Story and Photos by Christian J. Stewart (ISN)
September 22, 2017, Victoria, BC (ISN) – The No. 2 ranked New Westminster Hyacks threw cold water on the home opener of the No. 4 ranked Mt. Douglas Varsity Rams Friday afternoon in Victoria, thumping the Rams 29-6 in the opening BC High School AAA Varsity league game for both teams.
The Hyacks took advantage of a Rams squad that is dealing with a number of early season injuries to key players, the most notable of which is the loss of talented quarterback Gideone Kremler, who is still recovering and re-habbing from off-season knee surgery and is not expected to be anywhere near ready for game action for another month.
Things looked bad for the Rams right from the get go, as New West kick returner Sebastien Reid took the opening kick-off and returned it for what appeared to be the initial score of the game. The play was called back due to a penalty however, ironically one of four touchdowns Reid would score on the day that would be nullified due to penalty, and the Rams, thanks to a couple of strong defensive stands in the red zone, escaped the first quarter trailing the Hyacks just 6-0.
The Hyacks would add a Zachery Northgraves field goal to start the second quarter and then used a 1-yard plunge from Lucas Sabau to bump their lead to 15-0.
The Rams then mounted their best drive of the day, driving deep into Hyack territory before quarteback Dante Carbonne was intercepted in the end zone, keeping the New West lead at 15 points heading into the half.
In the third quarter, after another strong Rams drive was thwarted by a second goal-line interception by New Westminster, the Rams turned the tables, recovering a Hyack fumble on the 19-yard line and eventually scoring their first touchdown of the day on a two-yard run from Ben Pierik to cut the score to 15-6.
It would be all New Westminster after that, as the Hyacks defence would keep the Rams offence well away from the end zone in the fourth quarter and the offence would get a 12-yard touchdown run and two-point conversion from Broxx Comia and a 25-yard pass and run score by Reid, this time with no penalty to call it back, to round out the scoring and clinch the 29-6 victory.
New West quarterback Kinsale Philip had a strong game for the Hyacks, throwing for a pair of touchdowns, including an opening score 35-yard strike to Finn Stark and the closing score to Reid. He also rushed the ball well when needed.
For the Rams, Carbonne was 11 of 27 passing for 136 yards in the loss. The Rams also got five tackles and two sacks from Iva Xu. Sebastian Hansen led the hosts with six tackles. Sam Mosky was Mt. Douglas’ leading rusher with 72 yards on six carries. He also added 49 yards on four receptions, while Hayden Naylor chipped in with 44 receiving yards in the losing effort.
“New West played a solid game on both sides of the ball and earned this victory” said Mt. Doug Head Coach Mark Townsend following the game. “Far too many penalties and not taking care of the football were our downfall,” he added. “We will work on our discipline and ball security this week, and work our butts off as we face another conference rival next week.”
Mt. Douglas stays at home next Friday as conference play continues with a visit from the Notre Dame Jugglers. That game kicks off at 3:00 pm at Mt. Douglas Field.
