A larcenous defence paved the way for the W.J. Mouat Hawks to blow out the Carson Graham Eagles 49-14 on the road in North Vancouver on Friday.
The ball-hawking Hawks picked off Eagles quarterback Darius Lamiere four times, with Deion Bain, Daniel Markin, Tanner Strauss and Crysthian Rivas doing the honours. Bain took his interception back 60 yards for a touchdown.
"We got some pretty good play from our defence," Hawks head coach Denis Kelly noted. "We had a good plan, and we really scouted their favourite pass plays, so we were in the right position."
One week after a disappointing loss to the Mission Roadrunners, the Hawks (2-1) authored a solid bounce-back effort. Nathan Henczel got the ball rolling, scoring on a 47-yard reverse, and running back Devin Logan posted a trio of TDs – two rushing, and one on a punt return.
Markin, the Hawks' QB, found the end zone on a one-yard plunge, and hit David Park for a 15-yard scoring pass.
HANSEN 28, LANGLEY 6
All four Abbotsford high school teams were victorious on the road on Friday. In Langley, Harpreet Dhaliwal turned in a tremendous effort in his varsity quarterback debut, throwing a TD pass to Jason Sidhu and rushing for another to lead the Rick Hansen Hurricanes (1-2) to their first victory of the season.
Dhaliwal typically plays receiver, but with starting pivot Alex Ho (broken kneecap) and backup Jeevin Uppal (calf) both out with injuries, he was pressed into QB duty.
"We were down to Plan C, I guess," Hansen coach Paul Gill said with a chuckle.
"Harpreet did a great job. Basically, he'll play whatever spot we need, and he's the kind of guy who can do it."
Running back Jordon Gmur had a huge game with 19 carries for 195 yards and two TDs, while Arsh Gill (six tackles, one sack) and Raj Jindal (five tackles) led the Hansen defence.
ABBY COLLEGIATE 35, MOSCROP 6
Quarterback Carter Williams turned in an efficient performance to lead the Abby Collegiate Panthers (1-1) to their first win of the season over Tier II Moscrop in Burnaby.
Williams completed 12 of 15 passes for 202 yards, including scoring strikes to Dallas Yassinsky, Jesse Neufeld and Dillon McGuire. Yassinsky added a 57-yard punt return major, and Tanner Storoshenko scored on a two-yard run for the Panthers.
"It was nice to see the offence come together," said head coach Jay Fujimura, pointing out that Williams completed passes to seven different receivers while the offensive line didn't allow a single sack. "We're getting better each week, and I think the guys know that."
BATEMAN 34, HUGH BOYD 21
In Richmond, the Bateman Timberwolves (3-0) maintained their undefeated record with a big win over Hugh Boyd. Stats were unavailable at press time.
WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Mouat, ranked No. 3 in AAA, has a high-profile match-up on the road this week against the No. 2 Vancouver College Fighting Irish (Saturday, 1:30 p.m.).
Stopping the Fighting Irish's vaunted ground attack, which features Matt Alviz running behind a mammoth offensive line, will be a huge challenge for the Hawks defence.
"They can really run the ball," Kelly noted. "But St. Thomas More managed to do some things against them, so we'll be taking a look at that film."
In other action, Abby Collegiate head coach Fujimura makes a return to his old stomping grounds, as the Panthers hit the road to face Holy Cross of Surrey (Friday, 3:30 p.m.). Fujimura played for and later coached with the Crusaders.
"I'm looking forward to that game a lot," he acknowledged. "They're a hard-nosed team and they're well-coached, and that's how I'm trying to mould the team I have now."
Bateman is the lone senior football team playing at home this week – they host Langley at 1 p.m. Friday. Hansen visits Seaquam of Delta (Friday, 1:30 p.m.).