BCFC (junior) week 4 in review

“Parity.” For the first time in recent memory the BCFC has a sense of parity after four weeks of the regular season. Five of the six teams are in playoff contention as the league approaches the half way mark.

The Okanagan Sun tasted defeat for the first time this year after a 23-19 loss in Nanaimo. The Sun and Vancouver Island Raiders now have identical records of 3-1, but the Sun have the slight edge after the head to head match ups.

Saturday was an exciting and extremely hot day in Nanaimo as both quarterbacks had their ups and downs. Bobby Davis, the reigning CJFL Offensive Player of the Week, finished 10 of 26 for 232 yards with a touchdown, two interceptions and ran for a score for the Sun. His touchdown pass was thrown to Matt Scheurwater who sprinted 79 yards to pay dirt. The 2008 All Canadian would have three catches for 107 yards, while Dan Turek and Mike Friend also had three catches. Davis led the Sun on the ground scrambling eight times for 62 yards.

Kicker Steve Shott hit from 39 yards out and was 2-2 in converts.

Defensively the Sun stood tall despite the hot temperatures. They would force four turnovers including interceptions by Tyler Robson, Jesse Warawa and Nemanja Miskin and a fumble recovery by Matt Harris. The Sun were led by Steven Doege who had nine tackles and Charles Henderson had six take downs.

After 52 passing attempts last week the Raiders were able to return to what they’re known for; the run. On the first play from scrimmage, Jordan Botel collected a 97 yard run to set the tone for the game. Botel would finish with eight carries for 168 yards, while Nick Lauder carried 11 times for 64 yards and a touchdown. The Raiders would rack up 251 yards on the ground.

Even with the success on the ground, quarterback Jordan Yantz threw 14 of 26 for 187 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions. He would connect with seven different receivers including Whitman Tomusiak who caught four balls for 44 yards and Michael Schaper caught two passes for 43 yards.

Defensively the Raiders brought a number of different blitz packages to frustrate the Sun offense and would stand tall in the dying seconds of the game. From the Raiders 25 yard line, the Sun couldn’t connect three different times as the defence held their ground and secured the win. Dan Baxter and Andrew Oake each had a sack, while Prashant Chaube and Nick Woznesensky shared one. Walker Morrison and Aaron Davies picked off passes.

The Sun will stay on the road and travel to Chilliwack on Saturday, while the Raiders will head south to face the Victoria Rebels next Sunday.

Photo courtesy of Bill Adams

The South Surrey Rams moved to 2-2 after a 42-34 win in their home opener on Saturday in a game that had plenty of offense and plenty of heat.

As temperatures hit the high 30’s Rams quarterback Nathaniel White started for the first time since week one and made an excellent case to be the #1 guy in Surrey. He would have a career day, finishing 14 of 20 for 402 yards and five touchdowns. He hit speedster Nick Downey three times for 171 yards and two touchdowns of 80 and 50 yards. He would also find Matt Chapdelaine four times for 106 yards and three touchdowns. White would also add nine carries for 89 yards including a 43 yard run.

Rams rookie kicker Nick Boyd was 2-4 in field goals, hitting from 45 and 20 yards out. He was 5-5 in converts.

On the defensive side, the Rams would bend but not break despite the hot temperatures. The reigning CJFL Defensive Player of the Week Belah Small picked off two more passes and leads the BCFC with four interceptions. Small also added four tackles. Kurt Pedersen was outstanding with seven tackles and three quarterback sacks. Kyle Ouwehand also tallied seven tackles and Shane Poberznick had four take downs and batted away two passes.

Despite gaining 454 yards on offense and scoring 34 points the Victoria Rebels suffered their second loss in a row and fall to 2-2. Quarterback Nick Cobb was 15 of 34 for 287 yards and one touchdown. His favourite target was Kyle Pich who caught seven passes for 116 yards and Vincenzo Cannata hauled in three balls for 106 yards and a touchdown. Cobb also ran 14 times for 66 yards and scored two touchdowns.

Cobb and Sam Adu led the Rebels on the ground as Adu carried 14 times for 118 yards and a touchdown.

Kicker Quinn Van Gylswyk was 2-2 in field goals connecting from 18 and 42 yards out. He was also 4-4 in converts.

The Rebels “D” was victimized by the big play on a very hot day in South Surrey. The Rebels were led by Adam Grilj who had seven tackles and Colton Farago with two sacks and two tackles. Brandon Bresden chipped in with four tackles.

The Rams will stay at home and host the Kamloops Broncos, while the Rebels will host the VI Raiders in an Island showdown.

Photo courtesy of Peter McCulloch

The Kamloops Broncos have won two straight games and are a .500 ball club after a 26-3 victory over the Chilliwack Huskers.

It wasn’t the prettiest of games after eight turnovers, but the Broncos prevailed thanks in large part to the foot of kicker Aaron Smit. The rookie was 4-4 in field goals hitting from 16, 34, 42 and 13 yards out and was 2-2 in converts which accounted for 14 of the Broncos 26 points.

The Broncos started Jesse Neufeld who was two of five for 30 and an interception before Dave Boulton took the helm and finished 11 of 25 for 157, but threw four interceptions. Spencer Martin caught four passes for 59 yards and Adam Sancewicz and Adam Nesbitt each hauled in three passes.

On the ground the Broncos ran 28 times for 162 yards. Ryan Aselstyne carried four times for 69 yards and a touchdown, while Martin ran seven times for 20 yards but found the end zone.

The Bronco defence allowed just three points as Grady Chalmers recorded four tackles and two interceptions. Tyler Lee and Scott Nelson had five tackles each and Ryan Williams recovered a fumble.

The Chilliwack Huskers are still searching for their first win. Despite the defence picking off five passes, the offence couldn’t find the end zone. Quarterback Clayton Kroeker was 10 of 29 for 128 yards but threw two interceptions, while Cory Prince saw action for the first time this season and finished three of five for 51 yards.

Adam Leggott made six catches for 65 yards and Cory Rollings caught four balls for 50 yards. On the ground the Huskers managed just 55 yards; Ben Skerrett was the leading rusher with 25 yards.

The only points the Huskers would score was on a 17 yard field goal from Daniel Sturm.
The Huskers defence played a solid game forcing five interceptions, by five different players. Levi Weaver, Dumas, Jayson Bates, Mitch Bessette and Mike Decloedt all picked off passes. Curtis Schindel led the team with seven tackles.

Next week the Broncos will play in South Surrey while the Huskers are home to the Okanagan Sun.

Week in Review – Week 4
Ryan Watters – 8/16/2010

Photo courtesy of Murray Mitchell