscues were minimized this week but when they occurred we paid a huge price. Two fumbles deep in our end were the difference in the game. We executed well on offence and moved the ball on the ground and in the air,” Saints head coach Nathan Greene said. “The defence made plays but tackling can improve.”

The Saints played the game with eight starters out for injury, medical suspension or for not meeting the expectation required as a student athlete.

“Those players will eventually make there way back in the lineup and the depth players who started will have the benefit of getting critical in-game experience,” he said. “These two elements combined will no doubt lead to better results on the field.”

COUGARS 56 WOLFPACK 55 (2OT)

The West Niagara Wolfpack’s hard luck season continued with a 56-55 double overtime loss to the Centennial Cougars.

“We could easily be 2-0 but we’ve dug ourselves into a massive hole, making our playoff outlook very bleak,” West Niagara head coach Zach Silverthorne said. “We will continue to get better, do our best to win the next one and see where we all stand at the end.”

West Niagara has now opened the season with a pair of one-point losses.

“We had 256 rushing and 329 passing yards (585 total) and lost. We didn’t punt once,” he said. “An absolute crazy game! Both teams offensively could do whatever they wanted. Defensively, we just couldn’t get a stop we needed and Centennial with a late kickoff return was a crusher.”

Leading the way for the Wolfpack were: Alex Suntz, Xavier Zatylny, Kyle Azem-Simmons, Lucas Hazelton, Kieran McDonald and Ryden Lapcevich with touchdowns; Ty Kellar with field goals from 28 and 26 yards out; and, Sean Northcott and Levi Van Ryn with fumble recoveries.

“We’re proud of our players as they heard the message last week and cleaned up the penalties and selfish antics,” Silverthorne said. “We need better attendance at practice so that week-to-week adjustments are understood and executed. This hurt us early in yesterday’s game.”

For the Cougars: Mahkai McPhee rushed for 140 yards, two majors and a two-point convert; Nick Jokic threw for 270 yards and four TDs and also rushed for two majors; and, solid play was provided by all offensive and special teams players.

“The offence was firing on all cylinders and Arik (Rae) was a tank on specials with a kick return for a TD. We were happy with the support the team gave each other throughout the game,” Centennial head coach Brad Barter said. “We learned what we need to improve on and with a two-day turnaround to then have to play Myer is a tough task. We will rise to the occasion. We’re a very different team than we were last year.”

REDCOATS 21 GOLDEN EAGLES 0

Sam Wilson scored on TD runs of five and 25 yards as the Governor Simcoe Redcoats improved to 2-0 in NRHSAA Tier 2 football action with a 21-0 defeat of the Thorold Golden Eagles.

Also contributing to the win were: Marshall Sumbler with a 49-yard TD reception from Noah Budgell; Chad Behrmuler with an interception; Edmund Palumbo with an interception; and, Aidan Mitchell with three converts.

For Thorold: Braeden Genest ran for 65 yards; Tyrese Gibson rushed for 55 yards; Owen Haywood had two catches for 35 yards; Garet McPherson had a 23-yard run; and, Carson DeRoos, Jesse Hodgins, Lucas Smith, Kole Stevens all had strong games on defence.

“We moved the ball really well but couldn’t close out drives,” Thorold head coach Duane Kemp said.

Penalties cost the Golden Eagles the first Simcoe TD and two bigs plays for the other defence cost them the other two.

“Three URs (unnecessary roughness penalties) is unacceptable and we need to grow from this and learn to keep our composure when things aren’t going our way,” he said. “Simcoe is solid team and well coached. They have a lot of potential for a great season and we hope to see them again in playoffs and have a better showing.”

GRYPHONS 29 COUGARS 26

The Greater Fort Erie Gryphons opened their Niagara Region High School Athletic Association Tier 1 season with a 29-26 victory over the Centennial Cougars.

Colin Laroche led the way for the Gryphons with a pair of one-yard TD runs, including the game winner with 1:21 left in the game. Centennial missed 40-yard field goal at the end of the game.

Laroche also added a two-point convert. Josh Cuizon had TD runs of 15 and eight yards and a two-point convert on a run.

“Awesome game played by both teams. Hats off to Centennial. They came to play and gave us everything we could handle,” GFESS coach Dave Sauer said. “Our running game was really good today and Colin Laroche hit some really big passes. In the fourth quarter, the defence really played well short-handed and gave us a chance to make the comeback. The team showed a lot of character and toughness in the game and there was no let up in the fourth quarter. We cleaned up a lot from our exhibition and executed well on offence, defence and special teams.”