Harris was hurt near the end of the first half but Saskatchewan was still able to prevail over the 36-20 Tiger-Cats for their third straight win
The Saskatchewan Roughriders beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 36-20 on Sunday night to improve to 3-0 on the season, but the victory was overshadowed with concern over quarterback Trevor Harris.
The 38-year-old veteran pivot was injured near the end of the first half in Saskatchewan’s Week 3 CFL matchup on Sunday at Mosaic Stadium and didn’t return to action for the second half.
Given that the Riders had the lead when Harris was hurt and with a bye week upcoming, Riders’ head coach Corey Mace didn’t see any reason to risk putting Harris back into the game in the second half.
“Why risk it,” Mace posed to reporters after the game. “I talked to him at half time and he was in pretty good spirits.
“In the second half, he was in my ear saying ‘Coach, I can go!’ But we wanted to play it just a little bit safe.”
Mace didn’t provide an exact diagnosis on the injury but the head coach doesn’t expect it to keep him out long term. It also gave the Riders a chance to see the backup Patterson run the offence while carrying a lead.
“We’re confident with what Shea has provided for us to this point and certainly we were still able to maintain the lead and move the field and execute the offence,” said Mace. “I just didn’t see any point to letting Trev go back in the game.”
With the victory, the Riders remain the only unbeaten team in the CFL’s West Division, while the Tiger-Cats fell to 0-3 and remain the only winless team in the East Division.
As for the game, for the first time in three games the Riders didn’t need a fourth quarter comeback like they put together in Week 1 against Edmonton and last week against the Tiger-Cats.
On Sunday, the Riders built up a 17-0 lead through the first quarter and carried a 25-7 lead through three quarters before ultimately securing the victory in the fourth.
“Really proud of how these guys came out,” said Mace. “I thought we started fast, I thought we attacked the ball, I thought we took advantage of our opportunities.
“I thought we relied on each other when people went down and people had to step up.
“This is closer to the ID of what we expect to be.”
With :44 seconds left in the first half, Harris took a hit after releasing a pass and fell awkwardly before he got up holding his left leg.
The 38-year-old veteran QB tried to walk it off but had a noticeable limp. Trainers attended to Harris and helped him walk off the field under his own power before the pivot headed to the locker room.
Patterson took over at quarterback for Harris, who returned to the sideline midway through the third quarter with a brace on his left knee. He threw passes on the sideline but didn’t re-enter the game.
Patterson finished the game having completed 4-of-10 passes for 41 yards, while also rushing for three yards and a score.
“I’m prepared for the moment,” Patterson said after the game. “I’m prepared any time I have to step onto the field.
“Our defence and our special teams played unbelievable tonight and put us in good situations all game.”
Last season, Harris missed the final 13 games of the season with a tibial plateau fracture in his right knee. He was hurt in Saskatchewan’s Week 6 matchup against the Calgary Stampeders on July 15.
With 9:55 left in the fourth quarter, Riders’ defensive back Marcus Sayles threw a hit on Ti-Cats’ receiver Kiondre Smith but Sayles got the worst of it as remained down for several moments.
The stadium fell silent as trainers attended to Sayles before the defensive back walked off under his own power.
Safety Nelson Lokombo moved over to cornerback for the remainder of the game while Jayden Dalke took over at safety.
The 5-foot-9, 210-pounder was also Saskatchewan’s leading receiver with four catches for 47 yards.
“The last two weeks I felt like I wasn’t contributing to the team,” said Ouellette. “So, it feels good to get out there and help the guys get the win.”
“Things started to click for us,” said Mace. “We challenged the offence and the offensive line and the running game this week in the meetings and these guys took, they heat to it.”
Not only did the Riders defensive line hold Hamilton running back James Butler to just 10 yards on five carries, but Saskatchewan was able to sack Bo Levi Mitchell twice.
And the man behind both of those sacks was Canadian defensive tackle Charbel Dabire.
“Just capitalizing on opportunities,” said Dabire, who had a career-high two sacks in 2023. “Working hard as a whole defence and being able to be up there when my time was called.
“It felt awesome because this was the year I wanted to upgrade myself and just play harder and move better and this was the first step to heading that way.”
The Roughriders kicked off to begin the game, but Ti-Cats returner Lawrence Woods took a hit from Saskatchewan’s Thomas Bertrand-Hudon on the return and fumbled the ball, which was recovered Saskatchewan’s Christian Albright.
Two plays later, Harris threw a strike to Samuel Emilus in the end zone to make it 7-0 for Saskatchewan just 1:05 into the game.
Later in the first quarter, the Riders added to their lead as Harris threw a 40-yard bomb to Ajou Ajou for the rookie receiver’s first career touchdown to put Saskatchewan up 14-0.
“It felt amazing,” said Ajou. “It was a great pass by Trevor; shout-out to my dog.”
Before the first quarter was up, Riders’ kicker Brett Lauther made a 34-yard field goal to give the Riders a 17-0 lead.
Early in the second, the Riders scored a single point to make it 18-0 on a conceded punt.
With 2:01 left in the half, Mitchell connected with Shemar Bridges for a 41-yard touchdown pass to make it 18-7.
In the second half, Hamilton marched down to Saskatchewan’s six-yard line before Mitchell was sacked by Dabire. The ball popped loose and was recovered by linebacker Jameer Thurman.
While the Riders didn’t turn that turnover into points, they did on their next takeaway.
Near the end of the third quarter with Hamilton in the shadow of their goalposts, Saskatchewan linebacker C.J. Avery tipped Mitchell’s pass and it was caught by Thurman, who rumbled 28 yards into the end zone to put Saskatchewan on top 25-7 with the convert.
“We talked about it all week that somebody was going to get one,” said Thurman, who also added six tackles. “I just saw the ball when he tipped it and I knew I had to get into the end zone.”
On Hamilton’s next possession, the Riders forced another turnover as Sayles tipped the ball into the hands of teammate DaMarcus Fields as Saskatchewan took possession near midfield.
Patterson and Ouellette helped Saskatchewan get down to the seven-yard line before Lauther came in to kick a 21-yard field goal to make it 28-7.
With 6:30 left in the fourth quarter, Hamilton marched down the field before running back Ante Litre plunged in from one-yard out to make it 28-14 with the convert.
After an unsuccessful onside kick, the Riders got the ball at Hamilton’s 35-yard line and marched it down to the one-yard line before Patterson plunged into the end zone to put Saskatchewan up 35-14 with the convert. Lauther added a single point on the kickoff to make it 36-14.
After the Tiger-Cats successfully recovered an on-side kick, Mitchell looked to put another scoring drive together but he was intercepted by Rolan Milligan Jr. with 1:06 to go.
The Ti-Cats had one final drive, but couldn’t put points on the board before time expired.
Saskatchewan heads into its first bye week of the season.
The Riders will be back at practice on June 30 ahead of their second straight home game on July 4 against the 2-0 Toronto Argonauts.
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NAPA, Calif. (AP) — David Lipsky shot a 7-under 65 on Thursday at Silverado Country Club to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Procore Championship.
Winless in 104 events since joining the PGA Tour in 2022, Lipsky went out with the early groups and had eight birdies with one bogey to kick off the FedEx Cup Fall series at the picturesque course in the heart of Napa Valley wine country.
After missing the cut in his three previous tournaments, Lipsky flew from Las Vegas to Arizona to reunite with his college coach at Northwestern to get his focus back. He also spent time playing with some of the Northwestern players, which helped him relax.
“Just being around those guys and seeing how carefree they are, not knowing what’s coming for them yet, it’s sort of nice to see that,” Lipsky said. “I was almost energized by their youthfulness.”
Patton Kizzire and Mark Hubbard were a stroke back. Kizzire started on the back nine and made a late run with three consecutive birdies to move into a tie for first. A bogey on No. 8 dropped him back.
“There was a lot of good stuff out there today,” Kizzire said. “I stayed patient and just went through my routines and played well, one shot at a time. I’ve really bee working hard on my mental game and I think that allowed me to rinse and repeat and reset and keep playing.”
Mark Hubbard was at 67. He had nine birdies but fell off the pace with a bogey and triple bogey on back-to-back holes.
Kevin Dougherty also was in the group at 67. He had two eagles and ended his afternoon by holing out from 41 yards on the 383-yard, par-4 18th.
Defending champion Sahith Theegala had to scramble for much of his round of 69.
Wyndham Clark, who won the U.S. Open in 2023 and the AT&T at Pebble Beach in February, had a 70.
Max Homa shot 71. The two-time tournament champion and a captain’s pick for the President’s Cup in two weeks had two birdies and overcame a bogey on the par-4 first.
Stewart Cink, the 2020 winner, also opened with a 71. He won The Ally Challenge last month for his first PGA Tour Champions title.
Three players from the Presidents Cup International team had mix results. Min Woo Lee shot 68, Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., 69 and Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., 73. International team captain Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., also had a 69.
Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., had a 68, Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., and Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C., shot 70 and Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., had a 71.
Lipsky was a little shaky off the tee for much of the afternoon but made up for it with steady iron play that left him in great shape on the greens. He had one-putts on 11 holes and was in position for a bigger day but left five putts short.
Lipsky’s only real problem came on the par-4 ninth when his approach sailed into a bunker just shy of the green. He bounced back nicely with five birdies on his back nine. After missing a 19-foot putt for birdie on No. 17, Lipsky ended his day with a 12-foot par putt.
That was a big change from last year when Lipsky tied for 30th at Silverado when he drove the ball well but had uneven success on the greens.
“Sometimes you have to realize golf can be fun, and I think I sort of forgot that along the way as I’m grinding it out,” Lipsky said. “You’ve got to put things in perspective, take a step back. Sort of did that and it seems like it’s working out.”
Laird stayed close after beginning his day with a bogey on the par-4 10th. The Scot got out of the sand nicely but pushed his par putt past the hole.
Homa continued to have issues off the tee and missed birdie putts on his final four holes.
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AP golf:
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
GUADALAJARA, Mexico – Canada’s Marina Stakusic is moving on to the quarterfinals of the Guadalajara Open.
The Mississauga, Ont., native defeated the tournament top seed, Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia, 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (0) in the round of 16 on Thursday.
Stakusic faced a 0-4 deficit in the third and final set before marching back into the match.
The 19-year-old won five of the next six games to even it up before exchanging games to force a tiebreaker, where Stakusic took complete control to win the match.
Stakusic had five aces with 17 double faults in the three-hour, four-minute match.
However, she converted eight of her 18 break-point opportunities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
PARIS (AP) — French judicial authorities are investigating the disappearance of two Paralympic athletes from Congo who recently competed in the Paris Games, the prosecutor’s office in the Paris suburb of Bobigny confirmed on Thursday.
Prosecutors opened the investigation on Sept. 7, after members of the athletes’ delegation warned authorities of their disappearance two days before.
Le Parisien newspaper reported that shot putter Mireille Nganga and Emmanuel Grace Mouambako, a visually impaired sprinter who was accompanied by a guide, went missing on Sept. 5, along with a third person.
The athletes’ suitcases were also gone but their passports remained with the Congolese delegation, according to an official with knowledge of the investigation, who asked to remain anonymous as they were not allowed to speak publicly about the case.
The Paralympic Committee of the Democratic Republic of Congo did not respond to requests for information from The Associated Press.
Nganga — who recorded no mark in the seated javelin and shot put competitions — and Mouambako were Congo’s flag bearers at the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games, organizers said.
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AP Paralympics:
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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