The Bellerose Bulldogs are one win away from their first high school junior football championship in school history after rattling the Salisbury Sabres 41-0 in Monday’s semifinal.
The Bulldogs (8-0) and St. Joseph Saints (7-1) will battle for the metro Edmonton premier conference crown Tuesday at Clarke Park. Kickoff is 5 p.m. Admission is $5.
The last junior final for the Bulldogs was 2005, a 29-9 loss to the St. Albert Hawks for the premier title.
The Bulldogs punched their ticket to the final with 27 points in the second quarter against Salisbury (3-4-1) to lead by 34 at halftime. They emptied the bench early in the third quarter.
“We need to keep this momentum going to take down a very strong St. Joe’s team. They have a couple of talented athletes, including their quarterback/running back, who Paul Kane had no answer for last week (in the 45-35 semifinal win by the Saints). We will definitely be scheming defensively to stop him,” said head coach Chad Hill.
Dylan Shorten, a candidate for the Grant Yuzyk Trophy as the metro league's most valuable player, continued his impressive season with a long touchdown run to open the scoring.
Game-breaker Seth Waselenchuk returned to the line-up after sitting out a few games with a lower body injury and scored off a fake 15-yard field goal with a burst to the left corner of the endzone.
Big fullback Ben MacKay busted through the Salisbury line for a short TD run.
Waselenchuk’s second TD was a 92-yard zigzag punt return.
Robbie Tamburro also scored twice with short runs to pay dirt.
Defensive end John Comeau and linebacker Nick Cowan led the charge defensively to help post the team’s first shutout of the season.
Cowan returned an interception 40 yards but missed scoring by a shoelace tackle.
On special teams, Trace Stuht blocked a punt that Comeau recovered deep in Salisbury territory to set up a Tamburro major.
Comeau also recovered a short kick by Cowan.
“This was exactly the type of game we needed going into a final. Our offence played well, special teams were fantastic and defence was rock solid,” Hill said.
In eight games the Bellerose defence has surrendered only four TDs and 34 points.
“Our D is confident but they also realize that half of the touchdowns we gave up were to St. Joe’s,” Hill said of the 39-13 victory over the Saints last month.
