Despite playing without numerous starters, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks’ men’s football team came away with a dominating 30-14 road win over the McMaster Marauders.
Quarterback, Evan Pawliuk made his debut as a starter replacing injured Luke Thompson and looked like a seasoned veteran, finishing 12-17 for 276 yards and two touchdowns. The third-year, who had never dressed for a game before this season, was poised and efficient running the offence, only making one mistake all day, a second quarter interception which Marauders’ corner back, Cody Lynch returned for a touchdown.
Defensively, the Hawks were almost flawless. They smothered the Marauders’ attack throughout the game, holding them to just 250 yards of total offence. Fourth-year, Steve Cormack led the way with five tackles and two sacks in his first game moving from defensive tackle to defensive end due to injuries to both usual starting ends, Chima Ihekwoaba and Kyle Ardill.
The win improves the Hawks to 3-1 and made a distinct statement about the team’s ability to deal with adversity.
“We’ve got a lot of depth and a lot of talent, and you can’t give up on our team,” said manager of football operations and head coach Gary Jeffries. “I just felt something special was going to happen today and the 45 guys who were healthy came out and competed, and I’m so proud of them.”
