THUNDER BAY – It took the St. Ignatius offence a little while to get going.
But once it started, it didn’t stop.
The undefeated Falcons scored three times in the final 6:19 of the second quarter on Thursday evening at Fort William Stadium, jumping out to a 20-0 halftime lead and cruised to a 33-0 triumph over the St. Patrick Fighting Saints in the first of two high school junior football semifnals.
They’ll take on second-seeded Westgate next Saturday in the championship game, seeking a seventh junior football title since 2012. The Tigers doubled up Hammarskjold 28-14 in the other semifinal, after a 4-1 regular season finish.
Alex Iossa opened the scoring with a 13-yard rushing touchdown, then added a second 16 seconds before halftime, hauling in a 28-yard pass from quarterback Justin Coulombe.
Phoenix Chau would add a 17-round scoring run midway through the fourth to round out the Falcons scoring, St. Ignatius capturing its sixth straight contest in 2022.
“It felt good. We’re going to the final. We worked hard and we definitely deserved it, said Iossa, who ran for 35 yards and had three receptions for 82 yards on the day.
Iossa said coach Martin Furtado gave his team a nice talk after the two sides played a quarter-and-a-half of scoreless football and it seemed to spark the Falcons to start producing points.
“It gave us the motivation to drive down the field and score,” he said. “The one touchdown really helped our momentum throughout the game and carried us through the game.”
Aiden Palko notched the Falcons second major of the day, scampering in from 21 yards out with 2:36 to go until halftime, then, after a holding the Fighting Saints to a three-and-out, St. Ignatius appeared to go up three scores when Arthur Mason took a St. Patrick punt 59 yards down the sidelines for the special team touchdown – only to have it wiped out by a flag.
No worries.
Coulombe hit Palko for a 32-yard gain and one play later muscled a pass to Iossa who blazed his way into the St. Patrick endzone, the Falcons taking a 20-0 lead.
The Fighting Saints advanced as far as the St. Ignatius 32 on their opening drive of the third, but couldn’t convert a third-and-10. They advanced into enemy territory on their next possession, but were stalled at the 47 and once again, turned the ball over on downs.
Coulombe and the Falcons needed just three plays to find paydirt again, the scoring play a 36-yard strike to Michael Laukka.
St. Patrick recovered a Coulombe fumble at their own 54 and marched down to the St. Ignatius 19, but time ran out before they could punch it home and snap their opponent’s shutout bid.
It was a total team effort, Furtado said.
“I don’t think the score was an indication of how that game went,” he said. “It was a good battle at the beginning. The difference was some big plays that fortunately we were able to come through with in the first half and it opened things up for us … Overall I’m very happy with the way our team played. They showed a lot of grit and stuck with the game plan.
The job is only half done, he added.
“It’s a new season. Game 1 is done and we’re looking forward to the final, but you never know what happens in those games. It’s always a special opportunity. It’s where you can create memories for a lifetime.”
