F.O.E upsets BearSkins in high-scoring divisional matchups

Sixteen teams turned into eight after all the carnage was said and done late Saturday night.

Seven of the eight divisional round playoff games were won by the team with the better record during the regular season. Just one games resulted in an upset when F.O.E throttled an undermanned BearSkins team.

The teams that advanced to Monday and Wednesday’s quarterfinal matchups mostly won their games by wide margins. Five out of the eight games were won by at least 20 points, with some teams like F.O.E winning by 30.

The only tight game came down to the undefeated Two and a Half Dans (10-0) taking out Mongoose (4-6) 37-32.

 

F.O.E blows out BearSkins in unexpected defeat

Neil Etinson wasn’t pleased with that happened on Saturday.

The pigskin-launcher and his BearSkins team came into the game having lost just twice in ten games during the regular season. His two best receivers, Sasha Papich and Marco Bertoldi, grabbed 18 and 16 TDs respectfully during a productive season. Five different guys got at least four interceptions on defense throughout the year, including eight for Bertoldi.

But it all unraveled when just five players took the field for BearSkins on Saturday.

On F.O.E’s side, by comparison, QB Alex Holowach completed passes to all six of his receivers throughout the game.

For BearSkins (8-2), the mighty Sasha Papich played at “20%” according to Etinson, a result of a hamstring pull that Papich suffered in the final game of the season for another team. He made all of two tackles on defense and didn’t record a stat on offense.

Neil’s older brother and snapper Ryan Etinson was out of town, so Paul Santache filled in. To make matter’s even worse, former Concordia Stinger cornerback and speedster Connor O’Brien didn’t play. According to Etinson, no one heard from O’Brien.

What resulted was a 50-20 win for F.O.E (6-4). Holowach completed 14 of 18 passes for 178 yards, five TDs and no picks. His five TDs went to five different players: James Nowakowski, Jeremy Anderson, Dilan Daoust, Travis Moses and Jordan Moses. Both Travis and Jordan Moses picked-sixed Etinson on defense.

Frustration was evident on Etinson’s part as I got his take on the disappointing loss:

“We were so pumped for this game. I felt like we had the team to go deep. But we were five guys from start to finish and we never stood a fighter’s chance,” said Etinson.

“We’re a team made up of guys that really care, led by my brother Ryan who cares about this more than anyone,” he added. “To have a no show is ridiculous. We’re all very upset about this one and we needed [O’Brien] bad.”

F.O.E meets Two and a Half Dans Wednesday night at 8:30 PM.

 

Two and a Half Dans beat Mongoose in a close game

Two and a Half Dans (10-0) took out a four-win Mongoose (4-6) team with a 37-32 score, but it wasn’t easy.

By the end of the first half the Dans were sitting nicely with a 25-12 lead, but Mongoose made it interesting by the final whistle.

The Dans QB Joey Taylor was nearly flawless in the game, completing 22 of 23 passes for a season-high 253 yards, six TDs and no picks.

Taylor said it was a back-and-forth affair throughout the first half until the five play mark. That was when the Dans made a big stop on defense and then scored right before the end of the half to get to 25.

“Then in the second half they got a couple of close sack calls which forced a couple three-and-outs for us. But we got back in rhythm and scored with four plays left to take the lead and eventually win the game,” said Taylor.

All of Taylor’s marquee receivers stepped up in big ways. Adam Bailey hauled in four of Taylot’s six TD throws, Danny McFee caught 11 passes for 76 yards and Matthew Rupcic averaged over 30 yards on a pair of TD catches. 

Bailey also picked off Mongoose QB Alexandre Gaudet on defense. Taylor called Bailey “the most physically gifted receiver I’ve ever played with.”

“He has the ability to take a three-yard hook and bring it to the house on any play,” said Taylor. “Danny Aylward, Rupcic, McFee and Foti Evangelista also had great games on offense. They all step up and do their jobs without ever complaining.”

Stephan Osman (6 rec, 86 yards, 2 TD) caught two of Gaudet’s four touchdown passes for Mongoose. Cédric Nuckle (6 rec, 59 yards, TD) and Wade Jr. Shallcross (2 rec, 8 yards, TD) also caught touchdowns in the loss.

Two and a Half Dans meets F.O.E Wednesday night at 8:30 PM.

 

Dad Bod Squad scares off Wolfpack with 46-12 win

Dads Bod Squad (10-0) just installed a new backyard treehouse for the kids. They were determined not to let a pesky pack of wolves ruin the pleasant family atmosphere they’d work hard to achieve.

As it turned out, Dad Bod Squad shooed away Wolfpack (4-6) with an exclamation mark, winning 46-12.

QB Sean Avraam completed 16 of 26 passes for 218 yards and a season-high seven TDs. Vinny Gualano (4 rec, 98 yards) and Ryan Aridi (4 rec, 73 yards) both caught three TDs. Anthony Da Silva (6 rec, 35 yards) also caught an Avraam score.

Wolfpack didn’t put up much of a fight in the first half, as the Dads built a 21-0 lead. The strong-armed Pascal Murray had an unusually bad day, passing for two touchdowns and four interceptions. He made just 11 of 28 pass attempts. Gualano intercepted him three times while Avraam got the fourth.

Both Hugo Dupuy and Eric Deschambault each caught TD passes for Wolfpack.

Dad Bod Squad plays 6+R in the quarterfinals Wednesday night at 8:30 PM.

 

Laval’s Finest throws a 39-19 ‘TD Show’ on Show Me Your TDs

Laval’s Finest (7-3) beat Show Me Your TDs (5-5) by 21 points Saturday night. They exploded for 26 points in the second half to advance to the quarterfinals.

QB Justin Lavallee threw for six TDs and one interception, hitting receiver Theo Bekelis for three scores. Lavallee also threw scores to Nick Bekelis, Rob Mashtoub and Jordan McLaren. Both Theo and Nick Bekelis picked off TDs QB Mike Addona, as did McLaren.

The TD’s put up just six points in the first half, so once Laval started scoring at will in the final half it became more difficult.

Addona completed just 12 of 27 passes for 138 yards, three TDs and the three picks. His touchdown passes went to Kevin Lubin (2) and Alex David. Simon Lamontagne picked off Lavallee on defense.

Laval’s Finest plays Coyotes Monday night at 9:00 PM.

 

Brocassion ruins B.D Bandits magic run

The B.D Bandits (5-5) had won five of its last six games to earn a playoff spot, but it all ended Saturday evening. In the second half alone, Brocassion (6-4) matched the Bandits output for the entire game (26 points), ultimately winning 44-26.

Brocassion QB Kristian Cerantola completed 16 of 25 passes for a season-high 211 yards, a season-high seven TD passes and two interceptions. He also rushed for 69 yards on six carries, putting up 280 total yards.

Both Marco Masciotra and Kyle Lebofsky registered three TDs on four catches each. Mark Provost also scored.

On defense, Cerantola was the only one on his team to intercept a Mark Belvedere pass.

It wasn’t the game Belvedere had likely envisioned. The gunslinger went 16 for 28 for 133 yards, three TDs and the one pick. Lee Galletti caught two of his touchdowns and David Riendeau caught the other. Riendeau also intercepted Cerantola.

Chris Smith housed a Cerantola interception for the Bandits, but it wasn’t enough.

Brocassion meets The Brotherhood Monday at 9:00 PM in the quarterfinals.

 

“They washed us”: 6+R blows out Top Sauce 44-20

The high-flying 6+R (9-1) team scored 32 first half points to beat Top Sauce (5-5) 44-20 Saturday night to advance to the quarterfinals.

6+R QB Frédéric Viens was money, completing 20 of 26 passes for 204 yards, seven TDs and no picks. Anthony Brisebois (9 rec, 113 yards) took three of those TD passes. Jad Aridi caught a pair of scores and intercepted Top Sauce QB Vince Nardone.

Anthony Garant and Marc-Antoine Viens also caught TD passes.

Nardone passes for 97 yards, a pair of TDs and one interception. He also ran the ball for 26 yards and a touchdown. Chris Milard caught both of Nardone’s TD passes.

“Fred [Veins] cut out D apart. They washed us, it wasn’t even close,” said G.M. Kolethras, who caught four passes for 26 yards. “They scored at will and we struggled to complete passes.”

Kolethras mentioned that Top Sauce missed the presence of second-leading receiver Jean-Daniel Chevalier. He caught 34 passes for 503 yards and 12 TDs during the regular season.

6+R meets Dad Bod Squad in the quarterfinals Wednesday night at 8:30 PM

 

“They trashed us”: The Brotherhood unleashes 53-point wrath on Lightweight

The Brotherhood (10-0) took out Lightweight (4-6) Saturday night 53-18 to advance to the quarterfinals.

QB Theo Ojeaha, who told me last week that several of his team’s closer wins were his fault, played well. Ojeaha completed 14 of 21 passes for a season-high 251 yards, six TDs and no picks.

Khalil Kerr and Kevin Kaya each caught two Ojeaha TD passes. Ahmed Majid and Quaysie Gordon-Maule both chipped in with a TD catch.

Ojeaha told me that his team scored on all but one possession throughout the game.

“We were rolling right out the gate on offense,” said Ojeaha. “I was finding my guys for quick scores down the field. Defensively, three interceptions that Simon [Dagenais] threw were drops from his receivers, right into our hands.”

Kevin Kaya was quite the beast on defense. He picked off Lightweight QB Simon Dagenais three times, taking two of those interceptions to the house. It was already 41-12 by halftime.

Jamal Gittens also picked off Dagenais.

Dagenais threw for 160 yards, three TDs and the four picks. He told me that his team was missing its number one and two receivers in Francois Raymond (45 rec, 538 yards, 12 TDs) and Cory Kennedy (30 rec, 485 yards, 12 TD). To make matter worse, they didn’t have any subs.

“It was pretty simple: they trashed us,” said Dagenais. “A few bad drops turned into pick sixes early to give The Brotherhood a 20+ point lead. We scored a few times but it was never close. Theo made some really nice throws.”

Francesco Spanti grabbed six balls for 71 yards and a pair of Dagenais TDs for Lightweight. Francois Hogue caught the other touchdown pass from Dagenais.

The Brotherhood meets Brocassion Monday night at 9:00 PM in the quarterfinals.

 

Coyotes show Darksiders the light in 35-12 win

Coyotes (10-0) will head to the quarterfinals after they beat Darksiders (4-5-1) 35-12.

QB Sammy Feder was nearly perfect, going 13 for 15 for 125 yards and five TD passes. He threw TDs to Kevin Smuda (2), Josh Feder, Andrew Langburt and Shawn Steen.

Both Smuda and Steen picked off Darksiders replacement QB Mathew Bourbonniere-Morin in the win.

Coyotes built a nice 19-6 lead heading into halftime and never relented.

“Our defense played well and we made timely interceptions,” said Feder after the game. “On offense everyone made plays. [Shawn] Steen had a ridiculous TD catch.”

On the other side, Bourbonniere-Morin completed 14 of 28 passes for 100 yards, two TDs and the two interceptions.

Both Paolo Della Rocca and Jonathan Lyristis hauled in TD passes in the losing effort. Jonathan Lyristis sacked Feder three times.

Coyotes meet Laval’s Finest Monday at 9:00 PM in the quarterfinals.

 

Quarterfinal Matchups

Coyotes (10-0) vs. Laval’s Finest (7-3), Monday at 9:00 PM

The Brotherhood (10-0) vs. Brocassion (6-4), Monday at 9:00 PM

Two and a Half Dans (10-0) vs. F.O.E (6-4), Wednesday at 8:30 PM

Dad Bod Squad (10-0) vs. 6+R (9-1), Wednesday at 8:30 PM.

All games played at Hebert dome.