Photo Courtesy: Nav Mohan - 94.9 Radio Western

54th Vanier Cup

The Western Mustangs are looking to win their second consecutive Vanier Cup this year against the very same opponent they had in 2017, the Laval Rouge et Or. The Mustangs are coming off a 47-24 win over the Saskatchewan Huskies in the Mitchell Bowl, while the Rouge et Or blew out the St. FX X-Men 63-0 to win the Uteck Bowl. The game will be played at Telus University Stadium—Laval’s home field. The stadium will play host to the next two Vanier Cups, and has already hosted the big game four times in the past decade. The Rouge et Or played in two of those Vanier Cups games, winning both times against the Calgary Dinos. Laval has won nine Vanier Cups in their 22-year existence, with a 9-2 record in the Title game; they average a Vanier Cup appearance every two years. Furthermore, the Rouge et Or have never lost a Bowl game in the province of Quebec, winning all 10 contests they have played. The Mustangs, on the other hand, are in their 14^th Vanier Cup in program history (est. 1929), which is the most appearances by any program. They have only won the title game seven of those times, most recently last year which broke a drought of 23 years. The Mustangs are 1-2 all-time against the Rouge et Or, with the lone win coming in last year's Vanier Cup. The RSEQ champions will be led by fifth-year quarterback Hugo Richard, who was the Vanier Cup MVP in their win in 2016. He put up 327 yards and five touchdowns passing in the Uteck Bowl and had over 2400 all-purpose yards in the RSEQ regular season. The Mustangs landed in Quebec City earlier today (Thursday), and will have two practices at Telus University Stadium before Saturday’s game. Kickoff for the 54^th Vanier Cup will be at 1pm.

Western Mustangs

Hockey

The Mustangs women’s hockey team will have revenge on their mind when they host the Brock Badgers at Thompson Arena on Friday evening. The Mustangs suffered their third loss of the season 2-1 against the Badgers on Saturday, despite directing 42 shots on net. The Mustangs will then head to Toronto on Saturday to take on the Ryerson Rams for the first time this season. Western won both their meetings with the Rams last season.

The men’s team is fresh off their first back-to-back wins of the 2018-19 season and will also be playing the Brock Badgers on Saturday night on the road. The Mustangs have put up 11 goals in their past two games, with Anthony Stefano registering six points (2g, 4a) between the two matches. The Mustangs are currently sixth in the OUA West with a 6-6-1-1 record.

Basketball

The basketball teams will have two games in Ontario’s capital this weekend, playing the Toronto Varsity Blues on Friday then the Ryerson Rams on Saturday. On the women’s side, the Rams lead the OUA East with a 7-0 record, while the Varsity Blues are 1-6 coming in. As for the men, the Rams are also 7-0 while Toronto is 3-4. The lady Mustangs are 1-6 to start the season, which has been ravaged by injuries; the men’s team is 4-3.

Volleyball

The volleyball teams are only in action once this weekend, when they head to Windsor to face the Lancers. Western won all four matches between the men’s and women’s teams last weekend, which put the women’s team in second place in the OUA West, while the men sit in third despite having more points than the McMaster Marauders, who have played two fewer games than the Mustangs. The Lancers women’s team is 2-6 this year, while the men are 6-2 to lead the OUA West.

GOJHL

The London Nationals threw everything short of the kitchen sink at the Strathroy Rockets last night, but it wouldn’t be enough as they would lose at home 3-2. The Nats outshot the Rockets 50-17 in the entire game, with Strathroy’s goalie Vince Michelizzi making 48 saves, including 24 in the third period alone. The Rockets handed the Nationals their third regulation loss of the year, despite Strathroy being second-to-last in the division. London is now 9-2 on home ice, and will hit the road to take on the St. Thomas Stars tomorrow night.

St. Thomas’s game against London will be their first of two this weekend, as they’re slated to take on the Chatham Maroons on Sunday evening as well. Jake Robinson has led the Stars’ offence this season, with 8 goals and 12 assists thru 20 games so far this year. St. Thomas heads into the weekend with the fourth spot in the GOJHL West, sporting a 10-8-1-2 record while having 23 points. They trail the Chatham Maroons by three points, with the Maroons having three games in hand.

The Komoka Kings only have one game this weekend as they will play host to the St. Mary’s Lincolns on Saturday night. Komoka has struggled with consistency this year as they have won consecutive games just twice. They also surrender nearly four goals per game (3.86), while scoring just over three (3.14). The Kings have been led by their captain this year, Joel Mazzilli. He has 13 goals and 19 assists in just 21 games played, which is good for 14^th  in the GOJHL scoring race, but fourth amongst players in the Western Conference.