The Sturgeon County Spirits overcame not only the St. Albert Skyhawks but the winter elements as they won the Gilfillian Division Championship of the Metro Edmonton High School League 28-0 this past Saturday.
It was a defensive battle this past Saturday in Commonwealth Stadium as the inclement weather provided struggles for both teams to get their offences going. It was only with 2:32 left in the first half that the game got its first score when Chris Ioanidis completed a pass to Ben Roe on a slant that went for a 27 yard touchdown and gave the Spirits the lead at halftime 7-0.
The game was blown wide open in the second half when the Spirits blocked a Skyhawk punt in the third quarter and returned it for a 33 yard touchdown return. From this point on the game was all Spirits as they scored on another Chris Ioanidis 27 yard touchdown pass to Devlin Fremont and added a interception return for a touchdown by Ben Roe to seal the game 28-0 and secure a spot in provincials where they will face the Whitecourt Cats on Nov.12 in Whitecourt.
When asked about his team's next opponent the Whitecourt Cats, Sturgeon head coach Chad Hill said he hadn’t watched any film yet but was ready to work on the game plan for next week.
“I have not seen any film from our provincial opponent," said Hill. “But when we do, we will spend the usual eight to twelve hours breaking it down and another few hours designing our gameplan.”
The Sturgeon County Spirits improved their record to 9-0 this year and have their sights set on their tenth win of the year as they head down to Whitecourt this coming weekend to take on the Whitecourt Cats. The St. Albert Skyhawks however fell to 7-2 this year and had not only their season come to end Saturday but also it was the last game coached by longtime Skyhawks head coach Sam Johnson who is retiring.
The Paul Kane Blues were also in action this past Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium as they battled the St. Francis Xavier Rams for the Miles Division Championship of the Metro Edmonton High School League.
In another game tormented by the winter elements the Paul Kane Blues were able to slug out a hard fought 15-6 victory over the St Francis Xavier Rams.
The scoring started early on in the game as Wyatt Horchuk of Paul Kane was able to find the endzone on a one yard touchdown run to give the Blues a 7-0 lead. However, after the score the defences took over the game completely.
Punting became a prominent occurrence for most of the first half as the Rams struggled with bad snaps and both defences brought pressure. Paul Kane looked to take charge in the game after a Joshua Mah interception set the Blues up in great field position. A blocked field goal would end that drive leaving the score till 7-0. After adding a rouge on a missed field goal the Blues took a 8-0 lead into halftime.
The second half didn’t get much better for the offences as the defences once again controlled the line of scrimmage. After blocking a punt the Rams had the ball in terrific field position. However, the Blues defence stood strong forcing a 27 yard field goal attempt that was blocked by Wyatt Horchuk.
The Blues followed up the great defensive stop with a terrific drive of their own ending in another Horchuk touchdown run of four yards. The Rams wouldn’t go quietly as Talan Hobal of the Rams took the ensuing kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown as the third quarter ended. They would miss the extra point to make the score 15-6.
The defensive battle would continue in the fourth quarter as there would be no more scoring as the Blues would hang on to win 15-6. When asked about how his defence played Paul Kane head coach Rob Strecker had high praise about their play.
“The defence has been the backbone of our team all year,” Strecker said. “Whenever we needed a big stop we got it. A timely turnover, we got it. Just an incredible group of athletes and a great group of coaches.”
It was the Blues third straight appearance in the championship game. The win was also redemption for the Blues after losing in the championship game last year and Stricker was quick to point that out.
“It was nice for our seniors to win one after losing last year to Leduc in the final.” Stricker exclaimed. “So happy for the grade twelves, they lost a season due to covid and got to the game last year and won it this year.”
The win moves the Paul Kane Blues to 8-1 on the season while the loss gives the St Francis Xavier Rams a 4-4 record for the year as their season ended Saturday.
