SENIOR WARRIORS BLANK TOP-RATED TORONTO SQUAD
By Sam Laskaris
It was supposed to be a battle between a pair of highly-ranked squads.
But a bit of a mismatch materialized on Tuesday as the host Huron Heights Warriors senior football team pounded out a decisive 52-0 victory over Toronto’s Chaminade College Gryphons.
The Gryphons are expected to capture the Toronto Catholic schools title this season while the Warriors, who boosted their mark to a perfect 10-0, continue to remain as the top-rated high school team not only in Ontario but nationally as well.
Despite their top billing in Toronto, Warriors’ head coach Heath Weir said he knew his charges would be able to fare rather well versus the Gryphons.
“We just knew they weren’t as big as us up front,” he said.
Weir added despite their height and weight disadvantages on the lines, members of the Chaminade squad competed with plenty of heart.
“They really played hard,” Weir said.
The Huron Heights bench boss also had plenty of praise for his own charges who are in the midst of a potentially historic campaign.
The Warriors, who do not compete in a league, schedule their own matches throughout the season against some rather formidable opponents.
Huron Heights’ 2022 campaign will conclude later this month when it competes in an OFSAA Bowl game in Guelph.
A total of nine season-ending provincial bowl games will be staged between Nov. 28-30, all in Guelph.
The Warriors are expected to find out next Tuesday which bowl game they will participate in.
The Gryphons are also favoured to win their league title and advance to a bowl game. Chaminade is the latest squad that has the ability to win a league title that Huron Heights has faced this season.
“There’s going to be six potential conference champions that we’ve played this year going to bowl games,” Weir said. “And we’ve beaten them all.”
Zeion Neptune, who plays both the running back and linebacker positions for the Warriors, said it took a bit of time for his club to get on track in Tuesday’s match.
“Our first drive wasn’t great,” he said. “But then we got going.”
The Warriors led 7-0 after the opening quarter. Huron Heights added three more touchdowns in the second quarter to enjoy a 28-0 lead at halftime.
Neptune said it wasn’t too difficult for his teammates to remain motivated in the second half after scoring four touchdowns in the opening half. “I feel we have to give a lot of credit to the coaches,” he said. “They make sure we don’t get cocky or complacent. And the coaches make sure we keep going and have all gas and no brakes.”
Logan Couto was an offensive force for the Warriors scoring four touchdowns for the Warriors. Alex Figen added a pair of TDs for Huron Heights while Neptune also scored a major.
Hayden Doris scored the other Warriors’ points by successfully booting a 10 yard field goal and connecting on seven extra point attempts.
The Warriors’ next game is this coming Tuesday, Nov. 8, when they hit the road to square off against Markham’s Bill Crothers Colts.
The opening kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.