NRHSAA football: Golden Eagles, Marauders, Flyers and Gryphons victorious
The Thorold Golden Eagles senior football team got off to the perfect start Friday night in its Niagara Region High School Athletic Association Tier 2 home opener versus the Stamford Hornets.
Tyrese Gibson returned the opening kick 75 yards for a major and the Golden Eagles were well on their way to a dominant 42-8 victory over the Hornets. The Thorold defence held Stamford to three first downs and 36 yards net offence in the first half before the Hornets managed to gain some yardage against Thorold’s backups in the second half.
“I don’t think it could have gone any better taking the opening kickoff for a TD to get a 7-0 lead early,” Thorold head coach Duane Kemp said. “It was an ideal start and it helped calm everyone’s nerves a little bit. That was huge and we got everybody in the game with no injuries.”
Gibson’s dynamic play is what the Golden Eagles have come to expect from their speedster.
“There was a reason why he was the Tier 2 MVP last year and we rely on him a lot,” he said. “His growth every year as a leader and a player is amazing and he has just gotten better and better. We are thankful he is on our team.”
The 18-year-old was thrilled to get his team an early lead.
“I don’t even know what to say. In my head, I was thinking I was just going to catch it and go and once I got it I just went.”
As he approached the goal line there was one thought in his head.
“I have got to get the job done. I don’t want to say I want to put the team on my back because it’s a team game but I had to get in the end zone no matter what.”
Gibson loves playing at home.
“It was fantastic. We came out here with the guys knowing what we had to do. It is just a good feeling,” he said. “Last year we had some people out but not as much. This year we are hoping to take it to the next level.”
The 12B student returned for a Victory Lap because of unfinished business.
“Last year we lost in the semis and we’ve got to get the championship this year. We always make it there but we have come up short.”
Gibson has received interest from some Canadian Junior Football League squads but he is hoping to land a college or university scholarship.
Kemp is looking forward to watching Gibson play and the season in general.
“We have a good enough team and we can definitely compete for a championship if we can stay healthy and everyone continues to buy in and work hard.”
He knows it won’t be easy.
“Simcoe is going to be tough and we know Eden has the numbers. It will be tricky but if we keep working hard I think good things are going to happen.”
Key players for the Golden Eagles this season are: Gibson; running back Braiden Genest; Sider; quarterback Kaleb Locatelli; and, linebackers Mark Toussaint, Carson deRoos and Kole Stevens.
Stamford never stopped competing in the game.
“I think we are working really hard out there and we are looking forward to a big season,” Stamford head coach Zach White said. “I just want to see my guys working hard every day.”
STATS PACK
Golden Eagles 42 Hornets 8
Cat’s Caboose Player of the Game: Thorold’s Tyrese Gibson with a strong game running and returning, including a 75-yard kick return major to open the game.
For the Thorold Golden Eagles: 12-yard TD run by Matthew Canlas; one-yard TD pass from Blake Sider to Garet MacPherson; 47-yard TD pass Sider to Will Sargeant; 12-yard TD run by Abraham Hierbert; nine-yard TD run by Venstone Denave; fumble recovery by Rasaam Hooshmand; and, sack by Kalvin Johnson.
For the Stamford Hornets: five-yard TD run by Tarez Johnson; good rushing and returns by TS Johnson.
Game stats: First downs: Thorold 14, Stamford 8. Net offence: Thorold 306, Stamford 163. Turnovers: Thorold 1, Stamford 1. Penalties: Thorold 10 for 100 yards, Stamford 7 for 70 yards.
MARAUDERS 32 WOLFPACK 7
The A.N. Myer Marauders senior football team opened defence of its NRHSAA Tier 1 crown Thursday with a 32-7 victory over the visiting West Niagara Wolfpack.
“It was a tough-fought game throughout the night,” Myer head coach Dave Buchanan said.
Leading the way for Myer were: Noah Walters with a 60-yard TD pass to Thomas Somerville and a 30-yard scoring strike to Travis Boland; Marco Angelini with two rushing TDs and a solid game; Allesio Pinque with four converts; the defensive line with a strong performance and an excellent game on defence from Boland; and, Logan Radojkovic with an interception.
For West Niagara, which trailed 25-0 at the half: Ben VanMaanen had a 12-yard TD catch from Coby Green; Adam Skeldon and Sean Northcott had fumble recoveries; and, Northcott and Levi VanRyn recorded sacks.
“We started slow offensively and left our defence on the field too long in the first half. Coby Green saw his first quarterback action in league play and we saw some growing pains early but we are very happy with his efforts in the second half,” West Niagara coach Zack Silverthorne said. “The combination of (Alex) Suntz and Northcott running the ball in the second half gave us a big spark. Our effort was great and we never quit. Execution was better than anticipated. Even though we lost, we have a really good squad and expect great things from them moving forward.”
FLYERS 38 SAINTS 0
The Eden Flyers opened the NRHSAA Tier 2 football season in impressive fashion Friday, recording a 38-0 victory over the visiting St. Catharines Collegiate Saints.
Scoring for the Flyers were: Brody Payne on two 30-yard TD runs; Luke Gruszewski with a 40-yard Pick 6; Jackson Denney with a 25-yard TD run; and, Sean Kelly with a 60-yard kick return for a major.
Eden head coach Bob Krzeczkowski is excited for the season.
“We had a huge turnout and a lot more than we expected. We are still struggling to try and outfit a lot of the guys but we seem to have a lot of speed and a lot of depth,” he said. “We are looking pretty good. We would like to make the playoffs and see what happens.”
Key players for Eden this season are: running back Brody Payne; running back Colton Julian; wide receiver Isaiah Benjamin; quarterback Graham Reid; defensive lineman Christian Hawerchuk; and, linebacker Stephen Karanfilis.
For Collegiate Friday: Jacob Gough had eight carries for nine yards; Nico Riccardelli-Norton had four carries for six yards; Tyson Clavel was 1-8 passing for four yards and had two carries for eight yards; and, Roman Typer and Lucas Hamilton had strong games on defence.
“Today was a struggle. Our lack of depth was exposed,” Collegiate head coach Nathan Greene said. “Nevertheless, first-year players got meaningful reps and that is always an important step. We will work through the game film, celebrate our successes and learn from our mistakes. Our offensive line has some size and skill and we are going to lean on them and we just have to work on fundamentals beginning on Monday.”
The goal of the Saints is to make the playoffs.
“We just need to win one game,” he said. “That gets us in the playoffs and then anything can happen at that point.”
Important players for Collegiate this season are: offensive linemen Aaron Goertzen, Lucas Hamilton and Owen Fretz; running back Jacob Gough; linebacker Roman Typer; halfbacks Owen Page and Tyson Clavell; and, defensive end Brendan Koziej.
GRYPHONS 56 COUGARS 0
The Greater Fort Erie Cougars blasted the Centennial Cougars 56-0 Friday in the opening Tier 1 game for both teams.
“Really well-executed game on offence, defence and special teams from start to finish,” GFESS head coach Dave Sauer said. “The team was really focused and the play on the field showed. We have an experienced team that comes to play. We want to take this momentum into next week and the rest of the season. A true, full team effort today. Go Gryphs.”
Leading the way for the Gryphons were: Cole Hilmayer and Josh Cuizon with two rushing majors each; Madden Garner and Nwayne Grant with single TD runs; Colin Laroche with TD passes to Hilmayer and Michael Bielich; Mateo Ayala with six converts; Chad Phillips with a two-point convert on a run; and, Bielich and Evan McCue with recovered fumbles.
“It wasn’t how we wanted to start the season. We have a lot of new starters on both sides of the ball and the inexperience showed today. This was a learning moment for our team and we had all of our flaws exposed. If we put in the work this week and refocus on our systems, we can rebound easily,” Centennial head coach Brad Barter said. “We have a lot to work on this upcoming week before SWC next Friday, but we’ll rise to the occasion. It’s a year of growing pains, but we’ll get through them. We always do. I believe in our team and we will always continue to fight. That’s what Centennial does. We persevere regardless of the situation.”
JUNIOR MARAUDERS 34 WOLFPACK 0
The A.N. Myer junior football team opened its season Thursday on its home field with a 34-0 shutout of the West Niagara Wolfpack.
Top performers for Myer were: Jack Buckland with a great game on defence highlighted by a blocked punt and fumble recovery for a touchdown; Brett Wall with several tackles and two touchdown catches from Cole Stayzer; Hudson Grant with a receiving TD and two-point conversion from Stayzer; Tyson Louise Charles with a fumble recovery; some great runs and great defence by Luis Ignacio Corredor-Reyes and Gabriel Diaz; Sean Lawson with extra points; Lemuel Sraku-Antwi with some great touchdown-saving tackles; and, Archer Henry with an interception.
