(WOLFVILLE, N.S.) - The CIS No. 1-ranked Laval Rouge et Or of the RSEQ football conference remain undefeated after three weeks of play after posting a 26-14 win over the unranked Acadia Axemen in one of four AUS-RSEQ interlockgames this weekend.
Pascal Lochard opened the scoring eleven minutes into the first quarter on a five-yard toss by QB Tristin Grenon that capped a 55-yard, seven-play drive. Grenon was 10 for 17 for 109 yards on the day and was later replaced by Alex Skinner.
Boris Bede hammered home three field goals from the 29, 27 and 24 yard lines throughout the game. He added the first two of three field goals in the second quarter to give Laval a 13-0 lead with six minutes remaining in the half.
Not giving up in the closing minutes of the second quarter, the Axemen sent runningback Thomas Troop scampering in for the 18-yard major with just over five minutes remaining in the half. The touchdown ended an 87-yard drive that included a 15-yard roughing-the-passer penalty on a 19-yard pass reception by Acadia's Andrew Healy.
The third quarter only saw a rouge scored by Laval that bumped the lead to 14-7. The fourth quarter included the final field goal by Laval's Bede and a Felix Lachasseur two-yard reception from replacement quarterback Alex Skinner.
Laval's final points were a team safety after an Acadia snap over the head of senior quarterback Evan Brown soared into the end zone causing Acadia fans to rise in panic.
With 2:54 remaining in the game, 2012 AUS rookie of the year Thomas Troop added his second touchdown of the day on a one-yard dive into the end zone to end the scoring at 26-14.
The Rouge et Or posted 388 net yards of offence compared to Acadia's 240. However, Laval gave up 136 yards in penalties compared to the Axemen's 77.
Troop out-rushed Pascal Lochard's 90 yards on the ground with a game-high 94 yards on 14 carries, while Acadia starting quarterback Evan Brown had a game-high 154 yards in passing and was 23 for 38 in the air with one interception.
Axemen head coach Jeff Cummins was happy with the effort but had words on the future development of the team. "I think we grew as a team and got better today but it wasn't exactly what I was looking for," he said. "However, we got better on offence and we played strong on defence. We played well on special teams."
"I just want to keep growing game in and game out until the end of the season so we are playing our best football by week eight," Cummins added. "We are not where we want to be. I am not happy with the loss and don't get gratification from a moral victory. We are better today and I can be happy with that, but the bottom line is that we are 0-2."
The Axemen will hit the road next weekend in Antigonish to take on the 2-0 StFX X-Men. Acadia topped StFX 19-15 in preseason play on August 30. The Rouge et Or will prepare to take on the No. 4-ranked Montreal Carabins next Sunday at home in Quebec City.
Source: Acadia Sports Information