The Scoreboard: Homecoming football and taking on the NCAA

Graphic by Keven Vaillancourt / The Concordian

Week four of Stingers sports action offered many huge storylines.

The Concordia Stingers were back on the field and on the ice for another weekend of competition. They played 11 games, with playoffs quickly approaching for fall sports and the winter season nearing. Here’s this week’s recap:

Football

Graphic by Keven Vaillancourt / The Concordian

This weekend saw the annual Homecoming game at Concordia Stadium. The Stingers faced their crosstown rival, the McGill Redbirds, as they looked to earn their second win of the season.

Both teams entered the matchup with one win and two losses. With the game marking the season’s halfway point, any loss is as costly as ever.

In what ended up being an instant classic, McGill started the game with 21 unanswered points. They carried a 21-0 lead into the fourth quarter.

Two touchdowns in two drives brought the Stingers right back into the game. They added a one-point rouge, and just like that, the Stingers were down 21-15. Their fourth-quarter rally would ultimately fall just short as they pushed up the field on the final drive. The Stingers added a two-point safety, but it was not enough. McGill came out on top, 21-17.

The team will be back in action when they face a formidable opponent in the Université Laval Rouge et Or on Sep. 29. Kick-off is set for 1 p.m.

Soccer

The Stingers men’s and women’s soccer teams played two games each this week. With the struggles continuing for the women’s team, they aimed to finally get that elusive first win as they played Université Laval and Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Citadins.

The matchup against Laval displayed much of the same old story from this season: an offence that could not capitalize on opportunities meant the Stingers got shut out. They dropped their first game of the weekend, 2-0. Two days later, they were back home playing against the Citadins. Finally, the Stingers would get in the win column.

The Stingers struck first when forward Rachel Vermaire put a shot past the Citadin goalkeeper in the second half. Minutes later, Vermaire added another. The Stingers won 2-0 and are up to four points on the season.

The team will be back on the field on Sept. 27 when they face their rival McGill Martlets.

Meanwhile, the Stingers men’s soccer team looked to build on their three-game winning streak coming into the weekend. They travelled to face the Rouge et Or on Sept. 20.

With another clean sheet, the Stingers earned the defeat, winning 2-0. They had won their fourth game in a row. The last time they won four straight? Oct. 28, 2001.

Inevitably, the winning streak came to an end when they faced the Citadins on Sept. 22. The Stingers scored first, but the Citadins answered almost immediately. The game ended in a 1-1 draw.

The men’s team will look to continue their five-game point streak when they play at McGill on Sept. 27.

Rugby

The Stingers women’s rugby team was in action this week when they hosted the Université de Montréal

Carabins at Concordia Stadium. Coming off a significant defeat the week prior, the Stingers looked to get back on the right foot.

In a nailbiter, the Stingers escaped with a 22-15 win led by the defence. With the win, Concordia improved to a record of three wins and one loss on the season.

They will play next on Sept. 28 when they face the Rouge et Or on the road.

The men’s team did not have a game over the weekend.

Hockey

It was another big week of preseason hockey. Both the men’s and women’s teams travelled to play meaningful, non-conference games.

The men’s team was in the Maritimes to face the Dalhousie University Tigers on Sept. 20 and the Saint Mary’s University Huskies on Sept. 21.

After splitting a two-game series with the Carleton University Ravens last weekend, the Stingers defeated both the Tigers and the Huskies. The 4-0 and 6-3 wins are a good sign heading into the regular season. Point production from new players on the team has been present in all four preseason games thus far.

The next time the men’s team will be in action will be game one of the regular season when they face the Queen’s University Gaels on Oct. 4.

The Stingers women’s hockey team faced three National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) opponents over the weekend. They faced off against the Boston University Terriers, the Merrimack College Warriors, and the University of Vermont Catamounts in three consecutive days.

In their game against the Terriers, the Stingers got out to a 1-0 lead early. However, Boston University would come back by scoring four unanswered goals. The Terriers took the first game of the Stingers’ road trip, 4-1.

Concordia hoped to get back to their winning ways against the Warriors. With a strong defensive effort, the Stingers held on to defeat the Warriors by a score of 3-2. It was off to the University of Vermont for the third and final game.

Defender Leonie Philbert capped off the scoring for the Stingers as they defeated the Catamounts by a score of 3-1.

An impressive two wins out of three in the NCAA road trip brings the Stingers closer to the regular season on a high note. They will return to Ed Meagher Arena when they play the St. Francis Xavier University X-Women on Sept. 27.

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