An experienced St. Joseph–Scollard Hall Bears team executed its game plan to perfection in routing the West Ferris Trojans 30-6 in the NDA junior football final on a crisp Friday evening under the lights at Cundari Field.
Following the presentation of the championship trophy and pennant, Bears Head Coach Eric Morgan beamed as he talked about his team's effort. With a rash of injuries late in the season and, as the regular season leader, an extra week off before the final — plus the postponement from the original scheduled final from Thursday because the school buses did not run — Morgan didn't want his group to come out flat after the layoff.
"I couldn't be more proud of the way this team showed up tonight. It was a hard two weeks trying to keep them focused but they came to play tonight. Defensively we have been pretty tough to get points on all season and the defence didn't disappoint they only allowed six points against a tough running offence from West Ferris."
Parker Weller was all over the stat sheet in leading a stout Bears' defence.
The top two finishers in the three-team loop played most of the first quarter evenly but a Teodor Nadeau rushing touchdown opened the scoring. The first-year Bears wide receiver was just getting warmed up as Nadeau and quarterback Brady Kingston connected on two long touchdown passes — one covering more than 90 yards — before the game was even in the fourth quarter.
"On offence, we put together a pretty good game plan and it seemed to fire on all cylinders tonight, we couldn't have asked for a better night with the weather, which allowed us to showcase our throwing offence," Morgan added. "We put up 30 points on a tough Ferris defence that got better every week all season. It was a great win for these kids and a great way to finish a pretty successful season."
A Kolby VanderSchee rushing major from up close, a perfect four extra points on four tries from Dante Celebre, and a safety conceded by the Trojans' punter rounded out the scoring for the home team.
Second-year running back Carson Sagle finally broke through early in the fourth quarter to get the Trojans on the board. The West Ferris squad is expected to be a force in 2024 as many key positions were filled by first-year players this season.
The Bears' win secures a sweep of the NDA football pennants, as the seniors prevailed over the Algonquin Barons late in October.
