NSSAFFL: Nova Division Week 5 Recap

CITADEL PHOENIX 40, COBEQUID EDUCATIONAL CENTRE 8:

The Citadel Phoenix has reached the 40 game mark.
On Sunday afternoon at James MacPherson Stadium in Truro, the Citadel Phoenix kept their consecutive unbeaten streak alive with a 40-8 win over the Cobequid Educational Centre Cougars.
As a result of the win, the Phoenix remains alone atop the Nova Division standings with a 4-0-0 record (eight points).  The Cougars suffered their first loss of the regular season and now sport a 2-1-0 record (four points).
Furthermore, the Phoenix’s consecutive game winning streak has reached 40 games.  Since 2008, the team has not been defeated and dating back to 2007, the team has an overall record of 57-3.
Quarterback Darius Lameire put in a stellar performance on the field for the Phoenix.  Lameire had 18 completions in 30 attempts for 355 passing yards and five touchdown passes in the victory.
Overall, the Phoenix’s offense was firing on all cylinders as several different players contributed to the success of the unit’s game execution plans.  Four wide receivers found the end zone on Sunday.  Ian Farrell scored two touchdowns and caught the ball four times for 65 yards while Byron Kavanagh had five catches for 55 yards and scored a major.  Drew MacIsaac found the end zone once while amassing 90 yard on four catches and Isaiah Thomas scored a touchdown while catching the ball twice for 50 yards.
Running backs Scott Baigent and Ian Johnston led the running game for the Phoenix.  Baigent had 90 rushing yards on 11 carries (one catch for 30 yards) while Johnston amassed 80 rushing yards on 10 carries (one catch for 45 yards).  Wide receiver Sam Holmes chipped in with one catch for 20 yards while running back Brad Petrie had three carries for 20 yards.
Defensively for the Phoenix, Shaun Robinson guided the unit with eight solo tackles, two sacks and a blocked conversion.  Other tallies on the scoreboard for the Phoenix were a safety and a field goal.
If there was any doubt at the beginning of the season of the Phoenix’s inexperience and youth, the Phoenix have proven their maturity and talent four games into the season.
“Our young team is getting older by the day,” commented Phoenix co-head coach and defensive coordinator Jeff Lawley. “We are so fortunate to have a terrific coaching staff to keep them pointed in the right direction.”
Meanwhile for the Cougars, quarterback Gab Bagnell turned in a valiant effort on the field in a losing cause.  Bagnell had six completions on 15 attempts for 90 passing yards and threw an interception.  The Cougars pivot did connect with receiver Kyle Scott for a touchdown score.  Scott also had three catches for 60 yards.
Linebacker Calder Saunders led defensive unit with nine tackles.  Defensive back Nick Simpson chipped in with six tackles while defensive tackle Jake Walters had four tackles and one sack.  Defensive back Andrew Murphy caught an interception and registered three tackles while defensive tackle Drew Smith contributed with three tackles and a sack.  Defensive tackle Kenny Snow also had a sack in the loss.
“From the second quarter on our offence was not able to sustain drives, leaving our defence on the field way too much,” assessed Cougars quarterback coach Tom Shreve after the loss.  “Kyle Scott was a bright spot on offence while Calder Saunders, Nick Simpson, Andrew Murphy, and Jake Walters had strong games on defence.”
“Citadel is a strong well coached team and we will learn a lot from this game moving forward into an important match-up against Dartmouth High next week.”
Lawley said that the Cougars were a formidable opponent and anticipates another matchup down the road.
“CEC is a model for many teams to look up to, including Citadel,” explained the Phoenix co-head coach and defensive coordinator.  “They are a class act and have a magnificent stadium to highlight their program.”
“We fully expect to meet them again in the upcoming playoffs.”
The Cobequid Educational Cougars will square off against the Dartmouth High Spartans in a key Nova Division game on Sunday October 14th, 2012 Burnside Turf.  Kickoff is 2:00pm.  As for the Citadel Phoenix, the team will play an exhibition match against the Sackville High Kingfishers on Thursday October 11th, 2012 at Burnside Turf.  Game starts at 6:00pm.

SIR JOHN A MACDONALD FLAMES 92, LOCKVIEW DRAGONS 8:

On Thursday night at Burnside Turf, the Sir John A MacDonald Flames dismantled the Lockview Dragons 92-8.
The Flames now have a 2-1-0 record (four points).  As for the Dragons, they are winless and sit at the bottom of the Nova Division standings with a 0-4-0 record (zero points).
Nate Rostek and linebacker John Perrott led the way for the Flames in the victory, combining for five touchdowns in the game on punt returns.  Rostek scored three touchdowns and accumulated 252 yards (registered 4 tackles on defensive side) while Perrott tallied two majors and amassed 128 yards (registered 3 tackles on defensive side).
“We rode an exceptional effort from our punt return team highlighting Nate Rostek and John Perrott who had five touchdowns returning the ball,” commented Flames head coach Alan Wetmore in his postgame comments.   “I was very happy for John and Nate because they work very hard at football and deserve to have nights like that.”
Offensively for the Flames, many players contributed in the victory.  Running back Hezekiah Armstrong rushed into the end zone three times while registering 110 rushing yards on five carries.  Hayden Clarke scored two touchdowns, had seven carries for 25 yards and three catches for 42 yards.  Flames receiver Brian Leader caught the ball four times for 114 yards and tallied a major.  Receiver Nick Hartling found the end zone one while catching the ball twice for 44 yards.  Donovan Blue carried the ball once for a one yard touchdown score.
Quarterback Lorenz MacDonald had 10 completions in 16 attempts for 269 passing yards in the victory.
Linebacker Keith Langille registered nine tackles to lead the defensive unit of the Flames.  Mitchell James chipped in with seven tackles while Blue and Brayden Culligan each had six tackles apiece.  Scott Logan registered two sacks while Jack Chiasson added one.  Zack Leger, Culligan, and Chiasson each caught interceptions in the game.
At halftime, the Flames already built up a 48-8 lead on the Dragons.
Overall, Wetmore was impressed with how the players responded out on the field. However, it was not the intention of the Flames to run up the scoreboard at the expense of the Dragons.
“I was pleased with the effort of our players and the result of the game although it wasn’t our desire to have such a lopsided score or create a negative experience for the players of Lockview,” explained the Flames head coach.  “You have so few games to prepare yourself to be able to compete against the top teams in the league that you have to keep working all the time.”
While this game can be seen as a confidence booster for the Flames, Wetmore said more improvement is needed on certain aspects of the team’s game play.  Ultimately, the Flames need to refine their tools so they are prepared by the time playoffs arrive.
“As a team, we are improving but I see that much work remains to be done to have a hope of competing in the playoffs,” assessed Wetmore.  “Everything from field goal protection, pass defense to blitz pick up needs a lot of attention and development.”
“The sword needs to get much more sharper.”
A rematch of last year’s Tier 1 quarterfinals looms for the Sir John A MacDonald Flames as they host the Charles P Allen Cheetahs on Sunday October 14th, 2012 at 2:00pm.  As for the Lockview Dragons, they will play the Prince Andrew Panthers on Sunday October 14th, 2012 at Burnside Turf.  Kickoff is 5:00pm.

Photos 1, 2, 3 courtesy of Cathy Connell

Photos 4, 5 courtesy of Mark Kays
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