The Orillia Secondary School (OSS) junior boys’ football team has punched their ticket to the Simcoe County Athletic Association (SCAA) championship game after defeating the Barrie North Vikings Friday afternoon 9-0.
The home team got on the board with just over a minute to go in the first quarter when Grade 10 linebacker Brayden Gough tackled a Vikings running back in the end zone for a safety.
“It felt great because those were the first points I’ve been credited for all season. It was a rough game for us at the start, but our defensive unit shut them down and we got the shutout, which is a big accomplishment,” Gough said.
After holding a slim 2-0 lead into the third quarter, Nighthawks Grade 9 power running back Caleb Sawyer put his team on his back by dominating the Vikings defence at the line of scrimmage, bulldozing his way to one first down after another.
“Being a power back hurts, but it feels good,” Sawyer chuckled.
“It means a lot to me that this team is relying on me, a Grade 9, to capitalize on all the opportunities that they give me.”
After Sawyer broke loose for a 30-yard run, Grade 10 running back Scott Ivancic punched in an outside run for the game’s only touchdown, which gave the Nighthawks an 8-0 lead.
“It felt great to score that touchdown for the team. We played good, and I’m just happy we got the win,” Ivancic said.
“I’m glad I’ve been able to contribute, and I’m glad we’ve come as far as we have. We are excited for the finals.”
In the fourth quarter, the Nighthawks would kick one through the Vikings end zone to add a single point, bringing their lead to 9-0.
OSS head coach Nathan Box says the home playoff win is a relief for his undefeated team.
“Our team came out really hard as we told them they would need to all week. We beat this team big last time and we knew it wasn’t going to be like that again,” he said.
Now the Nighthawks turn their focus to Thursday’s championship game where they will either play Collingwood or Eastview at OSS.
“We know that we have to take it to another level next week no matter who we play,” Box said.
“With a short week, we need to have good practices and do a better job of preparing for whoever we play.”
Box expects there will be a buzz around OSS next week as the Nighthawks will be playing in their first championship game since 2017.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve had an undefeated team up to this point in the season. We’ve had it once before and we didn’t finish it off with a win which was a bad feeling,” Box said.
“If we could pull this off, it would be great. The first post-pandemic championship football game being played at our school is great.”
