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As the Ontario Summer Football League playoffs kicked off on Saturday for the Sault Sabercats varsity team, coach Jamie Antonello noticed something in his team.
The team ultimately cruised to a 63-34 win over the Waterloo Warriors Saturday at Superior Heights and Antonello says he’s impressed with the way his team rode the waves of the playoff opener.
“Our player leadership was really great today,” Antonello said. “They were calm. It didn’t matter the situation. At one point, one of our captains was trying to calm me down because I was excited about a play. They were really level-headed, the core group of guys that we have.”
“We were calm; it didn’t matter what was going on,” Antonello added. “Things got chippy, plays back-and-forth, we were ‘Next play, let’s move on.’ We weren’t always like that. Earlier in the season, we were a little bit too hot, sometimes a little bit too cold. We really played the momentum swings.”
Antonello added that he felt his team carried a solid offence effort from their final regular season contest last weekend into this week’s contest.
“We felt like we were kind of driving the train and staying in control like we wanted to,” Antonello said. “The offence had another spectacular game. They played great last week and really built off it.”
Defensively, Antonello added that the team knew there was a possibility of giving up some big plays against the Warriors.
“When you play man coverage, sometimes you get beat,” Antonello said. “We’ll be better (going forward).”
For the Sabercats, big plays from a number of players became critical in the victory.
“We made some huge plays,” Antonello said. “(Nathan) Guizzetti was great on the ground. We blocked well for him. Our offensive line is really starting to gel and when you have a back as explosive as him, they get excited. They know all they have to do is give him a little grease and he can take it.”
Antonello also credited the play of Nik Vecchio defensively after the Sabercats made some adjustments and on the offensive side of the ball, the Sabercats coach noted the play of Ethan Carchidi in short yardage situations and a play by Jaiden Trudeau for a touchdown late.
Waterloo wasted no time opening the scoring as quarterback Wesley Graham hit receiver Malachai Pryce for an 81-yard pass and run to make it 6-0 in the opening minute of play.
The Sabercats got on the board late in the quarter as Nathan Guizzetti took a short pitch from Jack MacPherson and ran the ball in from three yards out for the touchdown. Nik Vecchio hit the convert to give the Sabercats a 7-6 lead with just over two minutes to go in the quarter.
The locals appeared to take a somewhat comfortable lead in the second quarter.
Alex Varpio hit McPherson with a pass for a 21-yard touchdown to extend the lead further. With the convert from Vecchio, the Sabercats held a 14-6 lead.
Midway through the quarter, Ethan Carchidi ran the ball in from one yard out for a touchdown. With the convert from Vecchio, the Sabercats increased the lead to 21-6.
Waterloo cut into the lead when Pryce caught a 30-yard pass from Graham for his second touchdown of the day. Roman Marinelli hit the convert to make it a 21-13 game.
On the ensuing kickoff, Nathan Guizzetti ran the ball back 105 yards for a touchdown. Vecchio hit the convert to make the score 28-13.
Waterloo added a single point after a missed field goal attempt sailed through the Sabercats end zone.
The locals took a 35-14 lead into the half thanks to a one-yard touchdown run from Carchidi and convert by Vecchio.
The Sabercats extended the lead further in the third quarter as Jaiden Trudeau scored on a 28-yard touchdown run. The convert by Vecchio made it 42-14.
A pair of Waterloo touchdowns made the game slightly closer as Graham hit Pryce for his third major of the day to make it 42-20.
Emmet Gamble then punched the ball in on a one-yard run to make it 42-26.
Guizzetti then scored his second touchdown of the day on a 92-yard run for the Sabercats. The convert by Vecchio made the score 49-26.
Waterloo made it a 56-34 game when Graham hit Dienma Tomlin for a 75-yard touchdown. Noah Murdock got the two-point convert on the play.
An 89-yard touchdown catch and run by Trudeau with just over two minutes to go and the subsequent convert by Vecchio made it 63-34.
The Sabercats now advance in OSFL playoff action to face the Brantford Bisons on the road next week. The Bisons beat the Sudbury Spartans 36-6 in Brantford Saturday evening to advance.
The winner of next week’s game will play in the Sandy Ruckstuhl Memorial Cup final on Aug. 3.
The Sabercats junior varsity team was also in action on Saturday, picking up a playoff win over the Brantford Bisons at Superior Heights. Details from that game can be found here.