NOTRE DAME 0 - 27 VANCOUVER COLLEGE
Scoring on a rush, a pass and a pick-six, the Vancouver College Fighting Irish are one win away from competing for their second AAA varsity championship since 2010.
The Irish shut out their crosstown rivals from Notre Dame to win their high school football quarter-final 27-0 at B.C. Place Nov. 21. Two weeks earlier, the teams met at O’Hagan Field to play for the annual Archbishops’ Trophy, and the Jugglers put up 14 points in a three-point loss to the Irish.
Last weekend, Vancouver College were solid at both ends of the field and came on strong by scoring three majors in the first quarter. Great defence, including five interceptions, and offensive smarts from quarterback Jacob Samuels gave B.C.’s No. 2 ranked team the edge.
Adding to his 52-rushing yards on the afternoon, running back Michael Le put VC on the board in the first quarter with a three-yard run. The convert clanged wide, but the missed extra point didn’t factor down the stretch. To take a 13-point lead, Samuels found Rysen John from 15 yards out and before the end of the half, defensive lineman Jag Sandhu tipped a Notre Dame pass and not only hauled down the ball but also ran it in for an eight-yard touchdown. The returned interception gave VC a 20-0 lead.
In the third quarter, the Irish scored twice but both plays were called back for holding penalties.
The Jugglers struggled to get out of their end and the game was sealed on two back-to-back drives when Bobby Singh stopped the Jugglers in their tracks with two interceptions. He had three in the game.
Singh caught one errant pass right in his numbers when the intended receiver tripped on his route. On what looked like the same play call, this time from the 12 yard line, Singh again picked off Crescenzo Anthony’s pass right down the centre of the field and returned it for 30 yards to within three of the end zone. Javier Sanchez-Mejorada ran it in to add to the Irish lead, and Kieran Mitha added one more for the 27-0 final.
The quarter-final was the 71st meeting between the two schools. The Irish lead the overall series 39-31-1.
Vancouver College last played for the Frank Gnup provincial championship title in 2012 when they lost to Mt. Douglas on their first of consecutive championships. The Irish won in 2010 after being on the losing end of five championship appearances in six years from 2001 to 2006. They were champs in 1994 after losing in 1993 to Notre Dame. The Jugglers
Since 1976, Vancouver College has played for 16 B.C. championships and won three.
Notre Dame won seven titles from 1977 and 1989, defeating the Irish in three of those years and again in 1993, the last time the Jugglers reached the final.
Vancouver College plays the New West Hyacks in the AAA varsity semi-final at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 28 at B.C. Place. Undefeated this season, the Irish beat the Hyacks 49-21 on Oct. 17.
In the other semi-final, Mt. Douglas plays Terry Fox at 2:30 p.m.
