Just over a year ago, the York Lions pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the OUA football season when they toppled the heavily-favoured Waterloo Warriors in a 34-32 thriller in Toronto. The loss ultimately cost Waterloo a home playoff game in 2018, and it taught the upstart Warriors that they couldn't look past any team in the OUA.
After the rematch on Saturday afternoon, it's clear the Warriors learned their lesson.
Running back Dion Pellerin (Abbotsford/) scored three touchdowns on the ground, and the Warriors forced five York turnovers to claim a dominating 57-19 victory on Alumni Black and Gold Day at Warrior Field.
The Warriors moved to 4-1 on the season, while sending the winless Lions to 0-6. After hanging with the hosts in the first half, the Warriors put the game away with a dominant second half – Waterloo outscored York 33-9 in the final two quarters.
"In the first half, we weren't crisp on offense. The defense was keeping us going," said head coach Chris Bertoia. "I'm really happy about the second half, and the response our team came out with in all three phases after halftime. It was a good win."
Pellerin paced the offense all day, as the fourth-year running back rushed for 155 yards on 18 carries, including touchdown scampers of 1, 22, and 49 yards. All-Canadian receiver Tyler Ternowski (Hamilton/) was equally as dominant in the aerial attack, as he caught 6 balls for 100 yards and a pair of scores, while quarterback Tre Ford (Niagara Falls/) went 18-30 for 250 yards, 3 touchdowns, and an interception.
The Waterloo defense made life difficult all day for York quarterback Noah Craney. Despite throwing for a career-high 258 yards, they pressured the second-year pivot into three interceptions – including two from Lautero Frecha, and a 70-yard interception return for a touchdown from Tyrell Ford (Niagara Falls/). Lions receiver Alex Daley made 5 catches for 115 yards, while York got touchdown receptions from Victor Belanger and Kadeem Hemmings.
The Warriors drew first blood in just their second series of the game, when Ford hit Ternowski on a quick slant from the slot. The veteran receiver did the rest, as Ternowski took it 46 yards to the house for an early 7-0 Waterloo lead.
York responded later in the opening quarter with a long drive that started at their own 12-yard-line. But the offense sputtered deep in Waterloo territory, and the Lions had to settle for a 10-yard Mitchell Mackett field goal, and a 7-3 disadvantage after one quarter.
The Waterloo defense made some major waves early in the second, when Tyrell Ford (Niagara Falls/) jumped a route on the sideline and secured his third pick of the season. A blink of the eye and 70 yards later, the Warriors had their first defensive score of the season, and Waterloo had extended their lead to 14-3.
After Zlatinszky added a 26-yard field goal and an ensuing 2-and-out for York, the Lions came up with their first big defensive play of the afternoon when a Tre Ford (Niagara Falls/) long bomb intended for Brandon Metz (Cambridge/) was intercepted by Daniel Loggale at the Lions' 28-yard line. But Frecha earned the ball back for the Warriors on the very next play, when he pulled down a pick to give possession back to Waterloo. 7 plays and 58 yards later, Pellerin had a one-yard touchdown plunge and the Warriors led 24-3.
York responded with a 3-yard hookup from Craney to Hemmings late in the half, and the Lions were looking for even more momentum heading into the third quarter, as they were driving in Wtaerloo's territory. But York was thwarted just short of the goal line as time expired in the second quarter, and Waterloo carried a tenuous 24-10 lead into halftime.
While the pesky Lions refused to go away, the turning point might have come on a wild special-teams sequence early in the third quarter. It started with a 47-yard missed field goal – by the narrowest of margins – off of the foot Zlatinszky. Daley returned the miss 40 yards, and had eyes on the endzone, but reigning defensive player of the week Michael Reid (Sault Ste. Marie/) took Daley down and dislodged the ball in the process. Kurtis Gray (Waterloo/) scooped it up for Waterloo, and the Warriors put their offense right back into action in prime field position.
From there, it was all Waterloo First, it was Ford to Ternowski for a second time of the afternoon (this time from 28 yards) to make it 31-10. Then, after Belanger hauled in a Craney rainbow to make it 31-17, Pellerin turned the corner on the right side, and pulled away from several would-be tacklers for a 22-yard touchdown and a 38-17 Waterloo lead.
And Pellerin wasn't done there, as he saved his best run for the fourth quarter – on Waterloo's first offensive play of the final stanza, Pellerin bounced to the outside, made a cut upfield, and levied a massive stiff arm en route to a highlight-reel 49-yard touchdown. Zlatinszky added a 41-yard boot, and Ford found James Basalyga (Thunder Bay/) for a 12-yard major – his first career OUA touchdown – to round out the scoring for Waterloo.
The Warriors will now turn their attention to the defending Yates Cup champions, as Waterloo will travel to London to visit the 6-0 Western Mustangs on Saturday, October 5. Kickoff from TD stadium is slated for 1pm
