Laurier pursues additional appeal after CIS rules Montoya ineligible

The much-awaited decision from the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) regarding Laurier defensive end David Montoya was announced on Wednesday afternoon, and it was not the ruling the Golden Hawks were hoping for.

The CIS denied the appeal Montoya made last Wednesday after being declared ineligible while playing in the Hawks’ first three games of the season.

The punishment for playing with an ineligible player is the forfeit of a win, and therefore the Hawks are currently at risk of losing their week three victory over the University of Toronto. Montoya did not dress for Laurier’s wins over York and Guelph, therefore they are not subject to forfeit.

However, according athletics director Peter Baxter, Laurier is filing a further appeal in front of the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada (SDRCC), an independent sports arbitrator.

“We’ll file for an arbitrator with [the SDRCC] to hear David’s case,” said Baxter. “It’s basically a second level of dispute resolution.”

Thanks to the further appeal, the Hawks have avoided the forfeit for the time being and will remain at 3-2 and in fourth-place in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) standings.

“I’ve talked to the OUA office and they are aware of the decision made by the CIS,” said Baxter. “[OUA] executive director Ward Dilse said that what they would do is wait until the process is at it’s completion before they apply any forfeit.”

A timetable for the SDRCC appeal is unknown at this time.