Battle of Waterloo goes tonight at Warrior field

WATERLOO, Ont. (October 5, 2011) – After returning to the win column last Saturday, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks (2-3) look to carry their momentum forward Thursday night when they travel down the street to battle the Waterloo Warriors (0-5) at Warrior Field.

Kick-off is set for 7 p.m.

The Hawks are coming off a much-needed victory over the Ottawa Gee-Gees last week. Playing in front of over 9,000 fans at Wilfrid Laurier’s 100th Homecoming, the purple and gold put together their most complete effort of the season as they trounced the Gee-Gees 51-16. The Hawks were led by CIS Offensive Player of the Week Shane Kelly of Basking Ridge, N.J., who threw for 348 yards and four touchdowns. His favourite target on the day was receiver Shamawd Chambers of Markham, Ont., who had eight catches for 201 yards and two touchdown s. For Chambers, it was the second time this season that he had over 100 yards receiving in a game and the 201 yards were the third highest single game total in school history.

One other notable event in the victory was punt returner Dillon Heap of Waterloo, Ont., setting the new OUA career punt return record as he moved past Windsor’s Don Hollerhead with 74 punt return yards.

Meanwhile, the Warriors continue to struggle in their return to OUA competition in 2011. Waterloo dropped their fifth consecutive contest last week as they lost 46-20 to the No. 5 McMaster Marauders. Rookie quarterback Brian Chris of Waterloo, Ont., threw for 183 yards and three touchdowns in the loss while receiver Dustin Zender of Kitchener, Ont., continued his outstanding season, hauling in 13 passes for 162 yards. Zender is currently second in the country in receiving yards with 591 on the season.

Heading int o tomorrow’s matchup, the Hawks have history on their side as they have won the last seven contests against the Warriors. In their last contest back in 2009, Laurier defeated Waterloo by a score of 29-18 at University Stadium.

In order for the purple and gold to keep that streak going, the team will need the offence to continue to click at the same pace they have all year. Laurier is currently third in the nation in points, averaging 40 per game through their first five contests. One of the big reasons for that has been the play of Kelly who currently leads all quarterbacks in attempts, completions, yards and touchdowns. If he can help the Hawks jump out to an early lead, it could mean a long night for the Warriors.

One other key for Laurier will be for the defence to find a way to shutdown Zender. The fifth year receiver, who dressed for the Golden Hawks in 2010, has three games of 100 or more receiving yards th is year while recording four touchdowns. If Laurier’s corners Felix Odum (Pickering, Ont.) and Shane Herbert (Ajax, Ont.) can contain Zender, they should be able to stop Waterloo’s offence.

Laurier Sports Info