By the Numbers: Offensive onslaughts, career firsts, and a championship rematch
August 29, 2018

By the Numbers: Offensive onslaughts, career firsts, and a championship rematch

941 – The ball was flying all over the field in Sunday night’s marquee matchup, as both the Windsor Lancers and Waterloo Warriors came out of the gates quickly to start their seasons. The aerial attack, which ultimately led to a final score of 53-37 in favour of the Warriors, saw Sam Girard throw for 478 yards and five touchdowns, while Tre Ford tossed for 463 yards and six majors. All in all, the potent pivots combined for 941 passing yards to rank them first and second in the OUA, respectively.

50 – With just one second left on the clock and the chance to send the game to overtime on his foot, Carleton Ravens’ kicker Michael Domagala stepped up to connect on a 50-yard field goal. His third make of the game was his longest and most crucial in the contest, helping the Ravens push the Western Mustangs to the brink in the extra frame.

9 – After scoring a total of seven goals a season ago, Ryerson Rams’ forward Abdallah El-Chanti has already set himself up well to surpass that total in 2018. After just two games, El-Chanti has tallied five goals, which included a four-goal output against Trent. More than finding the scoresheet often in that contest, he found it early; securing a hat trick by the nine minute mark.

9 – Despite teams hitting the field for their first regular season action of 2018 this weekend, there was no shortage of big plays. Across the five contests, a total of nine plays net at least 50 yards. Among the highlights were an 84-yard catch and run by Windsor’s Alex Bornais, the longest play of the week; an 83-yard effort from Tyler Ternowski as part of his 289-yard day; and a trio of deep balls from the Ravens, with Phil Iloki (53 yards), Quinton Soares (50 yards), and Mitch Rapier (69 yards) each racking up major yardage on single plays.

5 – It was a strong showing for Levondre Gordon and the Laurier Golden Hawks in their Week 1 outing, as the Mississauga native picked up right where he left off from his productive 2017 campaign. As part of the team’s 39-point showing, Gordon ran for 109 yards on 14 carries and scored a pair of touchdowns. With the two majors, Gordon now has 16 for his Golden Hawks career, which puts the star running back in a tie for fifth on the school’s all-time list.

4 – Scoring was the name of the game to start the regular season and plenty of players came out with boastful numbers after their first contests. Including the aforementioned El-Chanti, a total of four players netted hat tricks this weekend, including another Ram, Mirza Custovic, as well as McMaster’s Stephanie Roberts and Ottawa’s Mikayla Morton, who tallied three goals apiece in their games against Laurier and Laurentian, respectively.

1 – It was a memorable start to the OUA football season for the McMaster Marauders, but perhaps even more so for the individual that played a key role in the team’s win. Not only did Michael Bazzo secure what proved to be the game’s deciding touchdown, giving his Marauders a 16-15 lead, but he did so in his first ever catch in his first OUA game.

0 – Fans were treated to an early season rematch of last year’s OUA championship, as the Western Mustangs visited Guelph to battle the 2017 champion Gryphons. In what was expected to be a tightly-played match, the two teams lived up to the billing, finishing in a scoreless draw. Both teams were locked in defensively, keeping their opposition at bay and holding the game to a total of just three shots on goal. The two West Division standouts will meet again on October 19th in London for their second and final regular season matchup this year.