CALGARY — Trevor Harris was well aware that he had never been on the winning end of a decision against the Calgary Stampeders.
After leading his Edmonton Elks to a 32-20 win over the Stampeders in front of 31,039 fans at McMahon Stadium on Monday, the veteran CFL quarterback can finally stop hearing about how he had gone 0-9-2 against Calgary in 11 previous regular-season games with the Toronto Argonauts, Ottawa Redblacks and Edmonton.
He was also on the losing end of the 106th Grey Cup in Edmonton on Nov. 25, 2018 when his Redblacks lost 27-16 to the Stamps.
“There’s been people that have mentioned that to me,” said Harris, who threw four touchdown passes to four different receivers.
“I guess to get the proverbial monkey off your back feels good, but at the end of the day, CFL football is hard to win games no matter what and any time you’re playing Calgary it’s going to be a tough out. I’m just glad got the win today as a team.”
Ernest Edwards, Jalen Tolliver, James Wilder Jr., and Mike Jones hauled in TD passes from Harris as Edmonton (2-2) ended its eight-game losing streak (from 2012-19) in the annual Labour Day Classic between Alberta’s two CFL clubs.
Sean Whyte also had a field goal, while Hugh O’Neill kicked a single for the Elks, who hadn’t played since a 21-16 win over B.C. on Aug. 19.
The Elks were scheduled to play in Toronto on Aug. 26 but that game was postponed after the West Division club had COVID-19 issues. The game with Toronto has since been rescheduled for Nov. 16.
“Everything’s about us as a team,” said Harris, who completed 31-of-41 passes for 398 yards against the Stamps. “I don’t know if we made a statement, but I know what we’re capable of and I know we’re finally starting to scratch the surface.
“I think we’ve gotten better every week. We’ve faced a lot of adversity and obviously with everything that kind of went down with the Toronto game being postponed … we’ve come out stronger and we came out better.”
Ka’Deem Carey had a rushing score for the Stampeders (1-4), while quarterback Jake Maier threw a TD pass to Markeith Ambles.
“We just (weren’t) connecting on offence – dropping passes, (taking) penalties, not staying on the field,” said Kamar Jorden, who led all receivers with 123 yards as he caught 9-of-12 passes thrown his way. “Those are the little things we expect to get through. We definitely have to find a way to improve our offence, get some confidence and getting some swagger behind us.”
Rene Paredes kicked a pair of field goals for the Stamps, who will travel to Edmonton to face the Elks in the Labour Day rematch on Saturday night at Commonwealth Stadium.
“That was a tough one to have a lot of optimism from,” said Calgary coach Dave Dickenson. “We’re just trying to win a game. I think we can do that. I think we can get on that bus, head north and put ourselves in another position to win a game. It’s going to require a lot of digging deep, though – a little extra work and as coaches we’ve got to try to figure out what our guys are good at and we’ve got to start putting them in that position because right now what we’re doing and calling isn’t working.”
The Stamps opened the scoring when Paredes booted a 35-yard field goal at 3:45 of the first quarter.
The Elks took a 7-3 lead at 7:38 when Edwards hauled in a 45-yard TD pass from Harris to cap off an eight-play, 75-yard drive.
The visitors had a chance to build on their lead a short time later, but Whyte missed a 48-yard field goal wide to the left.
After being assessed a five-yard penalty for procedure to put them back on their own 20-yard line, the Elks proceeded to march down the field 80 yards in four plays. Harris capped off the impressive drive at 9:35 of the second quarter when he tossed a six-yard TD pass to Toliver to put Edmonton up 14-3.
The Stamps answered right back with a great nine-play, 86-yard scoring drive of their own ending with Carey running into the end zone for a 13-yard TD with five minutes left in the opening half.
On Edmonton’s next drive, Whyte missed his second straight field goal as his 35-yard kick hit the right upright and bounced back on the field.
Calgary appeared to jump into the lead with just 35 seconds left before the intermission when Derek Wiggan recovered a fumble and ran into the end zone, but the play was negated due to an offside call on Shawn Lemon.
Following an unsuccessful drive by the Elks to start the second half, Maier engineered an eight-play, 83-yard drive that he finished off by tossing a nine-yard TD pass to Ambles at 6:20 of the third.
Whyte kicked a 36-yard field goal at 10:15 to pull the Elks into a 17-17 tie heading into the final quarter.
Paredes then put the Stamps back on top by three points with a 36-yard field goal 51 seconds into the fourth.
Harris then went back to work as he guided the Elks on a pair of lengthy drives that both resulted in touchdowns.
After Wilder hauled in short pass and ran into the end zone for a 10-yard score at 8:05, Harris then connected with Jones for a 52-yard TD pass at 2:39.
“Those guys never flinched,” Edmonton coach Jaime Elizondo said of his players.
“They stuck together. The believe in who they are. This is the standard that we expect. This is what we’re supposed to be about and what we’re supposed to do. I couldn’t be more proud of this team – their resiliency, their character … their mental toughness and they showed it today on the field. I’m really proud of them.”
O’Neill rounded out the scoring with an 84-yard single on the ensuing kickoff.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published September 6, 2021.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Canada’s Gabriela Dabrowski and New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe remain undefeated in women’s doubles at the WTA Finals.
The 2023 U.S. Open champions, seeded second at the event, secured a 1-6, 7-6 (1), (11-9) super-tiebreak win over fourth-seeded Italians Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini in round-robin play on Tuesday.
The season-ending tournament features the WTA Tour’s top eight women’s doubles teams.
Dabrowski and Routliffe lost the first set in 22 minutes but levelled the match by breaking Errani’s serve three times in the second, including at 6-5. They clinched victory with Routliffe saving a match point on her serve and Dabrowski ending Errani’s final serve-and-volley attempt.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will next face fifth-seeded Americans Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk on Thursday, where a win would secure a spot in the semifinals.
The final is scheduled for Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Nov. 5, 2024.
EDMONTON – Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his career as the New Jersey Devils closed out their Western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored for the Devils (8-5-2) who have won three of their last four on the heels on a four-game losing skid.
The Oilers (6-6-1) had their modest two-game winning streak snapped.
Calvin Pickard made 13 stops between the pipes for Edmonton.
TAKEAWAYS
Devils: In addition to his goal, Bratt picked up his 12th assist of the young season to give him nine points in his last eight games and now 15 points overall. Nico Hischier remains in the team lead, picking up an assist of his own to give him 16 points for the campaign. He has a point in all but four games this season.
Oilers: Forward Leon Draisaitl was held pointless after recording six points in his previous two games and nine points in his previous four. Draisaitl usually has strong showings against the Devils, coming into the contest with an eight-game point streak against New Jersey and 11 goals in 17 games.
KEY MOMENT
New Jersey took a 2-0 lead on the power play with 3:26 remaining in the second period as Hischier made a nice feed into the slot to Bratt, who wired his third of the season past Pickard.
KEY RETURN?
Oilers star forward and captain Connor McDavid took part in the optional morning skate for the Oilers, leading to hopes that he may be back sooner rather than later. McDavid has been expected to be out for two to three weeks with an ankle injury suffered during the first shift of last Monday’s loss in Columbus.
OILERS DEAL FOR D-MAN
The Oilers have acquired defenceman Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenceman Ben Gleason.
The 6-foot-3 Attard has spent the past three season in the Flyers organization seeing action in 29 career games. The 25-year-old right-shot defender and Western Michigan University grad was originally selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Attard will report to the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.
UP NEXT
Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2024.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, and Kareem Hunt pounded into the end zone from two yards out in overtime to give the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs a 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.
DeAndre Hopkins had two touchdown receptions for the Chiefs (8-0), who drove through the rain for two fourth-quarter scores to take a 24-17 lead with 4:17 left. But then Kansas City watched as Baker Mayfield led the Bucs the other way in the final minute, hitting Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds to go in regulation time.
Tampa Bay (4-5) elected to kick the extra point and force overtime, rather than go for a two-point conversion and the win. And it cost the Buccaneers when Mayfield called tails and the coin flip was heads. Mahomes and the Chiefs took the ball, he was 5-for-5 passing on their drive in overtime, and Hunt finished his 106-yard rushing day with the deciding TD plunge.
Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from a suite, and Hopkins finished with eight catches for 86 yards as the Chiefs ran their winning streak to 14 dating to last season. They became the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season.
Mayfield finished with 200 yards and two TDs passing for the Bucs, who have lost four of their last five.
It was a memorable first half for two players who had been waiting to play in Arrowhead Stadium.
The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough part of Kansas City, but his family could never afford a ticket for him to see a game. He wound up on a circuitous path through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a California junior college to Arizona State, where he eventually became of a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the 2022 draft.
Two year later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and the end zone. He punctuated his seven-yard scoring run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, by nearly tossing the football into the second deck.
Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City from a trade with the Titans.
The three-time All-Pro, who already had caught four passes, reeled in a third-down heave from Mahomes amid triple coverage for a 35-yard gain inside the Tampa Bay five-yard line. Three plays later, Mahomes found him in the back of the end zone, and Hopkins celebrated his first TD with the Chiefs with a dance from “Remember the Titans.”
Tampa Bay tried to seize control with consecutive scoring drives to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the latest tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.
The Chiefs answered in the fourth quarter. Mahomes marched them through the rain 70 yards for a tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and tweaking his left ankle, and then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-goal from the Buccaneers’ five-yard line to give Kansas City the lead.
Tampa Bay promptly went three-and-out, but its defence got the ball right back, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down field. His capped the drive with a touchdown throw to Miller — his first career TD catch — with 27 seconds to go, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.
UP NEXT
Buccaneers: Host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
