Waterloo, ON – In a game that many had circled on the OUA schedule at the start of the season, the Mustangs struggled to get their offence going early on and weren't able to overcome the Laurier Golden Hawks, who took a 40-22 win on Saturday afternoon in Waterloo.
"We kind of dug ourselves a hole in the first half, we fumbled, we busted some coverages and then we took penalties but we were still in it," said Mustangs Head Coach Greg Marshall "Give Laurier credit though they did a good job in the second half when we got our feet under us a little offensively, they continued to drive the ball,"
GAME RECAP
On the opening drive the Mustangs turned the ball over after a long run by Keanu Yazbeck which resulted in Laurier taking the ball the length of the field and they would get a touchdown.
The Golden Hawks would follow that up with a 74-yard TD catch and run to give Laurier a 14-0 lead, which they would hold through the end of the 1
st quarter.
Western's first points of the game would come on a Laurier safety with 4:22 left in the 2
nd quarter to push the score to 17-2, which would hold at halftime.
In the 3
rd quarter, Laurier would open with a 23-yard TD to add to their lead and make it 24-2.
The Mustangs would get their first major of the game just over two minutes later when QB Evan Hillock connected with WR Seth Robertson from 37 yards out, cutting the Laurier lead to 24-9.
Western's momentum would be short-lived after a Hillock pass was intercepted, Laurier would get a rushing TD two plays later, and Laurier led 31-9.
Just before the end of the 3
rd quarter, Western would get the ball deep in Laurier territory and Jérôme Rancourt would come in for a three-yard rush for a touchdown and cut the Laurier lead to 31-16.
The see-saw scoring continued in the 3
rd quarter when Laurier QB Taylor Elgersma pushed the ball in from the one-yard line and added to the Golden Hawk lead at 38-16.
The Mustangs would get a late touchdown when Dasani McIntosh got his first TD of his Western career with 4:08 left to bring the score to 40-22.
While the game looked out of reach, the Mustangs didn't quit. With 45 seconds left on the clock Hillock would connect with McIntosh on a short pass and turned it into a 79-yard TD to make the score 43-28 but that would be the final.
"He was still fighting and that was kind of our mentality at that point," said Marshall "As I said to our guys in there (dressing room), time to learn from it, this isn't the end of the season and hopefully we will play these guys again and we'll just keep getting better,"
This is the first regular-season loss for the Mustangs since week two of the 2021 season.
KEY STATS
QB Evan Hillock – 18 for 31 with 322 yards and 3 TDs
WR Dasani McIntosh – 3 receptions for 105 yards and 2 TDs
RB Keon Edwards – 13 carries for 80 yards
QB Jérôme Rancourt – 2 rushes for 9 yards and 1 TD
WR Seth Robertson – 4 receptions for 74 yards and 1 TD
NEXT GAME
The Mustangs now enter their bye week for the 2024 season, so there is no game next weekend. We return to action on September 28
th for Homecoming 2024 when the Mustangs host the Queen's Gaels. Kickoff is set for 1:00 pm at Western Alumni Stadium. Tickets are available at
WesternMustangs.ca/tickets, get them early to ensure your spot for a great game. We will also be celebrating Fan Fest 2024 on the east side of the stadium, where Western students get free admission, food and giveaways. Full details can be found
here.
