THE CANADIAN PRESS
For the first time in nearly seven years, The Toronto Varsity Blues football team can celebrate a victory – and what a victory it was.
Andrew Lomasney hit a 32-yard field goal with 21 seconds left to lift the Blues to a stunning 18-17 win over the Waterloo Warriors on Monday night, ending Toronto’s 49-game losing streak. The Blues hadn’t won a game since beating the Windsor Lancers 13-11 on Oct. 13, 2001.
The Blues lost last year’s season opener 42-17 to the Warriors, kicking off a season which saw the OUA doormats lose all eight of their games by an average of more than 29 points. The Varsity Blues’ best chance at ending the streak last season came against York, when Stephen Grochot’s 36-yard field goal with 40 seconds left gave the Lions a 21-20 win.
Blues quarterback David Hamilton ignited the comeback Monday night. Down 17-8 with 2:39 left in the fourth quarter, Hamilton found receiver Drew Meerveld on a 29-yard touchdown pass, and the ensuing convert cut the deficit to two. Toronto then stopped the Warriors (0-1) with enough time to march down the field, setting up Lomasney’s game-winning kick in front of 2,562 fans at Varsity Centre.
Hamilton finished 13-of-27 for 189 yards with one TD and one interception for the Blues (1-0), who haven’t reached the playoffs since 1995.
In other CIS action Monday, it was: Queen’s 35 McMaster 11; and Laurier 15 Guelph 13; and Western 35 Ottawa 31.
At Toronto, punter-running back Mark Stinson added a three-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and a single to open the scoring late in the first.
The game was marred by sloppy play on both sides, with both teams losing three fumbles apiece.
Quarterback Evan Martin was nearly unstoppable for Waterloo, completing 21 of 30 passes for 375 yards and a pair of touchdown strikes to Joshua Svec. Martin’s 53-yard touchdown pass to Svec to end the third quarter gave the Warriors a 17-8 lead.
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Lancers 40 Lions 7
At Toronto, rookie quarterback Sam Malian threw for three touchdowns and ran in another as the Windsor routed York, spoiling Mike McLean’s head coaching debut with the Lions (0-1).
The Lancers (1-0) scored at will against a porous York defence, building a 25-0 lead at the half. Malian completed just 8-of-14 passes for 183 yards, but was aided by a rushing attack that accumulated 173 yards in the one-sided victory.
Windsor running back Daryl Stephenson had 14 carries for 100 yards and a touchdown, leaving him just 236 yards shy of the CIS career mark held by Manitoba’s Dominic Zagari.
Jason Marshall was the lone bright spot for the Lions, rushing for 164 yards – including a 40-yard TD run that ended Windsor’s shutout bid with 1:40 left in the fourth quarter.
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Golden Gaels 35 Marauders 11
At Kingston, Mike Giffin ran for 143 yards and a pair of touchdowns as Queen’s trounced McMaster in its home opener.
Already up 14-0 at the half, the Golden Gaels (1-0) put the game away on Giffin’s 57-yard touchdown run early in the third quarter.
Dan Brannagan went 17-for-32 for 288 yards with two touchdowns and an interception as Queen’s amassed 439 yards of net offence in the rout.
Stephen Sparks was 13-for-18 for 168 yards and a touchdown for the Marauders (0-1).
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Golden Hawks 15 Gryphons 13
At Waterloo, Ont., Mitchell Bosch returned an interception 57 yards for a touchdown as Laurier held on to beat Guelph.
Jeff Emberley added a 42-yard touchdown catch to highlight the defensive struggle, while Ian Noble went 19-for-29 for 202 yards, one TD and three interceptions for the Golden Hawks (1-0).
Rob Maver kicked three field goals to provide most of the scoring for the Gryphons (0-1).
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Mustangs 35 Gee-Gees 31
At London, Ont., Western scored three straight touchdowns in the fourth quarter to defeat Ottawa.
Michael Faulds, Jesse Bellamy and Ryan Tremblay provided Western’s 22 fourth-quarter points as the Mustangs (1-0) came back from an 18-point deficit.
Justin Wood-Roy rushed for 122 yards and two touchdowns for the Gee-Gees (0-1), who lost despite racking up 588 yards of total offence.
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Bisions 25 Rams 12
At Winnipeg, Man., Scott Dixon tied a career high with six field goals as the Manitoba Bisons opened defence of their Canadian university football title with a 25-12 win Saturday over the Regina Rams.
Dixon hit five straight field goals in the second and third quarters as the Bisons broke open a close game with 22 unanswered points in a rematch of last year’s Canada West final, won 48-5 by Manitoba.
Dixon hit from 15, 45, 37, and 32 yards out and twice from 36 yards away in front of more than 2,000 vocal supporters at University Stadium.
Running back Matt Henry was the other offensive star for the Bisons on Saturday. Henry, who suffered a broken femur in the first quarter of Manitoba’s Vanier Cup victory over the Saint Mary’s Huskies last November, had an eight-yard touchdown catch and added 25 carries for 78 yards.
Perri Scarcelli did the bulk of the scoring for the Rams, booting field goals from 35, 20 and 38 yards and adding a first-quarter single. Regina added a safety midway through the fourth quarter with the game well out of reach.
Both starting quarterback struggled with gusty winds. Bisons pivot John Make was 16-for-32 for 224 yards and a touchdown, improving to 17-0 as a starter in the CIS.
Regina quarterback Teale Orban went 16-for-36 for 224 yards.
