Championships Vanier Cup

Oct. 25, 2021

Welcome to Monday Morning Quarterback, recapping the best U SPORTS stories from the week across CW, OUA, RSEQ, and the AUS during the 2021-22 season.

Football

No.1 Carabins clinch RSEQ title with victory over No. 3 Rouge et Or

With a commanding 35-14 victory over the  Laval Rouge et Or on Sunday, the Montreal Carabins moved to 6-1 on the season, clinching an RSEQ title in the process.

Carabins quarterback Jonathan Senecal dazzled, completing 19 of 29 passes, while throwing for 350 yards and three touchdowns on the day. Receiver Hassane Dosso was Senecal’s favourite target, connecting with the La Courneuve, France native for six catches totalling 119 yards.

Jarryd Taylor and Tristan Fiske also hit pay dirt for Montreal, while Michael Arpin converted four field goals on the day.

No. 4 Bisons upset by Thunderbirds

Despite being unranked, the UBC Thunderbirds have one of the most explosive offenses in the nation.

On Saturday, UBC, led by quarterback Garrett Rooker, handed Manitoba their first defeat of the season, narrowly beating the Bisons 26-24.

Rooker and the Thunderbirds started strong, jumping out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter. Manitoba would go on to score the next 24 points, but thanks to a 16-yard touchdown catch by Trey Kellogg in the waning moments of the fourth quarter, the Thunderbirds would pull off a comeback victory.

Kellogg was unstoppable, hauling in five catches for 76 yards and three touchdowns on the day.

Men’s Basketball

StFX X-Men claim 42nd annual StFX Coach K Invitational title

With an 82-71 victory over the Dalhousie Tigers, the StFX X-Men took first place in their home tournament, the Coach K Invitational.

The tournament is an annual four-team preseason tournament hosted by the X-Men each October. The tournament was recently renamed to honour former StFX head coach, Steve Konchalski, who recently retired after a 46-year coaching career with the X-Men.

StFX’s David Muenkat scored a game-high 28 points, while dominating the glass, amassing 20 rebounds in the finals victory over the Tigers.

Muenkat received the Ernie Foshay Memorial Trophy as the tournament MVP.

Dalhousie’s Nginyu Ngala and Keevan Veinot were named to the tournament All-Star squad, along with StFX’s Avan Nava, UNB’s Chris Spurrell and CBU’s Ozzy Omar.

Women’s Rugby

No. 2 Queen’s Gaels clinch undefeated season

The No. 2 Queen’s Gaels (4-0) continued their OUA dominance with a resounding 59-10 victory over the No. 9 McMaster Marauders (2-2). The Gaels will end the regular season undefeated for the second-straight year.

Queen’s will now set their sights on their second OUA title in a row and will rely on dual-sport athlete Sophie de Goede to provide an offensive spark.

The Gaels will host both the OUA championship and the U SPORTS Rugby Championship.

No. 5 UBC top No. 6 Victoria to cap off undefeated season

In Canada West women’s rugby action, the UBC Thunderbirds (5-0) beat the Victoria Vikes (3-3) by a score of 44-10, ending the season with a perfect record.

UBC’s Piper Symonds scored a pair of tries on route to the resounding victory.

Men’s Soccer

MacEwan beats Calgary to clinch program’s first Canada West playoff berth

The MacEwan Griffins men’s soccer team made program history with their victory 1-0 victory over the Calgary Dinos on Sunday.

The Griffins (4-4-2) headed into the Sunday matchup with the Dinos needing a victory to clinch a playoff spot. With their win, MacEwan surpassed the Saskatchewan Huskies (3-5-2) for the fourth and final Central Division spot and a berth into the Canada West finals.

Forward Rakan Yassin scored in the 83rd minute to put the Griffins up by a goal after tapping in a cross from midfielder Ali Yildiz.

"I can't be prouder of the guys. They deserve it so much. They don't get all the bells and whistles that other teams get within the conference or other sports, but they just keep grinding,” said head coach Adam Loga. “I can't be more proud. They're just such a good group of kids."

The Griffins will hit the road for their first-ever Canada West playoff match next Saturday against the Victoria Vikes (6-3-3), with the winner advancing to the Final Four tournament.

No. 3 York Lions overtake No. 2 Carleton Ravens for the top spot in OUA East

In a possible playoff preview, the Carleton Ravens (5-1-3) and York Lions (6-1-1) faced off with a pair of heavyweight matchups as the squads played two spirited games this past weekend.

In the first of the two games held in Toronto, York topped the Ravens 2-0, with goals coming from Soji Olatoye in the 24th minute and Omar Marzouk in the 43rd minute.

In their second match, York took the lead in the 17th minute with a penalty shot scored by Dieu Merci Yuma.

Carleton’s Matteo de Brienne equalized for the Ravens with a highlight-reel volley taking a through ball on the first touch, rocketing it past goalkeeper George Tzimas. Tzimas made an astounding 13 saves, keeping the game level despite immense pressure from Carleton.

Social media posts of the week

The Canadian Women’s National Hockey Team opened its nine-game rivalry series against the United States with a 3-1 victory on Friday night.

Notably, McGill Martlets alumnus, Mélodie Daoust is on the Canadian squad. The forward received U SPORTS All-Canadian honours and the Women’s Hockey Player of the Year Award during the 2012-13 season.

The Canadian Women’s National Soccer Team kicked off the Gold Medal Celebration tour this past weekend in Ottawa after bringing home gold in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Canada was golden once again, defeating the New Zealand side 5-1.

Desiree Scott, who played for the Manitoba Bisons has cemented herself as a leader on the national squad, making 167 international appearances for Canada.

Canada will play their next friendly match against New Zealand on Tuesday, Oct. 26th in Montreal.