HAMILTON (September 22, 2018) - The McMaster Marauders knocked off the No. 5 Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks 21-20, holding on in the final minutes to seal the victory on Saturday at Ron Joyce Stadium.
After giving up 16 points in the first half of the game, McMaster held Wilfrid Laurier to just four points in the second to send the Golden Hawks home to Waterloo with their second loss in as many weeks. The Marauders improved their record to 3-2, while Laurier fell to 2-2 to further complicate the OUA's crowded standings.
The Golden Hawks lost an opportunity to take the lead and likely win the game when Nathan Mesher of Waterloo, Ont. missed a 43-yard field goal with just 52 seconds remaining. McMaster would take over and earn three first downs to run the clock out and seal the win.
In the third quarter, McMaster's Mitch Garland of Hamilton scored what would be the game-winning touchdown, intercepting Tristan Arndt of Waterloo, Ont., for a 12-yard return and score. Defensive tackle Mitch Lyons of Saskatoon forced Arndt to make an ill-advised pass under pressure, which Garland easily returned. That gave McMaster their first lead of the game, and one they would not relinquish.
"Our defensive line created great pressure up front, he was being tackled and had to try to get it away," said Garland on the game winning touchdown play. " I thought [Eric Blake] was going to take it away from me, but he let me have it, and I cut it up field and the team pushed me in. I have to give them some credit, because they all helped me get in there."
Tyler Munro of Ajax, Ont., created havoc for McMaster`s defence, registering nine total tackles with two sacks in the win. Â The entire Marauder defensive plan caused fits all day for Laurier, with Ancaster`s Nate Edwards leading with eight solo tackles and four assisted while Eric Blake of Hamilton registered 10 tackles.
"That's what we're about. All 12 of us are one big group." said the sophomore Garland about what makes his defence so special "One guy might make a big play here or there, but our front four have played amazing so far, and our linebackers have been playing straight up. Our DBs, we pride ourselves on holding the fort. We play together, and when we play like we are now, nobody can beat us."
McMaster had touchdowns in each of the first three quarters, with Jordan Lyons of Burlington, Ont., punching in a two-yard run in the first. Dylan Astrom of Peterborough, Ont., scored on a 19-yard pass from Marauders quarterback Andreas Dueck of Winnipeg in the second, and Garland had the game-winning interception in the third.
Jordan Lyons notched his fifth career 100 yard rushing game posting 117 yards in the win on 21 carriers to go along his touchdown.
For Laurier, Leondre Gordon of Mississauga, Ont., had 119 yards on the ground, including a touchdown to open the scoring in the first quarter. Arndt tossed for a touchdown, 199 yards and an interception.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED: Down 16-7 late in the second quarter, the Marauders drove down the field 78 yards in just under two minutes to score a major and put McMaster behind by just two points heading into the half. Astrom scored that touchdown, capping the drive on a 19-yard pass from Dueck with just 15 seconds remaining on the clock. Those points loomed large with the Laurier defence shutting out the McMaster offence in the second half.
THE RACE FOR THE PLAYOFFS:Â The OUA playoff race is becoming cluttered with everything up in the air and just four weeks to play. McMaster, Ottawa, Queen's and Waterloo have three wins (three of those four teams are at 3-2) while two teams (Guelph and Laurier) are sitting just outside the playoff race with two wins. Western remains unbeaten at 4-0 while Carleton is 4-1.
BY THE NUMBERS:
28 - the number of penalties combined between the two teams which totalled a loss of 353 yards. McMaster committed 13 infractions totalling 163 yards while Wilfrid Laurier tallied 190 yards on 15 penalties.
177 - Number of yards passed by McMaster quarterback Andreas Dueck who also had 19 yards rushing on the ground.
2:41 - Length of today's game (2 hours and 41 minutes)
4 - The number of consecutive wins by Laurier over McMaster before today's 21-20 win by the Marauders.
0 - Number of field goal attempts by the Marauders against the Golden Hawks
UP NEXT: Week six of the OUA football schedule will see McMaster take a break from action, as the Marauders will have a bye. Their next game will be at Ron Joyce Stadium on October 5 against the Queen's Gaels. Kickoff for the game is set for 11:00 a.m. as McMaster University will host local Hamilton schools on "School Day". Tickets for that game can be purchased
here.
THEY SAID IT:
Defensive back Mitch Garland on finally getting over Laurier
"They've had our number, and we've never beaten them since I've been here, so this feels absolutely amazing. It's the best feeling in the world right now."
Garland on getting past the mistakes and the penalties:
"Our mentality is that it's all about the next play. Things happen, and you can mess up a play or benefit from a big play, but if you're able to shake things off and play the next one, you can't be beat."
McMaster Head Coach Greg Knox on the win:
"We're a young team, and responding to adversity has been a challenge this season. I thought we did a good job of that today. We showed up to play from the opening kickoff and we battled. That's a very positive step, to have that amount of fight in us."
"We're improving our execution. We're still leaving plays on the field, and still suffering plays that have little to do with what the other teams are doing to us and are more self-inflicted. But they are getting fewer and farther between. When you've got a young team, you've got to minimize the mistakes and keep getting better every week. After a win against a good team like this one, we're going to try to use it as a springboard."
Knox on the upcoming bye week before meeting Queen's on October 5
"Momentum is an interesting word, but especially when you're dealing with young people you do have to recognize it. The bye week presents some challenges for us. We've got to be smart about how we get through it, but we sure do need a break. We've got a lot of injuries, so the timing is pretty good. I think we'll get some kids healthy for the stretch on the offensive side, which has been a challenge for us."
