York Lions put a scare into McMaster, still lose

York’s football team travelled to Ron Joyce Stadium to take on the back to back Vanier Cup finalist McMaster Marauders this past Saturday.
The defending Ontario University Athletics champions found themselves in a dogfight all afternoon as the Lions attempted to pull one of the biggest upsets of the year. York fought to the very end but McMaster withstood the Lions’ barrage, coming out on top with a 41-27 win.
The Lions fell flat on their face out of the starting blocks, letting up a quick touchdown on their first defensive possession. On the ensuing kickoff, the Lions put the ball on the turf, lucky enough to recover their own fumble, but they then followed that play up with another blunder when a high snap flew over Myles Gibbon’s head on second down, forcing the Lions to punt from their own goal line.
The team’s woes continued as the Marauders drove down into the red zone, but they caught a massive break as a penalty erased a McMaster touchdown. On the next play, York’s James Tuck exploded off the edge for a sack, stalling McMaster’s offence and forcing a field goal.
The Lions’ offence woke up after Errol Brooks tore through the defense for a 50-yard run, followed by another big run that took the Lions down inside McMaster’s five yard line. The Lions would have to settle for a field goal but momentum had quickly shifted in their direction as they cut the Marauders’ lead down to 10-3.
York’s defence stepped up and gave the ball back to Gibbon who drove the field with a mix of short run and pass plays. The Lions got all the way down to McMaster’s two-yard line but after a sack, York missed a field goal coming up empty handed after an otherwise successful drive.
Mirroring their opponents, the Marauders put together a drive of their own but McMaster’s Tyler Crapigna pushed a field goal attempt wide, keeping the score deadlocked at 10-3.
After a couple of two and outs, the Lions began to march down the field with Errol Brooks, who finished the first half with over 100 yards, leading the way. After converting on two third-down gambles to extend the drive, Gibbon snuck in for a touchdown behind his center from the goal line to tie the game up at 10 late in the first half, putting a scare into the Marauders’ fans.
The Lions, however, could not escape the half unscathed as the Marauders pulled off a fake punt to extend a last-second push. York’s defence collapsed under the pressure and Marauder’s Marshall Ferguson found a wide open receiver in the endzone to take the lead 17-10 heading into halftime.
Both teams stalled coming out of the break, including York failing on a fake punt of their own when driving deep into McMaster territory. The Marauders capitalized on the botched fake, taking the lead on another beautiful touchdown strike by Ferguson, increasing their lead to 24-10.
The Lionsresponded with some crisp passing of their own, as Gibbon found receiver Ryan Dunaway open three times in a row, including a touchdown that brought the Lions within seven points of the lead heading into the final quarter.
Unfortunately that is where the upset hopes would end, as McMaster staved off the Lions relentless pressure down the stretch. York was able to add a field goal and a late pick six, but still came out on the losing end 41-27.
Although the Lions failed to defeat the Marauders, once again York gave a very good team a run for their money. The bright spots for the Lions included 245 yards along the ground, with running back Brooks contributing 193 of those yards.
The Lions now find themselves at 1-2 this season, but are still very much in the playoff race with some key games upcoming on their schedule.
York will now take on the Carleton Ravens who are still winless this season, followed by a big matchup against Ottawa. This next stretch of games will make or break the Lions’ playoff hopes, but it appears their ultimate goal is still very attainable after a close loss to a nationally ranked opponent.