University of Guelph

Men's Football - Gryphons Defeat Golden Hawks, 38-34 to Advance to Yates Cup

• November 3, 2007

 

 

 

 

The Guelph Gryphons defeated the Laurier Golden Hawks 38-31 on Saturday afternoon to advance to the 100th Yates Cup next Saturday, November 10 in Guelph, Ont.

The win for Guelph marks their first trip to the provincial final since 1996 when they defeated the Waterloo Warriors to advance to a national bowl game.

The Golden Hawks opened the game running off 21 unanswered points to end the first quarter up 21-0. Gryphon rookie, Jedd Gardiner sparked the Gryphons offense in the second quarter with a 114-yard punt return to score the Gryphons first touchdown.

“We just kept working and believing and chipping away at the score,” commented Gryphons Head Coach Kyle Walters. “Jedd gave us the momentum that we needed in the second quarter and we ran with it. We’re just happy to be playing still and really look forward to hosting the Yates Cup on our home field.”

Nick Fitzgibbon (Pusalinch, Ont.) scored four touchdowns including the game winner as the Gryphons ran off 31 straight points to take the victory from Laurier. Justin Dunk connected 12 of his 22 passes for 211 yards including several scrambling plays. He was the only other rusher for the Gryphons with 96 yards on the afternoon.

After narrowing a 14 point deficit with a Ryan Lynch touchdown, Luke Pinder (Kitchener, Ont.) picked up a fumble after a failed onside kick and gave Laurier good field position for an attempt to tie the game. Noble couldn't connect with intended receiver Andy Baechler (Ayr, Ont.) on the third down giving the ball to the Gryphons with 30 seconds on the clock.

The Gryphons will host the provincial title at Alumni Stadium in Guelph on November 10th. The game will be broadcast live on The Score television network.

Tickets will available for the 100th Yates Cup hosted by Guelph on Monday, November 5th at 1:00 p.m. by visiting the Gryphons Box Office.

With files from Laurier Sports Information