GUELPH, Ont. - It certainly was not an offensive showcase but the Western Mustangs gritted out a 15-8 win over the Guelph Gryphons Saturday afternoon at Alumni Stadium. This is the second year in a row that Western has spoiled Guelph's Homecoming game on national television.
With the win, the No. 5 ranked Mustangs move to 4-1 on the year. This is their third victory over a nationally ranked team in 2010, and they now have won 15 of the past 16 games against the Guelph Gryphons.
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In a game featuring strong, swirling winds and the occasional rain, it was the Mustangs ground game that was the difference.
Jerimy Hipperson (St. Catharines, Ont.) was named Player of the Game by The Score as he rushed 20 times for 147 yards and two touchdowns. Donnie Marshall (London, Ont.) had 13 carries for 116 yards and had nine completions for 116 yards and an interception through the air.
Western's defence played well limiting fifth-year Guelph running back Nick FitzGibbon (Puslinch, Ont.) to 87 yards rushing. They were able to get constant pressure on Gryphons pivot Chris Rossetti (Mississauga, Ont.) and sacked him seven times on the day. Defensive lineman Zander Robinson (Vancouver, B.C.) led the way with 12.5 tackles and 2.5 sacks but no sack was bigger than either of the two game-changers delivered by veteran linebacker Adrian Kaiser's (London, Ont.) late in the fourth quarter.
"We saw some holes in their offensive line and brought the pressure in the second half," Kaiser said. "We made adjustments at half and contained FitzGibbon and were able to get into the backfield to Rossetti."
While Western was able to get the win, it was not the victory that head coach Greg Marshall was looking for.
"It was good to get the win, but we've got to play better," Marshall stated. "We knew it was going to be a defensive battle and we hurt ourselves by taking points off the board with the interception in the end zone and the penalty taking us out of field-goal range."
The Western Mustangs were able to silence the loud crowd in the first quarter by rushing the ball. Hipperson had a run of 23 yards and then capped the drive off with a 10-yard touchdown run to make it 7-0 in favour of Western with 4:32 left in the first quarter.
The wind played a factor in the second quarter, as Guelph was able to move the ball with the wind at its back. The Mustangs still managed a nice drive into the red-zone but Donnie Marshall's pass was picked off by Guelph safety Jordan Duncan in the end zone. Guelph used this momentum, the surge of crowd support and the wind, and engineered a 52-yard drive off seven plays.
The drive culminated with a Jedd Gardner touchdown run on a fake field goal play from the four-yard line. Gardner, the holder, took the ball and with it slipping, he was able to scamper out untouched for the score. This made it 7-7 with 4:13 left in the half. James Savoie added a rouge with 34 seconds left in the half to give Guelph a 8-7 advantage going into the break.
Western and Guelph could not muster any points in the third quarter as the rain picked up. The quarter was all about field position as it featured no sustained offensive drives on either sides and six punts in the quarter.
The Mustangs were finally able to put together a quick scoring drive late in the fourth quarter. Donnie Marshall found a wide open Nick Trevail for a 20-yard reception. Hipperson then hit the hole hard and rushed 27 yards for his second touchdown of the game. Ian Noble was in for the two-point conversion but his pass went off Trevail's hands, keeping the score at 13-8 with 4:25 left.
Guelph then conceded a safety with 2:09 remaining to make it 15-8 for Western. The Mustangs were able to rush for a number of first downs to ice the victory.
Western will host Queen's on Saturday, Oct. 2 for their Homecoming game. This game will be at TD Waterhouse Stadium at 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast nationally on The Score Television Network. To order tickets - only $22 seats remain for adults, youth, seniors or students - click here.
