Despite a strong first half, the Carleton Ravens varsity football team dropped their first game of the season to the Queen’s Golden Gaels, thanks to a second-half blitz by the hosts from Kingston.
The Gaels’ 20-second-half points put them on route to a 34-24 win over the Ravens.
Carleton head coach Steve Sumarah said he was encouraged by his team’s start, but ended up disappointed with the result.
“We just weren’t consistent enough, on offense and defence,” Sumarah said. “Sometimes we needed our first downs, and we just weren’t making it happen.”
The Ravens’ fast start came courtesy of the strong core of receivers. With the score at 7-0 Carleton starting quarterback Jesse Mills found offensive captain Nate Behar for a 74-yard touchdown, giving the Ravens a 14-0 lead.
The impressive play from Mills and his wide receiver out of London, Ont. had the Ravens on top for what would be their largest lead of the game.
Sumarah said the Ravens were way more intense in the first half of the game. “We were physical on both sides of the ball, but it just sort of petered off as the game went on,” he said.
Once that intensity disappeared, Queen’s was able to take hold of the contest.
Before the first quarter was up, the Gaels cut their deficit in half. Rookie quarterback Nate Hobbs connected with wideout Doug Corby for the first touchdown of the game for the hosts, making the score 14-7 at the end of the first quarter.
While the Ravens held the lead headed to halftime, it was a cautious one. After a dash from running back Jesse Andrews tied the game for Queen’s, the Ravens kicked their way back into a lead with two field goals to hold the 20-14 lead into half.
Behar said the Ravens needed to buckle down defensively against the Gaels in order to prevail.
“We know that they’re really able to run the ball,” Behar said. “There’s nothing more deflating than watching a team run the ball six yards each possession, methodically.”
The Gaels were able to pull away using their running game in the second half. While Sumarah and the Ravens harped on stopping the run, Andrews put up 138 rushing yards in the second half, as well as a touchdown.
Queen’s was able to defeat the Ravens with the final score at 34-24. The loss drops the Ravens to an 0-1 record on the season.
Carleton will head home for next week’s first game at the newly named MNP Park, against the University of Waterloo Warriors. Kickoff on the home opener is scheduled for Sept. 5 at 1 p.m.
