Mounties advance to Loney Bowl with 19-10 victory over Acadia

(SACKVILLE, N.B.) - The Mount Allison Mounties are headed to the Subway AUS Loney Bowl for the first time since 1998.  On a typical November football afternoon at MacAulay Field, the Mounties continued their stingy defensive play and scored when they had the chance en route to a 19-10 victory over the two-time defending AUS champion Acadia Axemen. 

The victory is the second in two weeks for the Mounties over Acadia, much to the delight of a frantic MacAulay Field crowd.

Playing with the wind to start the game, the Mounties got off to a quick start. After forcing a two and out on the first series, Michael Bohan returned Thomas Blight's kick to the Acadia 35-yard line giving the Mounties great field position on their opening drive. 

After a first down with three straight carries by Botel, the Mounties couldn't get any closer and chose to try a 32-yard field goal, which Kyle McLean made to give the Mounties a 3-0 lead. 

The Mounties defence continued to pin Acadia, keeping the ball on Acadia's side of the field. Two minutes later, Acadia was forced to concede a safety, bringing the score to 5-0.

With six minutes remaining in the first quarter, Acadia got their first chance to put points on the board, but All-Canadian Jacob LeBlanc was able to get through the line and block Thomas Blight's 36-yard field goal attempt. 

After trading punts, the Mounties got the ball back at the end of the first quarter and quarterback Brandon Leyh went straight to work, connecting with Troy Trentham for 39 yards to the Acadia six-yard line. From there, Kyle McLean would eventually kick his second field goal of the afternoon, this time from 27 yards to make it 8-0 for the Mounties. 

McLean was back to work half way through the second quarter when his 34-yard punt into the end zone forced a single point. The score stayed this way until the end of the half, giving the Mounties a 9-0 lead at the midway point of the game.

Acadia had a chance to score at the start of the third quarter, but the Mounties were able to block their second field goal of the day, this time with Christian Plante getting his hand on Thomas Blight's kick.

Late in the third quarter, a high snap on a Mounties punt gave Acadia the ball on the Mounties one-yard line. From there, Thomas Troop was able to punch it in to bring Acadia within two points at 9-7. Acadia then used an on-side kick to get the ball back and hold onto newfound momentum. After driving deeper into Mounties territory, Acadia took their first lead of the game when Thomas Blight connected on a 25-yard field goal, making the score 10-9 Acadia.

The hometown Mounties weren't long grabbing some momentum of their own.  Acadia punt returner Scott Kelly fumbled a McLean punt and the ball was recovered by Jake DeWolfe giving the Mounties the ball on the Acadia 39-yard line. The Mounties were able to move the ball enough to give Kyle McLean a shot from 30 yards and he connected to restore a 12-10 Mount Allison lead with 9:26 to play. 

Facing second and nine from their own 21-yard line, Acadia quarterback Evan Brown had his pass intercepted by Mounties free safety Kwame Adjei, who then returned the ball 40 yards for a touchdown. This gave the Mounties a 19-10 lead with three and half minutes to play. 

From there, the Mounties defence shut the door, sealing a victory and their trip to the Subway AUS Loney Bowl.

Mounties kicker Kyle McLean was outstanding for the Mounties all day, going 3-for-3 on field goals and punting for 440 yards on 11 punts, while also pulling in two receptions for 30 yards.  Brandon Leyh was 7-for-18 for 89 yards and he has now gone 14 quarters without an interception. 

All-Star Jordan Botel ran for 90 yards on 24 carries. Defensively for the Mounties, Donovan Saunders, Jake Dewolfe and Matt Montgomery had six tackles apiece.  The Mounties defence has held opponents to an average of 15.2 points per game over the last four games.

Today's game was the Mounties' fourth straight win and second straight victory over Acadia. 

The Mounties will travel to Halifax to face Saint Mary's (5-3) in the Subway AUS Loney Bowl at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 9.  Two of the Huskies' three losses have come at the hands of the Mounties this year.  Most recently, Mount Allison won at Huskies Stadium for the first time since 1998 with a 27-24 victory over Saint Mary's Oct. 18.

Source: Mount Allison Sports Information