In the wake of his team’s exceedingly impressive 42-14 road win over Vancouver College on Saturday afternoon, W.J. Mouat Hawks football coach Denis Kelly was quick to note the game wasn’t as lopsided as the score indicated.
“It was a pretty close game,” Kelly asserted. “It was just a couple of key plays that turned it.”
Fortunately for Mouat, they were on the giving end rather than the receiving end of those big plays.
Devin Logan led the way for the Hawks, who came in ranked No. 3 in the provincial AAA rankings, one spot behind Van College. The senior running back ripped the Fighting Irish for 221 rushing yards and four touchdowns on just 14 carries.
On the defensive side of the ball, Nathan Henczel was the key playmaker – he made two interceptions to snuff promising Van College drives, and tacked on a total of 100 return yards.
Quarterback Daniel Markin had his best game of the year in Kelly’s estimation, completing 18 of 29 passes for 176 yards and two TD passes to Deion Bain. Linebackers Jake Heathcote and Taylor Hinton, with 10 tackles apiece, also turned in big games for the Hawks, who improved to 3-1.
T-WOLVES RUN WILD VS. LANGLEY
The Robert Bateman Timberwolves boosted their record to 4-0 in non-conference play with a 48-6 victory over Langley at home on Friday.
Justin Douglas (148 yards on five carries) and Jorden Best (135 yards on four carries) were both extremely efficient along the ground, and both found the end zone two times apiece. Freddy Lyhne also notched two TDs, while John Beckerleg added a major on an interception return.
Head coach Rick MacDonald noted his team hasn’t faced the stiffest of competition to this point in the season, but he feels things are starting to click.
“The last couple games, we’ve been kind of sloppy on offence,” he said. “We had more sustained crispness this week.”
HURRICANES STOPPED BY SEAQUAM
Early turnovers put the Rick Hansen Hurricanes in a hole they couldn’t dig out of, en route to a 33-6 loss to Seaquam of Delta on Friday.
The Hurricanes (1-3) fumbled the opening kickoff, then turned the ball over again on their initial drive to pave the way for Seaquam to grab a 14-0 lead.
Jordon Gmur’s 95-yard kickoff return accounted for the Hansen points, while Jason Sidhu (five tackles, one sack) and Raj Jindal (five tackles) were solid on defence. But the Hurricanes struggled to move the ball, posting just 174 yards in total offence.
“We just didn’t come out ready to play,” head coach Paul Gill analyzed. “Our big guys up front didn’t play like they’re capable of, and when you can’t win that war in the trenches, it’s tough.”
PANTHERS FALL TO CRUSADERS
Turnovers cost the Abbotsford Collegiate Panthers in a defensive battle with the Holy Cross Crusaders in Surrey on Friday.
Quarterback Carter Williams racked up 244 passing yards and registered a TD pass, but Holy Cross picked him off four times en route to a 13-6 win. Receiver Dallas Yassinsky had a big game for the Panthers (1-2), hauling in eight catches for 120 yards.
WEEKEND SCHEDULE
A No. 1 vs. No. 2 match-up, and an all-Abbotsford battle highlight the weekend high school football schedule.
Mouat takes on yet another ranked foe on Friday, when they travel to Burnaby to face the No. 1-ranked St. Thomas More Knights (7:30 p.m., Burnaby Lakes). Up for grabs is top spot in the AAA rankings.
In AA action, Hansen hosts Abby Collegiate at 3:15 p.m. on Friday in the Eastern Conference opener for both teams.
Bateman has a bye this weekend, before hitting the road to face Pitt Meadows on Oct. 14 in their AA Eastern Conference opener.
