Bishop's to meet STFX in AUS title game
(LENNOXVILLE, Que). – Yani Gouadfel and Mathieu Dery had back-to-back pick-sixes for the Bishop's Gaiters as they scored 27 unanswered second-half points en route to a 34-15 victory over the Mount Allison Mounties on Coulter Field in an AUS semi-final presented by Bell.
The win punches the Gaiters ticket to the 2023 Loney Bowl presented by Bell slated for Saturday, Nov. 11 in Antigonish, N.S. against the St. Francis Xavier X-Men.
A flag-filled first half saw the Mounties take advantage and jump out to an 8-0 lead. Bishop's did not have first down in the first quarter and committed seven penalties for 85 yards. The Mounties major came on a 16-yard James Laceby reception. It was a play after quarterback CJ Valenti found Nolan Cheesman for a 25-yard catch and run that was extended with a late hit penalty.
Bishop's started to find a groove in the second quarter but were not able to capitalize until quarterback Mason McGriskin found the end zone on a one-yard draw on a third down gamble late in the stanza.
The Mounties responded right away. They scored their second major of the day just 45 seconds later when Valenti hooked up with Kirk Jean-Baptiste for 23 yards and a 15-7 Mountie lead at the break.
Whatever Bishop's coach Cherif Nicolas said at halftime worked for the home team, who refused to have a repeat of a year ago when the Mounties stunned the Gaiters. Saturday's match-up was the fourth consecutive time the Maple League colleagues met in the AUS semi-final. After Saturday's victory, Bishop's now has a 3-1 record.
Gouadfel got the party started after his punt pinned the Mounties deep in their territory. The AUS all-star then read Valenti perfectly, intercepted his pass and returned it six yards for the major.
The ensuing drive it was Dery's turn, who in eerily similar fashion picked off the Mountie pivot and retuned it 34 yards to paydirt and gave Bishop's their first lead, one they did not surrender.
McGriskin hooked up with Nykolas Pierre-Masse in the waning moments of the third on a 5-yard corner route.
Bishop's outscored Mount Allison 20-0 in the quarter and had all the momentum.
The Gaiters controlled most of the fourth as they never looked back. The Mounties were only able to muster 75 yards of offense in the second half. McGriskin tacked on his second rushing touchdown of the game just 3:17 in and the Coulter Field faithful were in a frenzy.
As the clock hit triple zeros, Bishop's was on top 34-15, and they return to their third Loney Bowl in the last four seasons.
McGriskin finished the day 16-for-31 for 151 yards through the air with a touchdown and an interception. He added eight rushes for 48 yards and the two majors to earn Bishop's Player of the Game honours.
Valenti was 13-for-25 for 167 yards with two touchdowns and two picks. Daniel Bell recorded 8.5 tackles for the Mounties to earn their Player of the Game nod.
Bishop's will head to Antigonish on Saturday, Nov. 11 to face the StFX X-Men for the Loney Bowl. Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m. Atlantic, 1 p.m. Eastern. The X-Men have got the better of Bishop's in their two contests this year, the second was a classic with StFX escaping Lennoxville in triple overtime.
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Recap provided by Bishop's University Athletics