By Brad Peters Niagara Falls Review Updated 10 hours ago
Who would have thought that kick-off returns could be so important?
If the Saint Paul Patriots didn't think so heading into Thursday's Golden Horseshoe Bowl semifinal, you can bet that kick-offs will be high on the radar for the Patriots in their appearance Tuesday in the Bowl finals.
The Patriots beat the Brampton Notre Dame Knights 37-27 at Centennial Stadium Thursday.
The game started off with the promise of being a high scoring contest with both teams putting up majors with the first 90 seconds. Kory Kemp hauled in a pass from Patriots' quarterback Evan Murdza and ran 62 yards for the six points.
Wanting to make a strong opening impression, the Knights matched the Patriots opening drive and added 38 yards when Shaquille Johnson ran the kick back 100 yards, and with the convert it was a tie game.
The second quarter saw Pats' kicker Fiore Costa connect for two field goals, from 23 and 12 yards, but the Knights Bryan Deans gave his team the lead heading into the half with a five-yard TD on a pass from quarterback Chris Strong and yet another big kick return – 77 yards this time. The teams went to the locker-room with the Knights up 21-13.
In the closing minutes of the second and start of the third quarters, Saint Paul looked like they'd had their focus knocked out of them by the barrage of big hits from the Knights. When Chad Manchulenko made it a 13-point lead for Brampton, something clicked with the Patriots and they were back in the game.
They stopped a two-point convert attempt after the touchdown and then everything went the Patriots, they climbed their way back into the game, but it would be the extra effort of Ryan Nieuwesteeg in the fourth quarter that iced the win for St. Paul.
Nieuwesteeg scored two touchdowns – a 44-yard TD from Murdza and a 22-yard fumble return – within the first 1:23 of the quarter. Costa added a 40 yard field goal and the game ended as it began with Kemp running back an interception 22 yards for the major.
"I thought that we didn't play our game through the first half," said Nieuwesteeg. "But, I know these guys, and I knew they wouldn't quit, that they would do whatever they had to do to get back into the game.
Nieuwesteeg, the local division's offensive MVP for the year said that he was just as surprised as everyone else that he had the ball after the kickoff fumble.
"I was just down the kick," said the running back. "I saw their player bobble it, and it was just lying there – all I had to do was scoop it and score it."
Heading into the finals, Nieuwesteeg said that all the players will have to be at their best, but after Thursday's game, he said special teams will be the focus.
"That was where we were weak today," he said. "We have to better than that on Tuesday."
Knights coach Dario Pretto was impressed not just to Nieuwesteeg, but the Patriots as a whole after the game.
"They are a great team," he said. "Even when we had the lead, I knew that they weren't out of it. Your teams down in Niagara never seem to be out, you always find a way to get back in the game."
Pretto said it was the Patriots' constant pressure in the second half that got his team off their game.
Saint Paul coach Rick Oreskovich said that even through the rough patch in the middle of the game, his team was always progressing.
"We didn't have a lot of great blocks in the first, and we didn't really figure out how to use our running game in the first," he said, "but we just got a great effort from our guys today."
Saint Paul advances to the Golden Horseshoe Bowl Final which will be played at Rogers Centre on Tuesday at 11:15 a.m. against the winner of Nelson and Our Lady of Mount Carmel. That semifinal will be played at Etobicoke Centennial Stadium at 10:30 a.m. on Friday.
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