Mounties clinch first place with 33-1 win over Saint Mary’s

(SACKVILLE, N.B.) - The Mount Allison Mounties have moved to 6-0 and clinched first place in the AUS football standings with a 33-1 win over Saint Mary's at MacAulay Field on Saturday. 

By clinching first place the Mounties have guaranteed their spot in the Subway AUS Loney Bowl (the AUS championship game) for the second straight year. This year however, the defending AUS champions will get to play the game on their campus at their very own MacAulay Field on Saturday, Nov. 8.

Saturday's win was the second straight week the Mounties have beaten Saint Mary's handily, with the defence once again shutting down the Huskies offence.

After giving up only five first downs in a 38-0 shutout win last week, the Mounties defence held the Huskies to eight first downs and 105 yards of total offence on Saturday.

The Huskies scored their only point in the fourth quarter when they scored a rouge on Chase Kodejs' missed field goal attempt.

The Mounties were led defensively by Donovan Saunders who had an interception and 5.5 tackles before leaving the game with back stiffness. All-Canadian Kwame Adjei also had two interceptions for the Mounties.

After a scoreless first quarter the Mounties got a 38-yard field goal from Ryan Lambert on the first play of the second quarter to kick start the offence.

Two minutes later, Mounties quarterback Brandon Leyh hit a wide open Josh Blanchard for a 55-yard touchdown to stretch the score to 10-0. 

On the next play, Saunders intercepted a Jean Legault pass and returned it 38 yards to the Saint Mary's one-yard line. Emmanuel Musangu carried the ball over from there to run the score to 17-0. 

Lambert would add field goals from 27 and 29 yards to make the score 23-0 for the home side at half time.

After a scoreless third quarter, the Mounties were once again given great field position when Adjei snatched up one of his two picks and returned it to the Huskies nine-yard line.

Four plays later, Emmanuel Musangu hit from two yards out for his second rushing touchdown of the day. Lambert rounded out the scoring for the Mounties with his fourth field goal of the day, this time from 12 yards with one minute remaining.

Mounties quarterback Brandon Leyh was 18-of-33 for 253 yards with one touchdown and one interception while fifth-year Mounties receiver Josh Blanchard had nine catches for 118 yards and a touchdown. Blanchard now leads the AUS with 44 receptions and 564 yards on the year. 

Mounties freshman Chris Reid once again led the Mounties on the ground with 88 yards on 19 attempts to run his league-leading total to 741 yards.

For the Huskies, veteran Jean Legault was 12-of-27 for 68 yards and three interceptions while Melvin Abankwah had 24 yards on 15 carries.

The Mounties hit the road next week to take on the third-place Acadia Axemen on Saturday, Oct.18 while the Saint Mary's Huskies will travel to StFX.

The Mounties finish the regular season by hosting NFL on Campus on Saturday, Oct. 25 when StFX comes to town.

Source: Mount Allison Sports Information