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Montreal 3, Concordia 2: Stingers season ends in heartbreaking Game 3 loss to the Carabins

The number one ranked Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team’s season is over.

The Stingers lost 3-2 in game three of the RSEQ semi-finals to the Université de Montreal Carabins.

“It’s hard, we’re devastated for sure,” said head coach Julie Chu. “We always took it one game at a time, and we had belief that our team could go really far into nationals. But we also know that we play in the best conference in U Sports. To get out of our conference is always tough to do, especially against a great rival.”

The first period saw the Stingers start where they left things off after Saturday’s 5-3 game two win. They managed quality chances against the Carabins and were executing their zone entries perfectly. With four minutes left in the frame, Stingers captain Claudia Dubois wired home a one-timer to give the Stingers the lead.

In the second period, the Carabins flipped the script.

A power play goal four minutes in, and an in-tight goal with two minutes left in the period gave the Carabins all of the momentum.

Blaming the refs for a loss is never the answer, but it should be said that there were some extremely questionable calls on both teams. Take the Stingers tying goal for example. A seemingly innocent shot from Audrey-Ann Rodrigue squeaked past Carabins goalie Maude Trevisan, but the puck fell right behind the goalie, but never cleared the goal line and was clearly still in the blue paint (I asked four other media members who all said that the puck didn’t cross the line).

Chaos ensues after the ref calls the play dead, the refs convene at centre ice, the Stingers fans go crazy while waiting for the decision. The refs finally decided that the shot went in (it didn’t). It really seemed like the refs were peer pressured by the crowd to make that call.

Mix in some blatant missed calls on both teams, and you’re left with a game that wasn’t exactly decided by the refs, but their handprints are there. Chu has never been one to make excuses and that didn’t change after this game.

“It went both ways,” said Chu. “For us we always talk about controlling what we can control. The big part of what we do control is our ability to work hard, execute and do the little things really well. Unfortunately I think we got away from that a little bit.”

The Stingers struggled to generate momentum and chances in close against Trevisan. They were outshot 28-23 by the Carabins, and Stingers goalie Alice Philbert had to bail her team out a couple of times.

Graphic by Matthew Coyte

Shortly after tying the game up in the third period, the Carabins re-took the lead. A shot towards the front of the net took a strange bounce, the puck popped up and dropped right behind Philbert and into the net. Philbert would make 25 saves on 28 shots. Trevisan would make 21 on 23 shots.

Credit to the Carabins though, after getting outskated in game two, they came out and stuck to their game plan; heavy hockey. The Carabins won key puck battles, blocked a hell of alot of shots, forechecked hard and took advantage of their chances.

This ending is especially heartbreaking for Dubois. This was her last game in a Stingers jersey. The captain was lights-out all season and during this playoff series. Dubois is the defining player of Chu’s tenure as head coach. The same way Phil Hudon represented a new era of Stingers’ men’s hockey, Dubois embodied the winning culture that’s been built at Concordia over the past five years. The coach had nothing but praise for her captain post-game.

“She’s the one who’s going to make me cry when she leaves,” said Chu. “When she came [into the program], we were still figuring out how to win, how to build a culture, how to take things to the next level. She’s a huge reason why we got to this next level. Every day, from when she came in as a first-year, to this last game, she’s given us everything. She’s prepared, she works, she wants to win, she’s gritty. For us, that’s become the core of who we are. She’s the one who leads the team and she’s the strongest voice in that locker room. We’re going to miss her.”

This is a disappointing finish for the team. Not many people would have expected a 2020 U Sports national championship without the number one ranked team. Despite this, this season was important for the Stingers.

“Our biggest thing is to hold our head up high,” said Chu. “It’s going to sting for a while, but that’s okay. When we care about what we’re doing, we’re passionate, we put in the time and effort, it’s going to hurt when we don’t get the results we want. We wanted [the team] to feel like they should be proud of everything they’ve given up. They’ve given into this program this year. We’re really proud of them.”

The Carabins will play the McGill Martlets in the RSEQ finals later this week. Both teams will also advance to the U Sports national championship taking place in P.E.I. in March.

Notes:

  • The Stingers have been the most exciting Montreal hockey team this year. It’s sad to see them end the season this way, but you’ll never hear anyone say that they didn’t put their heart into every single game.
  • Claudia Dubois and defender Erica Starnino are the only fifth-year players on the Stingers. That means that most of the core that made the Stingers so deadly will be returning.

Feature photo by Britanny Clarke

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Concordia 5, Montreal 3: Stingers beat the Carabins in Game 2 of the RSEQ semi-finals

After the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team lost in game one of the RSEQ semi-finals to the Université de Montreal Carabins on Thursday, head coach Julie Chu promised that the game plan wasn’t about to suddenly change.

“I was really happy with how we played on Thursday,” says Chu. “We had a good reset day yesterday. Our players knew what was on the line. We just stayed the course.”

The first period of game two at UDEM’s CEPSUM arena didn’t start out great for the Stingers. The outlet passes weren’t hitting sticks, the Carabins were forechecking their way into long offensive possessions and the Stingers weren’t able to generate much momentum.

With six minutes left in the opening frame, defender Brigite Laganiere changed that.

Laganiere had a very strong regular season, putting up 18 assists while being relied defensively as the top defender on the team.

Despite the effort and consistency, Laganiere wasn’t able to score a goal.

During some neutral zone confusion, Laganiere took off alone against two Carabins players, wound up, and wired a clapper over the glove of Maude Trevisan.

From there, the Stingers took off.

Stéphanie Lalancette and Léonie Philbert added goals in the first period to extend the Stingers’ lead to 3-0 going into the second period.

“We weren’t putting in pucks 5-on-5,” said Chu. “That was a really important aspect that we had to find. Get to the net, create chaos, win some of those netfront battles. Being able to get there, maybe getting some of the bounces that go in.”

After the first period tallies, the Stingers promptly welcomed Carabins goalie Maude Trevisan to the second period when Belzile finished a nice lil saucer pass from Emmy Fecteau just 44 seconds into the frame. The Carabins would replace Trevisan with Aube Racine after the goal.

“Playing a fast game is always helpful,” said Chu. “We talk about transitioning quickly both ways. We’ve got talented teams in this league. The way you make teams or anyone uncomfortable is by using speed, taking away time and space.”

Olivia Atkinson would push the Stingers total to five goals early in the third. The Stingers would rattle off 32 shots. The Carabins would score a goal in the second and make a push with two goals late in the third period, but the Stingers lead never seemed in doubt.

Stingers goalie Alice Philbert stood out tonight, stopping 20 of 23 stops. In-between fighting for looks through traffic and making a fleury of in-tight

“Alice, and all of our players, do a great job of reseting and refocusing,” said Chu. “She’s been going out there and playing some big, awesome hockey for us”

“We’re really pumped for tomorrow, to get a chance to play hard against a great cross-town rival.”

Game three of the RSEQ semi-finals will take place on Sunday, at the Ed Meagher Arena at 3 p.m.

Notes:

  • Julie Chu is playing her cards close to the chest on her plan for game three. “Staying the course” might be an accurate retroactive slogan for the Stingers 2019-20 season.
  • Game three is going to be very cool, show up.

Feature photo by Mackenzie Lad

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Weekend Recap: Men’s hockey team dominates Lakers, women’s bounce back against Carabins

Women’s hockey:

The Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team went into this weekend having to face two of the top five teams in the country. I don’t care what the U Sports rankings say,  Concordia, UDEM and McGill are all giants in Canadian university sports.

“It’s a long season and we’re in a tremendous league,” said head coach Julie Chu. “We know that we’re going to be in tight, hard-fought games and we gotta make sure that we continue doing the little things right and staying positive is the number one thing. We have an opportunity tomorrow to go and have a great game too.”

The Stingers first game came against McGill. The Martlets came out flying and worked well to pressure the Stingers into making costly mistakes. After two periods of play, the Martlets were up 3-1. The Stingers then managed to come back to tie the game thanks to the efforts of captain Claudia Dubois, Audrey Belzile and Rosalie Bégin-Cyr who combined to force Concordia’s next two goals. Despite the comeback, the Stingers couldn’t get any momentum through the first overtime, and in the second overtime period, the Martlets capitalized and took the dub. This was the first time all season that the Stingers dropped back-to-back games.

The next day against the UDEM Carabins, the Stingers made sure to not make that mistake again. In what would be a tight, hard-fought and physical battle against Montreal, Concordia managed to outlast their opponent to take the shootout win. Back-up goalie Madison Oakes got the start against the Carabins to play in her third ever U Sports match, and she did not disappoint. Oakes was calm in the crease, only allowing one goal, including blanking all three Carabins shootout attempts.

“It’s kind of like your first shift back after not playing for a while,” said Chu. “But I think she settled in really well as the game went on. She’s a gamer. I think anytime our goaltenders are able to make big saves, that gives us a boost of energy.”

Bégin-Cyr continued her torrid scoring pace with a three-goal weekend, moving into a tie for sixth place in U Sports scoring.

– Matthew Coyte, Managing Editor

 

Men’s hockey:

The Stingers men’s hockey team put on a show for their fans on Saturday night. Going into their game with Nipissing, Stingers were on a four-game losing streak with their most recent loss coming on Jan. 15 against UQTR, losing by a score of 3-1. The Stingers had their chances in that game but again, it was their lack of ability to put the puck in the back of the net that got the best of them. Special teams were also an issue against the Patriotes as they were 0/5 with the man advantage.

Then came Saturday.

Only two points separated the Stingers and the Nipissing Lakers heading into the game. Having lost four in a row and facing a team trailing them in the standings, this game was critical for the Stingers. Head coach Marc-André Élement said the message going into the game was “leaders lead the way,” and boy, did they ever.

Fourth year player and team captain Philippe Sanche netted a hat-trick while assistant captain Carl Neill added three assists to his point total on the season. The team has shown flashes of brilliance in the past this season but haven’t been able to string together consecutive wins since Nov. 1. Things only get harder for the Stingers as they only have one more home game left on their schedule between now and the end of the regular season.

On top of all that, the special teams units really stepped up in a big way. The Stingers went 2/8 on the powerplay—which included goals from Jeff de Wit and Alexander Katerinakis. Meanwhile their penalty killing unit did a great job for the most part of neutralizing the Lakers’ powerplay, only holding them to a singular goal on eight attempts. On top of that, one of Philippe Sanche’s goals was a short handed marker.

A game like the one against Nipissing can turn into a critical one for the Stingers down the final stretch of the season. Beating a team that is jockeying for playoff position with the Stingers is no small feat. It can boost the confidence of the team which at this point is much needed. It is one thing to say that they can compete with any team in the country, as many of the players have said before. It’s another thing to do it.

That theory will be put to the test this weekend when the team heads to Ottawa to face off against the Ravens and the Gee Gees.

– Matthew Ohayon, Sports Editor

 

Photos by Britanny Clarke and Cecilia Piga

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Concordia 2, Montreal 1: Stingers outlast Carabins in statement win

After losing to the McGill Martlets yesterday, the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team had just 24 hours to prepare for the other titan in the RSEQ; the Université de Montreal Carabins. 

“I still thought we played pretty well yesterday,” said head coach Julie Chu post-game. “Special teams needed to be better, but in general I think we just wanted to reset and refocus.”

The message got through to the Stingers, who managed to outlast the Carabins through two periods of overtime to take the win in the shootout. Emmy Fecteau provided the game-winning goal in the shootout thanks to a sneaky backhand shot through the five-hole of Carabins goalie Maude Trevisan. Trevisan finished the game with 40 saves on 41 shots.

“That’s really not the move I do usually,” said Fecteau. “Usually I go right, and this time I went left, but I knew what I was going to do. I talked to [Stingers goalie Alice Philbert] about what I should do, and she told me to go five-hole and that’s what I did.”

“We know we’re in a great league,” said Chu. “Even in the first half, we had like four overtimes or shootout situations. Sometimes they go our way, sometimes they don’t.”

The first period didn’t see either team pick up too much momentum, although the pendulum was definitely leaning towards the Carabins early. UDEM captain Catherine Dubois was a force, powering her way through Stingers defenders and driving play the whole game. But no goals after one period.

It took the Stingers two minutes to break the deadlock in the second period. Rosalie Bégin-Cyr continued her scoring streak when she found herself all alone in front with the puck. Not in a rush, the forward outwaited Trevisan and buried the puck to get the Stingers up by one.

It took the Carabins 18 seconds to tie the game up, and of course it was UDEM’s captain. Dubois came down on Stingers’ goalie Madison Oakes, and ripped a shot short side to tie it back up.

But that’s all that would get by Oakes. The second-year goalie has been the team’s main backup this season. Tonight she made 36 saves on 37 shots to snatch the win. In what was just the third game of her U Sports career, Oakes was the reason the Stingers were able to win this game. Her game tape will include an incredible blocker stop in the third period (“What’s going through my head, I probably can’t say,” said Oakes. “But like, damn. How’d I do that?”), as well as blanking all three Carabins shootout attempts.

“Honestly, I had a pretty good warm-up so I was feeling pretty good going into the game,” said Oakes. “I was a lot more calm than my game against Carleton. [I] come out decently far in the shootout. I’m a relatively small goalie, so I just stay calm and read what they do.”

“For a goaltender that maybe hasn’t played as many games for our program, those first couple of shots are the biggest,” said Chu. “It’s kind of like your first shift back after not playing for a while. But I think she settled in really well as the game went on. She’s a gamer. I think anytime our goaltenders are able to make big saves, that gives us a boost of energy.”

With the win, the Stingers extend their lead on first-place in the RSEQ to five points. The team in second? The Carabins.

“This was a fun game for people to watch,” said Chu. “I think for our team it was important. Every game is experience. Yesterday was experience losing, but bouncing back and having the experience of feeling the pressure, the intensity of overtime and all these different things.”

To finish this recap, you gotta remember that some things are bigger than hockey. That includes the news that Concordia Stingers women’s hockey coaches Julie Chu and Caroline Ouellette are expecting their second child in May. Players streamed out of the dressing room post-game to do their cool-down with the couple’s gender reveal cake. Congrats to both Chu and Ouellette. Watch out, draft class of 2038.

NOTES:

  • Bégin-Cyr is now tied for sixth in U Sports scoring with 12 goals and 10 assists in 14 games. Every player ahead of her has played between 18 and 21 games.

Feature photo by Britanny Clarke

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Montreal 4, Concordia 3: Penalties halt Stingers momentum in loss

Photo by Cecilia Piga

If you watched the Stingers play this season, you’ve seen a team that’s managed to consistently beat two of the top teams in the country. Playing in the RSEQ is gruelling. Concordia, McGill and the Universite de Montreal are all top-5 programs in Canada.

And this game against the UDEM Carabins was yet another heavyweight bout. Unfortunately for the top-ranked Stingers, they come out of this one with some bruises as they drop a 4-3 result to the number three ranked Carabins 24 hours after beating the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees 6-2.

“We start off tough, we’re trying to come out of a hole and we take two penalties,” said head coach Julie Chu post-game. “We have to have an intensity and a grit and I think we just didn’t quite have it today. Part of it is the back-to-back and Montreal got the day off, yeah sure. But we’re going to see that at nationals, so there’s no excuse for this.”

Over the past 16 meetings between these two teams since 2017-18, 13 have been decided by one goal. This is only the second time out of those 16 games that UDEM has beaten Concordia in regulation.

The game started as a whirlwind as both teams traded blows. The Stingers were the first ones on the board courtesy of captain Claudia Dubois finding the puck in front of the net and powering a shot past Carabins goalie Aube Racine. Racine finished the game with 25 saves on 27 shots. Stingers goalie Alice Philbert is certainly not to blame in this loss, the Carabins made her life extremely difficult with tight screens, cross-ice passing and heavy shots. Philbert finished the game with 25 saves on 29 shots.

Graphic by Matthew Coyte

“We went through spurts where we were good,” said Chu. “But the penalties really killed us. Our power play wasn’t strong as well.”

Montreal’s Alexandra Labelle evened it up thanks to a cross-ice tap-in. Stingers’ Rosalie Begin-Cyr responded a minute later, capitalizing from the chaos caused in the slot by Dubois who took a hard hit to make the play. Begin-Cyr wired a wrister to retake the lead for the Stingers. The Carabins would tie it at two before the end of the period.

But the biggest problem for the Stingers was the special teams. In the team’s first 10 games of the season, the Stingers had only taken a league-best 25 penalties. In their first two games of 2020, they’ve taken 11, including six in this game.

“We have to play the full 60 minutes,” said Dubois post-game. “We have to avoid the penalties, that’s what really killed us. We had the momentum, then bang, we’re down by two.”

The power play wasn’t much better, and we’re at the point of the season where the benefit of the doubt for the Stingers is over. They hold a league-worst power play that’s converted just 8.8% of their powerplay chances, and went 0/4 this game.

“We have to improve the power play,” said Dubois. “It’s tough. We’re supposed to score. We’re supposed to capitalize on those chances and we’re not able to. There’s going to be changes and we’re going to try things for sure.”

The Carabins played what could have easily been their best game of the season thanks to their physical style of play and ability to take advantage of the Stingers mistakes. It often felt like Montreal had an odd-player rush while also having like six players back defending. It made no sense, but at the end of the day, the Stingers became frustrated and were baited into some unnecessary penalties.

The Stingers third goal was a weird one. Dubois was breaking into the Carabins zone and was beating the defender wide. The defender had no choice but to haul her down. The referee’s arm shot up, and everyone stopped. But no whistle. Racine moved out of the way to avoid Dubois, but by the powers of the hockey gods, the puck actually slid into the net with Dubois, cutting the Stingers deficit to one.

“We’ll take those goals, but those are definitely not normal goals,” said Dubois.

The Stingers were unable to convert a tying goal, but sometimes it’s just nice to watch some heavyweights go at it.

Notes:

  • I watched the replay on Dubois’ second goal about 10 times and I still have no idea how or why every single player on the ice stopped playing before the whistle. Even the crowd thought it was dead. The hockey gods giveth (a fun goal), and the hockey gods taketh away (a loss).
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From terrifying to just inaccurate: A look at RSEQ mascots

Stingers mascot Buzz joined the cheerleading team. Photo by Hannah Ewen.

Ah, mascots, the unspoken heroes of sporting events.

Nothing completes a sporting event quite like a giant anthropomorphic monstrosity making their way up the nosebleeds while beating a drum. It’s dangerous work! One wrong step and you can go flailing down the stairs, or you can catch the ire of coaches and players. Let us never forget Harvey the Hound having his tongue ripped out by Edmonton Oilers head coach Craig MacTavish. Gritty has been a bad (good?) hallucination for the better part of a year. In honour of these brave men and women, we took a look at all of the mascots from each Quebec university.

Gaiter – Bishop’s University

Photo courtesy of Bishop’s University

Barney the Dino – I mean, Gaiter, is the giant purple alligator of Bishop’s University. The team name isn’t even named after the animal, but *checks notes* boot coverings? I’m all for taking creative liberties with the mascot, so I guess a purple alligator beats a pair of Timbs hyping the crowd up at games.

No mascot – Université de Montreal

UDEM doesn’t have a mascot, but if they did, it would probably be the personification of the shin splints I get walking up all the stairs on their campus.

Marty the Martlet – McGill University

Photo courtesy of the McGill Athletic Departmen

McGill went the route of basing their mascot off of the bird that graces their university flag instead of the uhhhh… Other name their athletic teams used to go by. The massive red bird wears a vest with the McGill logo on it, which I assume is mandatory for all McGill students and staff. Marty also rocks a fanny pack – unclear yet whether it’s Gucci or Supreme. Instead of pants, Marty goes for a kilt, much to the dismay of anyone looking up. Despite rocking some bold fashion choices, for some reason it’s canon that the mascot’s favourite poutine topping is duck, which I’m still trying to wrap my head around in deciding if that’s badass or terrifying.

Sherlo – Sherbrooke University

I can’t be the only one that only sees Squanch from Rick and Morty right?

Victor – Université de Laval

Laval has been an absolute athletic juggernaut the past 20 years, especially in football, claiming national title after national title. So it makes sense that they’re a little cocky. Victor, the bald eagle mascot of the university, personifies that cockiness to a tee. If I listen carefully, I can hear it telling me “on es les best suce ma bite”.

Buzz – Concordia University

Concordia’s first official mascot, “The Stinger”. Archive photo by Jonas Papaurelis.

Who could forget Buzz. The bug, the myth, the legend. Buzz has been a part of Concordia culture forever. Evolving from nightmare-inducing, to only slightly terrifying, Buzz is a constant at every Stingers game and is pretty reminiscent of that one fever dream you had when you were 7. He’s also the only mascot to not wear anything covering their lower-body like the insect-version of Porky Pig.

I also found this phenomenal Concordia promo video from 2008. And let me tell you, it’s just *chef’s kiss*. Where to even start? The horror-movie-killer-esque first person? The suit and tie? The fact that he’s (still) not wearing any pants? Wherever you tune in, it’s incredible and there are some wholesome moments mixed in there that almost make Buzz not the scariest thing in the world.

 

Feature photo by Hannah Ewen

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Stingers soccer season goes from bad to worse

Photo by Marie-Josée Kelly

The Stingers men’s soccer team suffered their sixth straight loss on Sunday, losing 6-2 at the hands of the province wide second-place Montreal Carabins.

The Carabins came out strong and dominated the first half. Their advantage in speed and height was absolutely no match for Concordia’s sloppy play.

The visiting Montreal side wasted no time getting on the score sheet. In the ninth minute, midfielder Paolo Demanga out-ran a Stingers defender to play a perfect ground cross to Damir Rosic, who then managed to squeeze it past Remo Taraschi in goal.

“We gave up an early goal, which is not the script you want to begin a game,” said Assistant Coach Greg Sutton.

The Carabins showed no signs of letting up the pressure. In the 18th minute, Abdoul Bah fired a shot that just went over the bar.

Concordia struggled offensively, sending long balls that had almost no hope of finding a striker. Their best chances would come in the form of free-kicks, all taken by midfielder Joseph Couto. The only goals scored off these chances were field-goals.

The Carabins had a free kick of their own in 27th minute. Maxime Laurey showed the Stingers how it’s done by perfectly placing the ball in the bottom left corner of the net, leaving Taraschi with no chance.

Photo by Marie-Josée Kelly

The visitors kept on their relentless pressure, backing a hopeless looking Stingers defense to the goal line more than once. Just as the first half was about to end, Rosic was found alone with the Stingers keeper and effortlessly placed a shot in the right corner, putting the Carabins up 3-0 at the half.

The second half was a completely different game.

It started much like the first did. A perfect cross from a Carabins midfielder saw Vincent de Bruille completely unmarked and he smoothly tucked the ball into the right corner. It was now 4-0, and all hope was lost.

That’s when the game changed, and the Stingers found a spark.

“We had to change our game plan up, going into the second half,” said Sutton.

It took but one minute for Concordia to get a goal back. Stingers defender Enos Osei found himself with the ball after a nice passing play in midfield. He had time, picked his spot, and triggered a low shot that found the back of the net. The goal ended Montreal’s chance of keeping a clean sheet.

The goal sparked the fire even more, and with 40 minutes remaining, the Stingers took control of the game and became the dominating team. They won one-on-one battles and were first on the ball – aspects of their game that were non-existent in the first half.

“The guys were committed a little bit more and I think that we worked harder than Montreal in the second,” said Sutton. “We were able to come back and get some goals.”

The Carabins keeper, frustrated with the relentless pressure coming from the Stingers, went on to kick Stingers defender Jayson Gallahue, earning him a yellow card and giving Concordia a penalty kick in the 60th minute. Ramin Mohsenin easily put it in the back of the net, and Concordia were well on their way for an amazing comeback. At least, the fans thought so.

Head coach Lloyd Barker put on another striker to try and make the pressure stronger. A pair of chances in the 66th and 70th minutes saw Concordia’s attempts miss just wide.

As the time wound down, Carabins striker Alexandre Kénol took matters into his own hands, outrunning Stingers defenders to then tuck it in off the post on the keeper’s right side.

To make matters worse, Stingers defender Mohsenin committed a foul in the box in stoppage time, earning him his second yellow card and a sending-off. The game ended with Carabins striker blasting it in from the spot to make the final score of 6-2.

 

Concordia now sits dead last in the conference with only three games remaining. Their next game will be on Sunday, Oct. 21, against UQÀM at Concordia Stadium. 

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Late goal puts Carabins on top

The Stingers women’s soccer team gave first place Université de Montreal Carabins a run for their money but came up short in a 3-2 loss on Sunday afternoon at Concordia Stadium.

The last time these teams met this season, the Carabins beat the Stingers by a score of 5-0. The team has substantially improved and has one thing they didn’t have in the first game, according to head coach Jorge Sanchez.

“A lot of what we have more of is confidence,” said Sanchez. “Results get confidence and confidence gets results.”

This loss is the first for the Stingers in five games. Their last loss came on Sept. 23 against Sherbrooke. Since then, they won and and tied twice and lost once, including today’s result.

“It’s tough, we’ve been on a good run,” said Sanchez. “We took goals from Laval, we took points from McGill, and taking points against them would’ve been a great accomplishment. They’re the second ranked team in the country.”

The game started with both teams getting their equal share of chances. Stingers keeper Saby Dagenais kept the score even when she pulled off an amazing fingertip save in the 22nd minute.

However, the Carabins did manage a goal in the 27th minute. Samantha Gauthier showed great individual skill, splitting the Stingers defence with a burst of speed to smoothly put it over the keeper with a nice touch.

Concordia worked hard to get back into the game, and they got their chance with a set of corners in the 32nd minute. Philippa Lyttle had her volley blocked after a corner, leading to another one. She then got the ball in the box from the second corner kick, spun around, and placed it in the bottom corner. The game was tied at one apiece.

The second half started in the same fashion as the first, both teams getting their fair shares of opportunities. A good set of runs on the wing by Stingers forward Melissa Kedro gave Concordia two good chances to take the lead, but both were parried by a strong Carabins defensive line.

The deadlock broke when Carabins midfielder Éva Thouvenot-Hébert hit a free kick from 35 yards out in the 58th minute that eluded the Stingers keeper and found its way in the back of the net.

The Stingers proved that they’re capable of coming back from behind. A partial break from Stingers Gabriela Padvaiskas was impressively saved by the Carabins keeper. The time was quickly winding down.

After a Concordia corner was cleared successfully by Montreal’s defense, a quick counter from the Stingers defenders led to Padvaiskas having her shot trickle into the back of the net in the 73rd minute.

The game remained tied, but the Carabins got more chances, hitting a crossbar and a post in the process. As time winded down, the unthinkable happened. A Carabins player came in from the left side, cut in perfectly, and hit the bar. The rebound was smoothly put in by Carabins striker Isabelle Dumais.

Despite the loss, coach Sanchez said he was happy with the game.

“We were five minutes away from tying a great team,” he said. “We were competitive, we fought hard and we stayed in the game. I’m very proud of the girls.”

The Stingers find themselves four points out of a playoff spot with four matches remaining. The next game is on Oct. 19 when they travel to play the last place Bishop’s University.

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Sports

Stingers football lose on homecoming day

Graphic by Jennifer Kwan

It was a bitter homecoming game for the Stingers men’s football team, as they fell 38-0 to powerhouse Université de Montréal on Friday. The loss came three weeks after a 48-10 drubbing at CEPSUM. Concordia’s offense never got into a rhythm, as turnovers and constant pressure on quarterback Reid Quest spelled doom for an offence that looked shell-shocked as the game progressed.

“We got off to a decent start, but like last time, we managed to screw it up,” said Quest, who had a tough game, completing 14 of 26 passes for 168 yards and three interceptions. “As the quarterback I have to be the leader. I can’t keep giving the ball away like that. That’s my fault.”

Quest was replaced by backup Troy McCusker late in the final quarter with the game out of reach. McCusker completed three of five passes for 33 yards.

The Stingers’ first offensive possession was perhaps their best of the day, though it doesn’t say much. They marched down the field, showing some unity, but a sack forced a 45-yard field goal attempt, which fell short and wide of the uprights. It was as close as they would come to any points.

“You can’t really pin this loss on anyone,” said former Stingers quarterback and receiver Liam Mahoney, who provides colour commentary on Stingers broadcasts on TSN 690. “You certainly can’t blame the quarterback. It’s hard to make good reads and get the right timing down when there’s guys in your face on every play.”

The running game was a non-factor for the Stingers as they rushed 16 times for 69 yards.

“When you can’t run the ball effectively on first down, it makes life tougher for the passing game, operating at second and long,” explained Mahoney. “This was also one of the best defences in the country.”

On their second possession, Quest’s pass was tipped and intercepted by the Carabins’ Antoine Pruneau. The Carabins made Concordia pay right away, with Alexandre Nadeau-Piuze throwing a 44-yard bomb to Ali Ndao down to the Stingers’ 26-yard line. Two plays later, Nadeau-Piuze capped off the drive with a Quarterback sneak from the one to give Montreal all the points they needed to seal the win.

Montreal added a 15-yard Charles Bauer field goal and a 20-yard touchdown pass to Ali Ndao, who was the game’s leading receiver with five catches for 96 yards.

The Carabins put the game away in the third quarter, scoring an additional 21 points. Tailback Rotrand Sené wore down Concordia’s defence, scoring a pair of touchdowns on the ground. He had back-to-back majors of five and 24 yards. He rushed for 118 yards on 14 carries, contributing to Montréal’s 221-yard total.

Concordia’s home field advantage was taken away, as Montréal’s dominance took Concordia supporters out of the game early. The game held a total attendance of 2,087, with a hefty chunk being U de M supporters. It goes without saying, they were on the rowdier side.

Concordia now sits at 2-3 and their schedule doesn’t get any easier with Sherbrooke, McGill and Laval waiting for them down the road.

 

The Stingers gear up for game time on Saturday, Oct. 6 at 1 p.m. against Sherbrooke.

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A major defeat for Stingers by Carabins

A 48-10 score says it all. There aren’t many positives to take from such a lopsided loss. The Stingers were dominated on all sides of the ball, be it on the offense, defence or special teams. The Université de Montréal Carabins won the battle at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.

While Concordia was still in the game going into the fourth quarter – only trailing by 10 – the Carabins scored 28 unanswered points in the fourth to put the Stingers away and move on to 2-0, leaving Concordia with a record of 1-1.

Quarterback Reid Quest went 15-for-23 in passing attempts for 186 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He was sacked 10 times, which prevented Concordia’s offence from finding a rhythm. They also fumbled five times, losing two of them.

“We shot ourselves in the foot,” said Quest. “A lot of mental errors stalled our drives. They’re a great team and they capitalized on [that].”

Montreal went to the running game early, as running back Rotrand Sené helped the Carabins take advantage of great field position, leading a 42-yard drive. It was capped with a 3-yard touchdown pass by Alexandre Nadeau-Piuze to Mikhail Davidson.

Nadeau-Piuze fumbled deep in Concordia territory on the next possession, but the Stingers went two-and-out on the ensuing drive. Montreal then blocked Keegan Treloar’s punt, but fumbled the ball at the goal line, giving Concordia a touchback and a new set of downs. The Stingers then threw an interception, once again giving Montreal a chance at Concordia’s 23-yard line.

The Carabins went up two scores after Nadeau-Piuze took it in himself on a nine-yard touchdown run.

Concordia had trouble advancing the ball early, but a facemask penalty helped them advance the ball after Quest was yanked by the helmet on a sack. He then threw his best pass of the day, finding Jamal Henry for a 53-yard touchdown pass, cutting the lead in half.

The Stingers had chances to inch closer, but they kicked only one field goal on four tries, leaving nine points off the board. Two were missed by kicker Keegan Treloar and one was blocked. In the end, nine points turned out to be miniscule when looking at the final deficit.

Montreal ended the first half with a 23-yard chip shot by Charles Bauer bringing the halftime score to 17-7. The two teams traded field goals in the third quarter before Montreal ran away with the game. Concordia’s defence was looking worn down by the time the fourth quarter came along. They forced five fumbles, recovering four which kept the Stingers in the game, but they couldn’t keep it up for all four quarters.

“It’s all a matter of execution,” said safety Nathan Taylor. “We just let it get away from us in the last 15 minutes. When we look back and watch the game tape, we’re going to be very disappointed.”

Montreal won in all phases of the game and owned the line of scrimmage for most of the game. It’s always the most important battle in a football game and the Carabins were the better team and well-deserving of the victory.

 

The Stingers will look to recover this Saturday at 12 p.m. against St. Francis Xavier.

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