All three Cowichan Bulldogs football teams came up against the "Goliaths" of their respective leagues, the Saanich Wolverines, and despite valiant efforts by the Cowichan squads, the Wolverines escaped with the sweep.
The pre-atom Bulldogs were within a touchdown of tying the score going into the fourth quarter of their game, but a late TD gave the Wolverines an 18-6 win "We had a very good game and the players played against the toughest competition they will see all year," pre-atom coach Ted Harris said. "We are showing the whole league that we are a strong, developing young team who get better and better each week. I'm proud of the team; they played hard."
After Saanich opened the scoring, quarterback Jaxson Jones marched his team down the field on runs by Treighton McCuaig-Jones and Spencer Young, ending with a touchdown by McCuaig-Jones.
Throughout the game, Cowichan linemen Jayden Strzok, Nico Harris, Kaylum Billings and corner Evan Mayer swarmed the Saanich offence, and linebacker Ethan Bell knocked down a Wolverines pass attempt. Strzok, Harris, Billings, Matthew Beauregard and tight end Jayden Du Temple also led the charge on offence, and Du Temple came away with a reception as well.
The atom Bulldogs were unable to gain any traction against Saanich, but coach Devon Lawrence was pleased with his team's play.
"In the spring, the score does not matter in my opinion," he said. "What matters is seeing how the players are growing as young athletes, never giving up and being outstanding sportsmen on the field. Cowichan is known for our sportsmanship and this weekend the Atoms had it in spades."
Linemen Harrison Padur and Wyatt Atkinson and receiver Caden Gendal guided the offence, making way for running back Zach Pearson. On defence, a big tackle by safety William Hardman helped fire up the team, and lineman Ethan Giles made a tackle of his own that neither player will forget anytime soon The pee wee Bulldogs were unable to generate any offence against the Wolverines. The Bulldogs had injuries before the game started, then suffered more during the match and were down to just 12 players by the end.
"With all the adversity, the Bulldogs stayed together, always fighting to make plays and finishing the game hitting harder than at the start," coach Brian Scott said. "In a 40-0 loss the players are a lot stronger for it."
The pre-atom and atom Bulldogs will host Nanaimo this Saturday at 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., respectively, while the pee wees visit Peninsula.