Courtesy: Huskie Athletics

By Wray Morrison

First Place Battle

Huskies pull out win in thriller over Thunderbirds

Sep 30, 2023 | 12:34 AM

There was lots of offense, there were special team touchdowns and some big plays on defense. The highly anticipated first place showdown between the UBC Thunderbirds and U of S Huskies didn’t disappoint on Friday night at Griffiths Stadium. Saskatchewan pulled out a 34-31 win in a wild game to hand the T-Birds their first loss of the season.

The Thunderbirds took the early lead on a fake field goal as back-up quarterback Derek Engel ran 7 yards for a touchdown. The Huskies answered with a big play of their own late in the first quarter when quarterback Anton Amundrud hit Daniel Perry on a 32-yard pass play to tie the game at 7.

Moments after UBC receiver Shemar McBean scored on a touchdown pass from Garrett Rooker, the Amundrud-Perry combination struck again, this time with a huge 89-yard pass and run play to tie the game at 14.

“When another team scores, you have to answer back”, said Perry. “It helps offense…defense….everything.” Saskatchewan then got in position to take the lead at half-time as kicker David Solie booted a 50-yard field goal to give the Huskies a 17-14 lead at the break.

In the third quarter, Saskatchewan’s fifth year kicker was good on 23 and 16 yard attempts as the home side opened a 23-14 lead. Engel rushed for his second touchdown of the game with 3:20 remaining in the third quarter to cut Saskatchewan’s advantage to 23-21.

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Then came back-to-back big special teams plays. Ryker Frank returned a kick-off 105 yards for a score to put Saskatchewan up 30-21 with three minutes to go in the third. McBean answered back, returning a Solie punt over 60 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the quarter. The T-Birds trailed 30-28 going into the fourth quarter.

UBC kicker Kieran Flannery-Fleck gave the visitors the lead when he connected on a 36-yard field goal…it was 31-30, the visitors in front. Like they were in a heavyweight fight, the Huskies responded. Saskatchewan got the ball to the UBC 35, allowing Solie to hit a 42-yard 3-pointer. Saskatchewan took a 33-31 lead with 5:03 remaining…a lead they didn’t give up. The Huskies added a single point with less than two minutes to go.

Saskatchewan’s defense forced Rooker to run out of the pocket and throw a few passes away to avoid a sack. Amundrud said when the offense struggled the defense was there to pick up the slack as part of the “Connected Football” that head coach Scott Flory likes to see his team play.

Amundrud, who was making just his fifth Canada West career start, was 19 of 28 for 304 yards. Defensively, Sasaktchewan’s veteran cornerback Katley Joseph had a forced fumble, while Nixen Voll and Finn Marcotte-Cribb had interceptions.

The Huskies, Thunderbirds and Alberta now share top spot in the Canada West Standings with 4 and 1 records. The Golden Bears defeated the Rams 46-27 on Friday night. There is a bye for Thanksgiving weekend, then the Huskies visit the Golden Bears in Edmonton on October 14^th, while the Thunderbirds visit the winless Calgary Dinos.

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wray.morrison@pattisonmedia.com

X/Twitter: @wraymorrison