For the second year in a row, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks’ men’s football team saw their season end at the hands of the Westen Mustangs, once again in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) semi-final.
Mustangs’ running back, Nathan Riva carried the ball an OUA record 42 times, racking up 289 yards and two touchdowns. The Hawks defence once again put forth a solid effort, but largely thanks to Riva, they had to stay on the field for a large portion of the game and the Mustangs’ offence took advantage.
Offensively, the Hawks couldn’t find any consistency, as quarterback Evan Pawliuk completed just 13 of his 32 pass attempts for 156 yards. The Hawks’ offence showed signs of life in the final seconds of the first half as receiver Josh Bishop made an incredible touchdown catch to put the purple and gold up 9-6.
However, the Mustangs scored on their first possession of the second half, and never looked back, eventually taking the game 26-16.