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Defense wins football games

The Stingers have improved their record to 2-2 this season. Photos by Ana Hernandez

The Concordia Stingers defeated the St-Francis Xavier X-Men at home on Saturday

A last-second defensive stand by the Concordia Stingers defense allowed the team to pick up a 17-11 victory against the St-Francis Xavier University X-Men on Sept. 24 during homecoming at Concordia Stadium.

“We had a good pre-game scouting report from our defensive-coordinator Patrick Donovan,” Stingers defensive end Andrew Barlett said. “We had a great week of practice. Everyone was fast to tune in and make the plays that they needed to. Big time players made big time plays.”

The Stingers came out of the gate fast, taking a 9-0 lead just five minutes in, after a touchdown by Stingers wide receiver James Tyrell and an X-Men safety.

The X-Men would end up finding their groove later into the first half, eventually taking an 11-10 lead deep into the second quarter. The Stingers came back with a field goal by kicker Andrew Stevens, and added a point from a missed field goal to take a 14-11 lead going into halftime.

In the first half, the Stingers only generated 186 yards of total offense. Stingers head coach Mickey Donovan, said the offense needs to get better and it has been struggling for the last few games.

“It’s been the same story for four weeks,” Donovan said. “Offensively we can move the ball, but we get into that red zone and it’s done. We’re not finishing when we need to finish. I feel like a broken record because we’re not getting the problem solved.”

In the second half, the Stingers opened with a field goal to bring the score to 17-11 and relied on their defense to hold the lead for the rest of the game.

The X-Men were unable to get deep into the Stingers zone and were kept to 353 yards of total offense. During the X-Men’s final possession, the team was finally able to chip away at the Stingers defense, and with four seconds left on the clock, the X-Men had one last play to steal the win from the Stingers.

Concordia will take on the Bishop’s Gaiters in their next match.

X-Men quarterback Tivon Cook threw the ball into the end zone but it was batted down by a Stingers cornerback.

“You’ve got to think about personal pride and the teammate standing next to you,” Barlett said about the team’s calm demeanor during the final moments. “You’ve got to look to the sideline to see your brothers who have fought hard all game. You have to go as hard as you’ve ever gone in a game.”

Despite being disappointed in his team’s performance, Donovan was happy that his team picked up the win and brought their record up to 2-2.

“We got to get some momentum going our way,” Donovan said. “With a win, that’s one positive we can take with us. We need to get better, watch the film and fix the mistakes that we keep continuously making.”

The Stingers next game will be against the Bishop’s Gaiters in the Shrine Bowl at home on Oct. 1.

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Stingers split doubleheader with Sherbrooke

Despite their chances, the women’s team was unable to comeback.

The men’s soccer team picked up a win while the women lost to the Vert et Or

The Concordia Stingers men’s and women’s soccer teams split a doubleheader with the Université de Sherbrooke Vert et Or on Sept. 23 at Concordia Stadium. The men’s team won their match 6-0 while the women lost 2-1.

Men’s Soccer

The Stingers made a statement with the win, putting up the largest margin of victory in the Réseau du Sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) division this season. They improved to 2-2-0, moving into a playoff spot.

The Stingers created chances right from the get-go. Vert et Or goalkeeper Guillaume Proulx made a few key stops in the opening half hour, frustrating the Stingers offence.

The men’s team now has a record of 2-2 this season. Photos by Alex Hutchins.

The Stingers forwards pressed hard on Sherbrooke, and midfielder Omar Abdelfadel created a turnover deep in the attacking half. The ball found its way to forward Mitchell O’Brien in the box, who spun around and took a shot towards the far side of the goal. Proulx could do nothing to stop the sensational goal.

Midfielder Amadou Lam scored on a penalty five minutes later, and the Stingers were up at the half 2-0.

The Stingers continued pressing for goals throughout the second half. Eight minutes into the frame, Stingers forward Sebastien Boucley took a pass from forward Gabriel Quinn in the box and tucked the shot away to make it 3-0.

In the 73rd minute, Stingers defender Antonio Bruzzese crossed the ball into the scoring area, and after the keeper mishandled it, Boucley was right on the doorstep to put it away.

The Stingers added two late goals from Quinn and Boucley, who got a hat-trick.

Goalkeeper Karl Gouabé, who has been named the Male Athlete of the Week the past two weeks, made four stops. This was his first shutout off the season, which was important for head coach Greg Sutton.

“The biggest thing was that defensively, we kept the zero on the scoreboard,” Sutton said.

Women’s Soccer

The women’s team followed up the men’s game with a heartbreaking loss at the hands of the Vert et Or. The team had their chances but came up short in the 2-1 loss.

The start was not optimal for Concordia, as the official awarded the Vert et Or a penalty shot nine minutes in. The Vert et Or capitalized on their opportunity and took an early 1-0 lead.

The rest of the first half was rather stagnate, with little chances from either side. The Stingers did build up some attack, but were often called offside.

The second half did not start ideally for the Stingers. Under two minutes in, Sherbrooke forward Christina Arès-St-Onge blasted a shot from outside the box into the top corner. It was a deflating goal that would have taken the life from most teams, but not the Stingers.

The women kept their heads held high, and their spirits were lifted when forward Mélisane Lafrenaye—a former Shebrooke player—airmailed the ball 30 yards into the back of the net. It was a goal of pure class that kept the Stingers in the game.

“We got the goal and it just gave us life,” Stingers head coach Jorge Sanchez said.

The Vert et Or attempted to regain their two-goal lead, but their offensive chances were shut down by the stellar Stingers defence. Stingers goalkeeper Olivia Desgroseilliers made a fantastic save in the 66th minute that kept them alive.

The Stingers had multiple chances from the 80th minute onwards, but did not get any goals out of it.

“I really appreciate the way they fought,” Sanchez said. “You saw them puff up a little bit and start playing, and we had chances.”

Both teams play at the Universite de Québec a Montréal on Sept. 25 before hosting Laval next Friday on Sept. 30.

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Stingers dominate Carabins in 8-3 win

The Stingers are now 4-4 on the year.

Concordia’s baseball team pulled out a victory against the Université de Montréal

The Concordia Stingers baseball team picked up their fourth win of the season against the Université de Montréal Carabins on Sept. 22, as quality base-running and solid pitching propelled them to an 8-3 win.

Despite some poor weather conditions and some shaky defensive plays, Concordia played a strong game, headlined by pitcher Jarryd Taylor’s first game of the season.

“[The game] was solid,” Stingers manager Howie Schwartz said. “Our last two games have been our first two games of the year that we’ve pitched well.”

Through almost a full seven innings, Taylor held the Carabins to two hits and eight walks. He struck out nine batters, and did not concede a single earned run on his way to his first win of the season.

“What [Taylor’s performance is] going to do is set the table for our number one and two guys, Connerty and Belisle-Springer, to [pick up] their performances,” Schwartz said.

The Stingers received great pitching in their 8-3 victory. Photos by James Kierans.

Despite the strong pitching, the Stingers were far from perfect on defense as they made mistakes due to a lack of communication and a combination of wind and rain.

During one play in particular, second baseman Alex Hall and right fielder Matthew Litwin collided going after a ball which allowed the Carabins to pick up two runs.

It was the Stingers offensive play that set the tone for the game, as they got on base 18 times, their second highest mark of the season. The team also capitalized on their success at the plate, stealing six bases without being caught once.

“We’re not big hitters, we’re a very fast team, we have to take the extra base, we have to steal, we have to do hit and runs,” Schwartz said. “In the first four games we didn’t have a chance to do that because we were behind the whole time.”

Shortstop Michael Makarios led the team with three stolen bases, including one in the bottom of the fourth. Carabins catcher Alexandre Cloutier tried to pick him off, but the throw was dropped by the second baseman, allowing Stingers first baseman Stefan Brady to steal home from third base.

“A lot of running, a lot of extra bases, a lot of stealing, a lot of hit and run. That’s what our team is all about,” Schwartz said.

The Stingers now have a 4-4 record as they prepare for their doubleheader on Sept. 24 in Ottawa.

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Stingers edged out by Redmen

The Stingers lost on a walk-off pitch at the end of the game. Photos by Derek Swales.

Concordia’s baseball team battled hard but lost on a walk-off pitch to McGill

The Stingers held their own and played as though they were capable of beating a strong Redmen team at Gary Carter Field on Sept. 21, but fell just short, losing by a score of 4-3.

“The team did well enough to win, we just didn’t get enough hits,” said Stingers manager Howie Schwartz.

The Stingers only managed to get three hits the entire game, which was a drastic decline from this past weekend where they got 26 hits in a doubleheader against Carleton. However, the Stingers still never actually trailed in the game until the moment that McGill pinch-runner Zachary Aaron stole home and scored after the wild pitch from Stingers pitcher Sam Belisle-Springer at the end the game.

The Stingers were able to get runners on base due to a few uncharacteristic errors by the Redmen defense and some control issues from McGill starting pitcher Henry Dennis.

“We got good at bats, we just didn’t hit the ball well,” Schwartz said. The Stingers weren’t able to take advantage of those baserunners, stranding the bases loaded in the first inning.

The Stingers however would not blow the same opportunity twice. After loading up the bases again in the second inning, catcher Dario Vincelli hit a bases clearing double to give the Stingers an early 3-0 lead.

Control issues by Concordia starting pitching, leading to a high number of walks has been an issue so far this season. However, Stingers starting pitcher Sami Brochu was firing on all cylinders against the Redmen.

He was cruising along until McGill was finally able to get to him with a few hits in the fourth inning to tie up the game 3-3.

“McGill deserved the runs they got, those were some solid hits and credit to them, you can’t say anything bad about Brochu, he didn’t make any mistake pitches,” Schwartz said. Brochu pitched four and two thirds of an inning, striking out five batters while allowing five hits and two walks.

The Stingers failed to take advantage of baserunners once again, this time in the sixth inning stranding runners on second and third base. This led to McGill squeaking two base hits through the middle of the infield in the seventh inning, eventually leading to the wild pitch walk-off.

“That’s just the way the game goes, sometimes it goes your way, sometimes it doesn’t, turns out tonight it didn’t go our way,” Schwartz said. Schwartz added that he expects more of the same effort and intensity from his team for the remainder of the season.

It will be a quick turnaround for the Stingers as they will host the Montreal Carabins on Sept. 22 at Gary Carter Field. The Stingers currently sit at a record of 3-4.

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Stingers mercy rule Ravens in back-to-back games

Concordia’s offense was simply too much for Carleton University

The hot bats of the Concordia Stingers baseball team lead the team to decisive back-to-back mercy rule victories against the Carleton Ravens at Gary Carter field on Sept. 18. The Stingers won the first game of the day 13-3, and the second 11-1.

In the first game, it took the Stingers a couple of innings to get warmed up, but after falling behind 3-0 after an inning and a half of play, the Stingers began to chip away, eventually exploding for eight runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. They scored 13 unanswered runs, forcing mercy rule after six innings of play.

In Game two, the Stingers jumped on the Ravens early, taking a 6-0 lead after two innings. With another offensive explosion in the fourth inning, this time for five runs, the Stingers needed four and a half innings to mercy rule the Ravens again.

“A lot of timely hitting today is exactly what I know this team is capable of doing,” Stingers manager Howie Schwartz said. Schwartz added that the team was disciplined at the batter plate.

Every player who went up to bat for the Stingers got on base at least once, and they combined for a total of 26 hits in the two games. Centre-fielder Mathieu Paquette-Groulx led the charge in game one with three hits and four runs batted in (RBI’s), while catcher Dario Vincelli had two hits and led the team with three RBI’s in the second game.

The one cause for concern was the amount of walks allowed by the Stingers starting pitchers. “That’s been our nemesis the first six games,” Schwartz said. “We’re walking way too many guys, having a hard time finding the plate; a lot of mechanical issues.”

Stingers pitcher Dan Connerty lasted three and two thirds of an inning, walking seven batters, while pitcher Shane Mullen, in game two, walked three batters in only two innings before leaving the game with an apparent elbow injury. Despite the walks, Schwartz wasn’t worried about his pitchers.

“I have no problem,” Schwartz said. “They’ll come back, they’re much better than that, it’s not like them.”

One bright spot for the pitching staff was five year veteran Matthew Adams-Whitaker, who came in as relief for both games and closed them out. He totaled five and a third innings pitched between both games, allowing only one hit and one run. He now has three straight relief appearances where he has allowed one run or less.

“I’ve seen teams take a while to get the chemistry going—with this team it was right there, even from training camp. They just haven’t translated it onto the field yet,” Schwartz said.

However, Schwartz feels like Sunday might have been the start of something, telling his players after the game that “our season began today.”

The Stingers will have a chance to continue their momentum on Sept. 21, when they get to take on their divisional rivals the McGill Redmen at Gary Carter Field.

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Continuing the war cry of Les Lawton

The Stingers played well against the Carabins last season, who are the defending national champions. Photo by Marie-Pierre Savard.

Concordia Stingers women’s hockey head coach Julie Chu talks about developing the team for this season

Last season, former Concordia Stingers women’s hockey head coach Les Lawton gave his team a motto to play by. The motto was simple: “Everything is earned.” When Lawton fell ill, and current head coach Julie Chu replaced him, she kept that motto going.

“[The motto] was something that was initially going to be for last season, but it’s at the heart of what we believe in as we continue to move forward,” Chu said. “Lawton is still a great mentor for myself and our entire team. We always ask him for advice and he’s still involved in our program.”

Chu, who replaced Lawton last August, has high expectations for her team this season.

Last year, the team finished the season with a record of 6-12-2, placing fourth out of five teams in the Réseau de sports étudiant de Québec division—something that Chu hopes to improve on this year.

“For our team, we’re looking to make it to our playoffs, win the RSEQ and get to Nationals,” Chu said. “We have a lot of work to do to get to that point. We have to make sure that every day at practice we step on the ice prepared to work and get better—even if it’s just a little bit each day.”

In order to succeed this year, the Stingers will have to beat teams like the Université de Montréal Carabins, who won the RSEQ division and the National Championship last year. For Chu, the Carabins are a threat, but the whole division poses a large challenge as well.

“Our conference in general is a strong one,” Chu said. “We need to allow ourselves to go through growing pains—that will kick us off in October to be successful against any team we play against, whether it’s Carleton or the Carabins.”

This past weekend, the Stingers played three exhibition games in three nights against the University of Toronto, the University of Guelph and the University of Waterloo. The Stingers defeated Toronto 2-1, beat Guelph 2-1 and lost to Waterloo 2-1.

The team will also be playing exhibition games against Clarkson University on Sept. 23, Union University on Sept. 24 and a big match-up against Les Canadiennes de Montréal on Sept. 30.

For Chu, these games are a great opportunity to see what the team needs to improve on.

“Do we want to go to every game we go to and win? Yes— we’re competitors. But the bigger picture is that we want to make sure we’re learning and growing,” Chu said. “We do a ton of video analysis, so we understand where we go wrong and where we can improve.”

Chu added that the exhibition games are also a great time to test individual players’ strengths and weaknesses, while also gauging who should get starting positions once the season starts.

“Once we get into the season, nothing is guaranteed,” Chu said. “It’s about who earns what playing time, and what position and role each player earns. It’s about how people are performing and executing, and what roles and styles fit best.”

Chu said, to earn a significant role on the team, players have to be able to learn from their mistakes and come together to work as a team

“Always giving a full effort and being great teammates is a non-negotiable,” Chu said.

The Stingers will play their first game of the regular season at home against the University of Ottawa Gee Gees on Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m.

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The Élement of CIS hockey success

Marc-André Élement is optimistic about the upcoming season. Photo by Brianna Thicke.

Stingers men’s hockey coach Marc-André Élement talks about the upcoming season

With the head coaching job up for grabs, Concordia’s men’s hockey program had a big decision to make during the off-season. After a summer of deliberation, the Stingers chose last year’s interim head coach Marc-André Élement as the man to take over as full-time coach.

Élement, who now has a year with the Stingers under his belt, is ready to apply his skills and experiences from last season to this season.

“Every day as a coach, you learn. I learned a lot last season,” Élement said. “We had a good team last year, and I’m expecting this year to have a better season. When you have good people around you, it makes it a lot easier.”

For Élement, having good people around him means bringing in a strong recruiting class that not only has talented players, but good-hearted players as well.

Among the recruiting class from the Stingers this year are Anthony Deluca and Philippe Sanche of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) who are touted to provide the Stingers with much needed goal-scoring this season.

“We have a very good recruiting class this year,” Élement said. “What I’ve learned is that if you want to win a championship, you need to win with good people. All of our recruits are really good people.”

Last year, the Stingers had a young team with 15 first-year players. Although those players are going into this season with an extra year under their belts, Élement still feels like he has a young team.

However, Élement expects his young squad to be able to compete with the strongest teams in the league, while playing to the best of their abilities night-in and night-out.

“I always have high expectations for my team,” Élement said. “I think we will be capable of doing the job and I just want the guys to be playing all-out every single game.”

The Stingers will not be without leadership, as captain Olivier Hinse is returning for his fifth and final year of eligibility in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS). Élement said having Hinse return is great for the young players—they will have someone on the team who acts as a role model on and off the ice.

“We had a good discussion with Olivier and he’s going to be the mentor for all the new guys,” Élement said. “When you have a young team like that, you need a guy to look up to. He leads by example, and they’ll see his work ethic on and off the ice.”

One challenge that Élement will face this year, however, is the goaltending situation. Last season, the team switched between Miguel Sullivan and Robin Billingham on a regular basis, with Antoine Marchand acting as the third goalie.

This season, the Stingers have added QMJHL goaltender Philippe Cadorette, who holds 13 QMJHL records and Marc-Antoine Turcotte, who plays in the QMJHL as well. While Turcotte will only be eligible to play in December, the addition of Turcotte and Cadorette means five goalies will be competing for the starting job.

“We will make a decision on who starts for us after the exhibition games,” Élement said. “We’re still in training camp, so you never know what’s going to happen.”

With exhibition games on the horizon, Élement is also looking for players who will go all out and give all their effort on a consistent basis. Élement added that he is confident in his team, and that team chemistry is at an all-time high.

“The team is working hard. They have a good work ethic. They work their ass off on the ice and they work hard in school,” Élement said. “Those are the three things that are most important to us, so we’re excited.”

The Stingers next exhibition game will be played against the University of Acadia in Nova Scotia on Sept. 23 at 6 p.m.

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Soccer: Stingers split doubleheader with UQTR

The men’s team suffered their second loss of the season. Photos by Ana Hernandez.

The Concordia women’s soccer team picked up their first win, while the men lost

Men’s Soccer:

The Concordia Stingers men’s soccer team lost 2-0 to the Université de Québec à Trois-Rivières Patriotes on Sept. 16 at Concordia Stadium. The Stingers failed to build off of a win last week and suffered their second loss of the season.

The first half passed without any goals, but it wasn’t due to a lack of chances. The Patriotes attacked early on. Stingers goalkeeper Karl Gouabé stopped a UQTR partial breakaway in the fourth minute and then parried away the rebound shot.

The Stingers first real opportunity came on a two-on-one between forwards Mustapha Medouni and Sebastien Boucley. A Patriotes defender got in the way of the two, and cleared the ball.

In the 23rd minute, Boucley was brought down in the box, but no call was made, prompting some shouts from the Stingers. Two minutes later, a Patriotes player was given a yellow card for diving in the Stingers box, much to the dismay of the visitors.

In the final moments of the half, Abdallah Medouni collided violently outside the box with Patriotes keeper Dominic Provost. Both teams surrounded the referee, demanding punishment to the opponent, but the Stingers were called for a foul.

The Patriotes opened the second half with force, scoring two goals in the 58th and 60th minutes, securing the victory. The first goal came off the head of Louis-Thomas Fortier on a corner from Simon Lagarde. Two minutes later, the Patriotes controlled the ball in the 18-yard box, and Billal Qsiyer finished a passing play with a shot to the top corner.

A disappointed head coach Greg Sutton said he believes his team had two lapses of concentration that led to the goals.

“We lost our concentration on the set piece,” Sutton said. “Then on the second one we were still disappointed and we were not concentrated. We knew we could have had some opportunities later in the game, but we were our own enemy.”

The Stingers did create some scoring chances late in the second half, but it just wasn’t enough.

The Stingers host the Sherbrooke Vert et Or next week, a team currently last in the Réseau du Sport étudiant du Québec.

“[We have to learn] from what we did, and learn from those mistakes that happened in this game, and continue to improve,” Sutton said.

Women’s Soccer:

The women’s team went out on the pitch right after the men’s game and produced a much better result than their counterparts, as they beat the Patriotes 3-1, earning their first win of the season.

The Patriotes sit last in the province, but this was no easy task for the hosts. The Stingers struggled to find their rhythm early on, and the Patriotes countered with a few scoring chances. Rookie goalie Carmen Milne made some key saves for the Stingers in the first half hour.

The women’s team picked up their first win of the season against UQTR by a score of 3-1.

The Stingers started to create chances 35 minutes into the game. They had a shot cleared off the line, a few good shots just missed wide and a breakaway stopped. The breakthrough came in the 41st minute when rookie Chama Sedki blasted a free kick from 30 yards out into the far corner, taking the keeper by surprise.

Two minutes later, Stingers midfielder Laura Lamontagne took a through ball on the wing, broke in and hit the crossbar. Forward Sophie Beaudry was on the doorstep to give them a 2-0 lead heading into halftime.

The Patriotes scored a goal just four minutes into the second half. The Stingers defended well against UQTR’s pressure, and Milne was a big reason for that. She made a number of big stops, including back-to-back close-range shots in the 70th minute.

Head coach Jorge Sanchez was impressed by her play.

“There’s an adage that says, don’t be happy when the goalie makes a save, that’s their job,” Sanchez said. “Be happy when a goalie makes the big save. And she made the big save.”

The Stingers put the game to bed with a third goal in the 75th minute. Lamontagne collected a rebound off the crossbar, and had two shots stopped before Stingers mid-fielder Julia Bianchi helped her put the ball away.

“The team just works hard. We’re around the ball. We’re not assuming the ball is going to go in or not go in,” Sanchez said.

Both Stingers soccer teams will take on the Université de Sherbrooke Vert et Or on Sept. 23 at Concordia Stadium. The men’s game is at 6:30 p.m. while the women’s game is at 8:30 p.m.

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Stingers blown out by the Carabins

The Concordia football team fell 59-3 to the top-ranked team in the country

The Université de Montréal Carabins football team dominated in their home-opener on Sept. 16 against the Concordia Stingers, winning by a score of 59-3. The Carabins, who are the number one ranked team in the country, provided an offensive onslaught which was simply too much for the Stingers to handle.

When asked what went wrong after the game, Stingers coach Mickey Donovan replied with: “Everything.”

“We didn’t come out to play and we made way too many mistakes,” Donovan said. “You’re not going to be able to compete in those games playing that way.”

Donovan added that in the week prior to the game, the Stingers prepared for the Carabins’ strong offense and defense, but they weren’t able to execute in the game. Stingers quarterback Trenton Miller shared those same thoughts, saying that the team needs to limit their mistakes and make better plays.

The Carabins came out strong, scoring on their first offensive drive when halfback Gabriel Parent punched the ball into the end zone from the one-yard line just four minutes in. The Stingers quickly answered back with a field goal from kicker Andrew Stevens, cutting the deficit to 7-3.

The Stingers field goal ended up being the only points they would score all game. The Carabins followed up the Stingers score with a 45-yard catch and run touchdown from receiver Guillaume Paquet. Paquet outran the Stingers defense and gave the Carabins a 14-3 lead, with just under eight minutes left in the first half.

The Stingers offense was unable to get any momentum going, which forced their defense to stay out on the field for longer.

“They were tired. You go back and look at the stats and they were out there for the majority of the time,” Donovan said. “We got to be able to get some long drives going and finish them.”

The Stingers now sit at a record of 1-2.

Despite Concordia’s woes on offense, the Carabins managed to score 52 unanswered points and drew praise from the Stingers quarterback.

“They’re a very athletic and fast team. They’re well coached,” Miller said. “They do a great job year in and year out.”

In the fourth quarter, already up 42-3, the Carabins put the game even more out of reach when Carabins cornerback Jordan Perrin intercepted a pass and returned it 46 yards for a touchdown. This made the score 49-3. The Carabins eventually added another field goal and a rushing touchdown from running back Julien Choquette-Daigneault to bring the score to 59-3.

One bright spot for the Stingers was the performance of freshman receiver Vincent Alessandrini, who finished the game with nine receptions and 63 yards.

The Stingers will look to bounce back next week against St. Francis Xavier University on Sept. 24 at Concordia Stadium.

“We still have five games to go,” Miller said. “We’re in the playoff hunt.”

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Stingers lose at home to McGill

The Stingers lost 11-3 against the McGill Redmen. Photo by James Kierans

The Concordia baseball team fell to a strong Redmen squad 11-3

The Concordia Stingers baseball team fell flat in their first game against divisional rivals, the McGill Redmen, with Concordia starting pitcher Sam Belisles-Springer allowing eight runs in the first three innings of a 11-3 loss on Sept. 15.

Defensive breakdowns put the Stingers behind early in the game. With no one out in the top of the second inning, Stingers catcher Dario Vincelli let a pitch get past him, giving Redmen hitter Rocky Hroch a chance to steal home from third base. Belisles-Springer rushed to the plate to prevent the run, but the ball was knocked out of his glove and away from the plate by the runner, giving another Redmen player the opportunity to score.

The night was a forgettable one for Belisles-Springer, as he allowed seven walks, five hits and eight runs before being called off the mound part-way through the third inning.

“It seems to be there’s a mechanical problem there that we have to work out. He’s doing fine mechanics on his breaking balls, but his fastballs are way up, and he’s [alerting the batter of his pitch],” Stingers manager Howie Schwartz said.

Belisles-Springer added that for him to succeed he needs to get to strike one, no matter what kind of pitch he gets there with.

Despite giving up eight runs, the Stingers starting pitcher managed seven strikeouts before being pulled. Schwartz praised him and noted that he knows Belisles-Springer is a more than capable pitcher.

“That’s not a guy who throws eighty-eight pitches in two and a third innings, and I’ve known him for three years,” Schwartz said. “Everybody gets roughed up every now and again.”

Stingers designated hitter Matthew Adams-Whittaker, who pitched almost four innings as a replacement for Belisles-Springer, received high praise from his coach.

“I was very impressed. He’s going to get a lot more innings,” Schwartz said.

The Stingers next games are against Carleton on Sept. 18.

Adams-Whittaker held McGill to one run while in the game, and allowed no walks. His slower pitching style caught the Redmen off guard.

“He’s not over-powering—that’s the beauty,” Schwartz said. “We have a fastball pitcher in there at the beginning, and then to throw somebody in there like that, it really throws the batters off base.”

In the fifth inning, the Stingers mounted their only significant offensive push of the game, scoring two runs and advancing additional runners to second and third, before a foul fly ball and a strikeout dashed their hopes of a comeback.

The Stingers would concede two last runs in the seventh inning, although a diving grab by Concordia’s second-string shortstop Liam Griffin to keep the ball in the infield helped prevent a mercy rule.

“[Griffin’s] going to be coming into late innings mostly. He’s gonna get his chances. He’s a good kid, great attitude, but [Matthew] Litwin’s our shortstop,” Schwartz said. “We might move [Griffin] around third and second base, just to get him into the game because his glove is so good.”

Despite his team’s struggles, Schwartz took the game as a learning experience.

“We’re still finding out a lot about this team. So many new, young guys are getting their first taste of this,” Schwartz said. “You have to get ready for a long season of learning to get ready for the playoffs. It’s not about winning every game.”

The Stingers will return to Gary Carter Field on Sept. 18 for a double-header against Carleton University.

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Sports

The comeback kids

The Stingers won against the Carabins by a score of 15-5. Photo by James Kierans.

The Concordia Stingers came back from five points down to defeat the Université de Montréal

The Concordia Stingers baseball team stunned the Université de Montréal Carabins on Sept. 12 with a comeback victory that saw the Stingers score 15 unanswered runs in one inning to force a mercy rule. They were down 5-0 going into the inning.

“I’ve been around baseball for a couple hundred years now, and that’s the wildest game I’ve ever seen,” Stingers manager Howie Schwartz said with a laugh.

Adversity hit early and often for the Stingers in their home opener against the Carabins. A fielding error in the top of the first inning by Stingers second baseman Nicolas Côté allowed the Carabins Pascal Grégoire to score from second base. An illegal motion by Concordia starting pitcher Shane Mullen would then bring opposing base runner Vincent Dion into scoring position. Dion would capitalize on his opportunity soon after.

Mullen’s fortunes did not improve over the first five innings of the game, as he and the Stingers defense allowed six hits, two errors, and five runs to the Carabins.

“They were hitting him, he wasn’t fooling anybody,” Schwartz said. “These [Montréal] guys are hitters. He was leaving some stuff up there, he’s gotta work on that. He can’t leave the ball up like that against other teams.”

Offensively, the Stingers had no luck as they were shut down by Carabins pitcher Charlie L’Oignon. L’Oignon was nursing a no-hitter through the first five innings of the game, allowing only one walk in the second.

“The pitcher kept us off balance, he had a nasty curveball. He kept our batters off balance completely,” Schwartz said.

Despite the 5-0 point lead, the Stingers stormed back and made the sixth inning the last one of the game.

At the top of the sixth, Mullen retired three Carabins batters in just six pitches. Then, L’Oignon conceded his first hit of the game to Côté. Stingers shortstop Matthew Litwin, taking advantage of the tired pitcher, drove the ball over second base for a single, loading the bases. After another walk by L’Oignon, the Stingers captured their first points of the game and never looked back.

L’Oignon came undone in the sixth inning and was eventually replaced by relief pitcher Pascal Desjardins, who allowed three additional runs. Desjardins was then pulled and Dion replaced him until the score was 10-5 in favor of the Stingers.

Dion was replaced by Carabins infielder Josh White. White allowed four more runs and cursed out the umpire on his way off the field.

The Stingers added one more run to bring the score to 15-5. With the ten point lead, the Stingers forced mercy rule and ended the game.

For Schwartz, there was no single turning point in the game, adding that the way the Stingers came out offensively in the sixth inning is something he has never seen from his team before.

“We’ve never had a 15-run inning, in the years that I’ve been playing,” Schwartz said. “Fifteen in one inning from a [no hitter]—you can add that on to what’s never happened before.”

The Stingers baseball team will be back in action on Sept. 15, where they will host the McGill Redmen at Gary Carter Field.

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Sports

Proud to be a part of the Stingers

Laura Lamontagne talks about her inspirations and her time with Concordia

When Laura Lamontagne first got to Concordia University, she did not want to play on the soccer team. After excelling at the AA and AAA levels in high school and then in Division 2 for Collège Bois-de-Boulogne, she decided to focus on her education.

“In my first year [at Concordia], I did not play because I was scared a bit with school. I did not know how university was, so I was a bit anxious,” said Lamontagne.

After a year of settling into school as an exercise science student, Lamontagne said she felt she was ready to take on the challenge of being a student-athlete, and has since adapted to the taxing lifestyle.

“It’s going well. In CEGEP I did not have to work as hard, but now I really have to study a lot,” Lamontagne said. “I have to make time—my schedule is very busy. I’m doing pretty well, and it’s not that hard if you put the effort in.”

Lamontagne would not be playing for Concordia University, or possibly even soccer for that matter, if it had not been for some inspirational people in her life, such as her family and other professional players.

Her mother coached her as a young player, but as a Concordia alumna herself, Lamontagne’s mother suggested that she play for the school, and play with pride.

“I’m very proud. I’m extremely proud of playing for the Stingers. It’s an honour everyday to [wear] the jersey or even the practice gear,” Lamontagne said. “I wear my Stingers [colours] with pride.”

Other inspirations to Lamontagne are American soccer stars Alex Morgan and Abby Wambach. Both are Olympic and FIFA World Cup winners with the U.S. women’s national team and are ambassadors to women’s soccer.

The Canadian women’s national team is also starting to be an inspiration to young girls across the nation. The women now hold back-to-back bronze medal titles at the Olympics, and after beating Brazil 2-1 in the bronze-medal match at the Rio Olympics, they became the only country to repeat a podium appearance in women’s socccer in 2012 and 2016. For Lamontagne, this was important for the game in Canada.

Laura Lamontagne scored four goals with the Stingers last year. Photo by Nicholas Di Giovanni.

“I’m really proud [of their performance],” Lamontagne said. “For young Canadians, it shows us that we can actually play at an international level and we have a chance at winning Olympic medals.”

Shortly after the triumph in Rio, national team player Rhian Wilkinson met with the Stingers. Lamontagne said that it was a cool experience to meet the veteran Wilkinson, a Montreal native herself.

Lamontagne certainly has fed off the energy from her inspirations during her time on the soccer team. Last season, she scored four goals as a rookie. She also scored the team’s opening goal of this season in their game against the McGill Martlets on Labour Day weekend.

As a left winger, Lamontagne uses her speed to cover ground on the pitch, both offensively and defensively. She has the ability to create chances on the flanks when given time and space, and is an aggressive player with a never-back-down attitude. Despite her talent of blowing past fullbacks on speed alone, Lamontagne knows there are always areas that need improvement. Dribbling is one of them.

“When I’m one-on-one, I have the speed to run in the space, but I need to find the speed with the ball to be able to clear a player on the sideline,” Lamontagne said.

As for her team, the Stingers have been improving steadily over the past few seasons. The Stingers finished the 2014 season with a record 3-6-5 and slightly improved their record last season of 4-9-1, which meant finishing sixth in the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ), just missing the playoffs.

Even though the Stingers have not made the playoffs since 2009, Lamontagne feels she plays on a team capable of doing some damage in the conference this season.

“I think we are going to accomplish a lot of stuff. We have some really good players, we have a very big potential, and it’s a really good team,” Lamontagne said. She also added that this team is one of the best she’s been on.

“We’re a very hard working team—we always push, we work hard, we have a very good team spirit, and you can tell we have a team fighting to win every game,” Lamontagne added.

Lamontagne and her teammates will be taking on the Université de Québec à Trois-Rivières in their next game, on Sept. 16 at 8:30 p.m.

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