Stingers drop overtime clash

It may have been the best Concordia Stingers football game in recent memory, and Sunday’s 21-18 overtime loss to the no. 1 ranked Laval Rouge et Or could have also been the most heartbreaking.

Laval’s Cameron Tackas hit a 23-yard field goal in overtime to end the game after Concordia couldn’t score in their overtime possession. Scott Syvret got sacked on second down and Warren Kean missed a 45-yard field goal wide.

The Stingers had a 15-7 lead going into the fourth quarter, but Laval stormed back. They scored a touchdown on a nine-yard pass play from Benoit Groulx to Matthew Leblanc, which was followed by a Groulx run to change the game-tying two-point conversion with 7:20 remaining in regulation time.

Laval took the lead with just over a minute left when Groulx found Duane John on second and 15 for 42 yards to the Concordia four yard line. What followed was a seven yard field goal by Tackas after two runs were stuffed by the Concordia defence.

This forced Concordia to drive the ball for the game-tying field goal, and they did. Scott Syvret completed passes to Nick Scissons and Nick Saikeley sandwiched in between by a Andrew Hamilton scamper. That set up a 44-yard field goal by Kean with 14.8 seconds left.

The Stingers took the lead on their first possession when Hamilton ran in from the two yard line two plays after a pass interference call in the end zone to bring the ball to the one yard line.

The crowd of over 14,000 at Stade PEPS was loud as always, but the crowd was smaller than usual due to rain, hail and gusty winds in Ste-Foy. They did, however, get up every time the Stingers broke the huddle. Syvret said that he might have brought a little extra in this game.

“In the past the offensive line has had trouble hearing me, but today the guys said I needed my man voice, not my little boy voice,” he said.

The Stingers only had one false start or offside penalty the entire game, a testament to the discipline in extremely harsh conditions.

Despite the close and exciting game, both teams were sloppy when it came to hanging onto the ball. Syvret and Rob Mackay both had two interceptions that day, including two of the strangest turns of events you’ll see. In the second quarter, Olivier Turcotte L

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