ALGONQUIN 12, SENECA 0
MARKHAM, Ont. - The Seneca Sting put forth their best effort of the season on Sunday afternoon, only to see their effort thwarted on a pair of late scores while down two men on the field. The loss was the fifth consecutive for the team as they will finish out of the medals for the first time since the 2008-09 season.
The Algonquin Thunder entered the match as the favourite, but were in for a war from the opening whistle.
The Thunder controlled the field possession from the opening kick, continuously driving down near the Seneca goal line. A pair of goal line stands by the Sting kept the match scoreless. The second scoring attempt was thwarted when Neil Olsen (Toronto) stole the ball and ran for 15 yards.
A Seneca turnover gave Algonquin another scoring opportunity, but once again, the Sting stood tall. Travis Lynch (Toronto) stopped the Thunder ball carrier and stole the ball before carrying it outside the 20 metre line.
Down two men who were in the sin bin for yellow card infractions, the Sting appeared to finally be cracking defensively as Algonquin's Chass Maracle took a 20 yard run down inside the 20 metre line. The Sting would not fold and escaped to halftime with the match remaining scoreless.
Seneca, despite a strong push midway through the second half was unable to take the lead, despite being a man down for two yellow cards.
Despite their best efforts, the shorthanded Sting finally succumbed to the Thunder's constant pressure, giving up a try with 10 minutes remaining in the match. Brian Hue converted the kick for a 7-0 lead.
Following a Seneca red card, the Sting, playing with just 13 men on the field for the second time in the match, looked for the equalizer as time ticked away. Unfortunately, a missed pass was scooped up by the Thunder and rushed all the way inside the 20 metre line. A quick pass to a teammate and the Thunder scored as time expired. Hue failed on the convert, but the Thunder still won 12-0.
Seneca will wrap up their season next Sunday, Oct. 27 with a match against the Loyalist Lancers at 1 p.m. at Markham Campus Field.
Source: Seneca College