Eyolfson guns Valkyries back into WWCFL final

Alex Eyolfson fires one of her four TD passes down field for the Valkyries.

    Alex Eyolfson greeted the attention that comes with being a big game hero with a lot of giggles.

    On the turf at Saskatoon Minor Football Field, the Saskatoon Valkyries 18-year-old rookie quarterback looked like a poised veteran on Sunday. She completed 10-of-18 passes for 151 yards and four touchdowns to lift the Valkyries past the Regina Riot 29-14 in the Western Women’s Canadian Football League’s Prairie Conference title game. She also ran the ball seven times for another 72 yards.

    Off the field, Eyolfson, who graduated from Saskatoon’s Holy Cross High School last year, seemed genuinely surprised a string of reporters came to talk to her about the day’s proceedings. She smiled and laughed her way through answering various questions.

    Even when she was asked what it was like to lead the Valkyries to the WWCFL championship game, Eyolfson responded with pure joy.

    “I’m so excited,” said Eyolfson. “It is all new to me. It is going to be awesome.”

    The Riot entered Sunday’s clash as the defending WWCFL champs. A year ago, they downed the Valkyries 31-29 in a Prairie Conference title game that was played in Regina. That Riot victory ended the Valkyries quest to win the WWCFL title for a fifth straight year.

Stacey Boldt zips up field for a major score on a 15-yard pass reception.

    On paper, the Riot held a huge edge in the experience department at the quarterback position with star veteran Aimee Kowalski taking the snaps from centre.

    Saskatoon had been utilizing a two-quarterback system for much of this season with Eyolfson and sophomore Reed Thorstad sharing signal calling duties. Thorstad was limited to playing about four different series at quarterback on Sunday.

    For a moment, it appeared the biggest excitement in this year’s Prairie Conference final might come from the weather conditions in Saskatoon. After a scoreless first quarter, both teams were chased to their dressing rooms when a sudden storm opened up dropping sheets of rain and hail on the field accompanied by lightning with 12:08 to play in the second quarter.

    Those weather conditions disappeared after about five minutes, and the teams returned to action under sunny skies following a 20-minute delay.

Valkyries Receiver Marci Kiselyk (#19) celebrates a TD catch.

    When action resumed, Eyolfson went to work. With 4:18 to play in the second quarter, she found veteran receiver Marci Kiselyk on a streak pattern for a 44-yard touchdown pass to give Saskatoon a 7-0 lead. Just over two minutes later, Eyolfson hit veteran slotback Stacey Boldt on a 15-yard post pattern for a second touchdown strike to increase the Valkyries advantage to 14-0.

    Eyolfson wasn’t done there. With 6.3 seconds remaining before halftime, she hit Kiselyk again this time for a 28-yard touchdown pass. The Riot blocked the ensuing convert, but the Valkyries took a 20-0 edge into halftime.

    Valkyrie head coach Jeff Yausie was pleased with Eyolfson’s performance.

    “She (Eyolfson) played very well, and she is a very athletic person,” said Yausie. “Lots of times she escaped pressure and broke contain on the edge and she ran for some first downs.

    “She has played flag football for a long time. This is her first year in tackle football. She has run around a lot and played in a lot of big games.”

Carmen Agar piled up 200 yards rushing and receiving for the Riot.

    The Riot were able to move the ball on Sunday piling up 440 yards of total offence. Star running back Carmen Agar posted 147 yards rushing on 26 carries and 53 yards receiving on six catches. Regina also turned the ball over 10 times including seven occasions on downs which aided the Riot’s downfall.

    Regina’s first offensive possession stalled at the Saskatoon three yard line after a pass on a fake field goal by holder Claire Dore fell incomplete.

    The Riot finally broke through on the scoreboard with 2:05 to play in the third quarter. The Valkyries fumbled away a punt return in their own end zone, and Agar recovered the ball for a touchdown to cut Saskatoon’s lead to 20-7.

    The momentum swing didn’t last. Just 1:44 into the fourth quarter, the Valkyries jumped ahead 28-7, when Eyolfson found Kiselyk for a two-yard touchdown pass and then hit slotback Stacey Boldt on a five-yard pass for a two-point convert.

    Kiselyk, who has been with the Valkyries since they started in 2011, caught four passes for 90 yards and three touchdowns in Sunday’s win.

A gang of Valkyries defenders take down a Riot ball carrier.

    “The receivers adjusted so well,” said Eyolfson. “They were really open I guess when I threw it every time.

    “They adjusted and ran their routes really hard. It was just easy to get it to them.”

    Kicker Carly Dyck added a single from 29-yard missed field goal to give the Valkyries a 29-7 edge. Regina round out the scoring with 62 seconds to play in the fourth quarter, when Kowalski hit receiver Robyn Tulloch on a 30-yard touchdown pass to cement the final outcome at 29-14 in Saskatoon’s favour. The Riot finished the season with a 5-2 overall record.

    Kiselyk was pumped her side came out on the winning end.

    “We’ve been aiming for that all year,” said Kiselyk. “Every season is a new season, but I hadn’t forgotten last year. It really felt like redemption for us.”

    The sure-handed pass catcher was also proud of the effort Eyolfson had.

Valkyries QB Alex Eyolfson eludes Riot defender Robyn Tulloch.

    “Alex (Eyolfson) really stood out for us today,” said Kiselyk. “She made a lot of plays with her legs as well as with her arm.

    “Even though we struggled early, she was able to keep her head in a big game in a high pressure situation, and that shows a lot of maturity for someone so young.”

    The Valkyries advance to the WWCFL championship game to face the Edmonton Storm this coming Saturday in Lethbridge. The Storm took the Western Conference championship last Saturday with a 14-4 victory over the Lethbridge Steel in Edmonton.

    The Valkyries and Storm enter the WWCFL championship game with identical 6-1 overall records. Those two clubs met in an exhibition tilt back on April 30 in Saskatoon, where the Valkyries pulled out a 30-17 victory.

The Valkyries celebrate their WWCFL Prairie Conference title win.

    Edmonton fell 53-6 in last year’s WWCFL championship game held in Winnipeg to the Regina Riot.

    The Valkyries beat the Storm in the inaugural WWCFL championship game 35-7, which was held in Lethbridge in 2011.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. Check Twitter for more WWCFL Prairie Conference final game photos @stankssports.

Riot rally past Valkyries, win with late field goal

Saskatoon still finishes first in WWCFL’s Prairie Conference

Morgan Turner kicks the winning field goal for the Riot.

    REGINA, Sask. - It was almost déjà vu for Regina Riot kicker Morgan Turner, who is developing a habit of nailing game winning field goals against the Saskatoon Valkyries.

    On Saturday at Mosaic Stadium in Regina, Turner booted a 21-yard field goal with 2:10 to play in the fourth quarter to give the Riot a 27-26 edge over the Valkyries. That score held up as the final outcome of Western Women’s Canadian Football League clash between these provincial rivals.

    Last year, Turner hit a 12-yard field goal into a stiff wind in the final seconds of the Prairie Conference championship game also at Mosaic Stadium to give the Riot a 31-29 win over the Valkyries. Regina advanced on to win the WWCFL title.

    Turner was pumped to come through again in the clutch but noted the circumstances around this winning kick were a lot different than the one a year ago.

    “It wasn’t as much pressure as last time,” said Turner. “We had a little more time, and I have a little more confidence in myself, because of the backing of my team.”

Samantha Matheson runs to daylight on a 56-yard TD score for the Valkyries.

    Saturday’s game also closed the regular season schedule for both clubs. The Valkyries and Riot both finish with identical 3-1 records, but Saskatoon finishes first in the Prairie Conference having outscored the Riot 73-48 in the two clashes between the teams. The Valkyries romped to a 47-21 victory over the Riot on May 22 in Saskatoon.

    Both teams host conference semifinal games on June 12 against opponents that are still to be determined.

    Saturday’s clash began in a downpour of rain that lasted for about the first five minutes of the contest.

    When the weather cleared up, the Valkyries surged out to a 19-0 edge on three rushing touchdowns by power running back Samantha Matheson, who ran the ball in from two, 20 and 56 yards out. Her 56-yard romp was a thing of epic beauty.

    Regina was able to block two of Saskatoon’s conversion attempts, which would haunt the Valkyries later in the game.

Valkyries DB Rienna Rueve tackles Rachelle Smith of the Riot.

    The Riot gained some traction manufacturing a 92-yard touchdown drive shortly before halftime. With 42 seconds remaining in the second quarter, the Riot march finished with star veteran quarterback Aimee Kowalski hitting receiver Claire Dore on a seven-yard TD strike. The two proceeded connect on a short pass on a two-point conversion attempt to cut the Valkyries lead to 19-8.

    “We are very frustrated about the way that the game went tonight,” said Valkyries special teams coordinator Chris Hengen-Braun. “(Give) all credit to the Riot, they did a really good job of game planning for us.

    “We saw a lot of new girls get in there and get a lot of playing time. It was really cool to see. A lot of girls stepped up for us as well too tonight.

    “It was really cool to see a lot of players really fly around and make some good plays. We had a couple of fumbles and a couple of other turnovers that really swung the game for us.”

    The Valkyries were without a number of regulars. Most of their missing players were in Halifax, N.S., playing in the senior flag football nationals including their two regular quarterbacks Alex Eyolfson and Reed Thorstad as well as head coach Jeff Yausie. Stacey Boldt, who was the Valkyries starting quarterback last season, moved back into the signal calling role in Saturday’s loss.

Riot RB Celeste Schnell tries to pull away from the Valkyries defence.

    Despite missing a number of players, the Valkyries still had a solid outing. The Riot just found a way to gut out a win which included converting a number of third down gambles.

    In the third quarter, the Valkyries lead shrank to 19-17 after they conceded a safety and Riot powerback Carmen Agar ran in a score from three yards out.

    On the ensuing series after Agar’s score, Boldt hit receiver Carly Dyck on a deep route resulting in a 54-yard major for the Valkyries. The score put the visitors up 26-17 going into the fourth quarter.

Early in the fourth quarter, Riot running back Celeste Schnell powered in from a yard out for a touchdown to cut the Valkyries lead to 26-24. That helped set the stage for Morgan to nail her winning field goal.

    Saskatoon’s final drive fizzled out at about the Regina 42 yard line.

The Valkyries defence sets up during a downpour of rain in the first quarter.

    Having locked up home field advantage through the Prairie Conference in the post-season, the likelihood is extremely high the Valkyries and Riot will face each other in the conference final. Going into playoffs, Hengen-Braun likes the effort he is seeing from his players.

    “The players that we asked to step up today did step up,” said Hengen-Braun. “The girls that did play today they did a really good job for us.”

    If you have any comments you would like to pass on about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Riot take conference title in epic clash

Last second field goal ends Valkyries' drive for five

Morgan Turner follows through on the Riot's  last second winning field goal.

    REGINA - For a short time, it appeared it would be a happy bus ride home for the Saskatoon Valkyries.

    The four time defending Western Women’s Canadian Football League champions looked to be on the verge of advancing to a fifth straight league title game. Thanks to an amazing fourth quarter rally, the Valkyries erased a 28-7 deficit to surge ahead of the Regina Riot 29-28 on a 25-yard touchdown run by Sam Matheson with 1:26 to play in regulation on Sunday at Mosaic Stadium.

    The Riot responded with a gutty final drive that ended when Morgan Turner kicked a 12 yard field goal with 15 seconds to play to give the hosts a 31-29 victory in the WWCFL’s Prairie Conference title game.

    Regina advances to the WWCFL final to face the Edmonton Storm this coming Saturday at Investors Group Field in Winnipeg. The Storm dumped the Calgary Rage in the Western Conference championship game 51-14 last Saturday.

    “It hurts to lose plain and simple,” said Valkyries head coach Jeff Yausie. “It hurts a little less when you lose to a good football team, and Regina is a very good football team.

    “We missed some opportunities in the first quarter with the wind, and didn’t score any points. We could have used those, and I think it might have been a different outcome.

    “We were down pretty significant. We found a way to fight back in the fourth quarter and take the lead. I am super proud of our girls.”

    The Valkyries had won every WWCFL title since the league’s inception in 2011. Entering Sunday’s game with the Riot, Saskatoon had won all 12 of its post-season games to date, which included eliminating the Riot from the playoffs in the Prairie Conference final in four consecutive years.

Sam Matheson runs in her fourth major of the game for the Valkyries.

    The Riot are the only team to have ever defeated the Valkyries with two victories coming in regular season play. The second of those wins came this season courtesy of a 49-9 blowout on May 30 at Saskatoon Minor Football Field.

    Quarterback Aimee Kowalski, who has been with the Riot since the start, was elated to finally get a post-season victory over the Valkyries.

    “We’ve been working towards it all season, and we have been wanting it for five years now,” said Kowalski. “It is nice to get it in our grasp and take it home.”

    Saskatoon had a couple of good chances to jump ahead at the start of the game, but Rienna Rueve hit the post on a 23 yard field goal attempt, and quarterback Stacey Boldt fumbled the ball away at the Riot 19 yard line.

    The Riot jumped ahead 7-0, when backup quarterback Sami Bray scored from a yard out on a quarterback sneak with two seconds to play in the first quarter. The lead grew to 16-0, when Kowalski hit Amanda Hungle on a 46-yard touchdown pass play, and Valkyries quarterback Stacey Boldt conceded a safety.

    Matheson scored on an eight-yard run to cut the gap to 16-7. Regina’s lead grew to 21-7 at halftime thanks to an 18 yard field goal by Turner and Boldt conceding another safety.

    Due to driving into a strong wind, Boldt conceded two more safeties in the third quarter, and Morgan kicked a 13-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter to give Regina a 28-7 edge.

    When it looked like Regina was poised for victory, momentum swung totally Saskatoon’s way. Boldt hit veteran receiver Marci Kiselyk on a long pass play that helped set up an 18-yard touchdown run by Matheson. Boldt proceeded to find Kiselyk again on a two-point conversion toss that cut Regina’s lead to 28-15.

    With 3:31 to play, Matheson ran in a score from 28 yards out to trim the Riot lead to 28-22. Her final major gave the visitors a one-point lead and visions of an epic comeback win.

Riot receiver Claire Dore holds up the WWCFL Prairie Conference trophy.

    The Riot gutted their way downfield on their final drive thanks to some big runs by Kowalski and running back Carmen Agar, who both broke numerous tackles. That led to Turner’s winning kick.

    “We have a very young football team,” said Yausie. “Our best years are ahead of us. For us to show the heart to be able to comeback from 21 points says a lot to me.”

    On the Riot’s game-winning drive, Kowalski said everyone on her offensive unit had a part in making big runs happen for her side.

    “Our O-line did an amazing job blocking,” said Kowalski. “Agar and I, we just kind of have a chemistry like no other.

    “We were able to take it home. We had some huge blocks from the receivers. Everybody did their job just like we practiced.”

    If you have any comments about this blog post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. Check out images of the playoff clash between the Riot and Valkyries on Twitter @stankssports.

Valkyries rally past Riot

Showdown at Mosaic shows potential of WWCFL

Julene Friesen speeds downfield for the Valkyries.

    It was a rare sight to see the Saskatoon Valkyries at the wrong end of the scoreboard.
    It also gave the four time defending Western Women's Canadian Football League champs a chance to show their resiliency.
    On Sunday at Mosaic Stadium, the host Regina Riot jumped ahead of the Valkyries 16-8. The Riot had a habit of giving their Bridge City Rivals tough contests, which included a 15-7 victory over the Valkyries on May 12, 2013. It wasn't out of the question Regina could pull out its second victory over Saskatoon in 13 tries.
    Like a squad that is used to winning championships, the Valkyries battled back. The Riot lead shrank to 16-14 by halftime. Saskatoon proceeded to jump ahead 21-16 with 52 seconds remaining in the third quarter, when first year starting quarterback Stacey Boldt hit tailback Julene Friesen on a 13 yard outlet pass for a major.
    Victory wasn't assured until Friesen ran in the game's final touchdown from eight yards out to give the visitors a 28-18 lead with 66 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. Saskatoon came away with a 28-19 final after Regina concluded the scoring with a rouge coming off a missed field goal as time expired.
    Unlike a lot of the contests involving the Valkyries, Sunday's game with the Riot provided intrigue.
    Saskatoon is the model franchise in the WWCFL and has run away from opponents with numerous blowout victories. The lopsided results occur due to a combination of the fact the Valkyries are well run with a strong coaching staff, and the WWCFL is still in its formative years. Women's tackle football is still a relatively new sport experiencing growing pains.
    The Riot have run a strong program, and they could have easily come away with a victory Sunday had the outcome of two or three plays been changed. The battle between Saskatoon and Regina showed the potential of how interesting WWCFL games can be.

Aimee Kowalski slings a pass for the Riot.

    The Valkyries jumped ahead 8-0 thanks to the Riot conceding a safety in the first quarter and Boldt hitting veteran receiver Marci Kiselyk for a 34-yard pass and run TD strike early in the second quarter.
    Regina sputtered early offensively due to a number of dropped passes but proceeded to catch fire. Riot quarterback Aimee Kowalski hit receiver Claire Dore with a 20-yard scoring pass cutting the Saskatoon lead to 8-6. A two-point conversion attempt by Regina to tie the contest failed.
    After Valkyries receiver Tori Giles fumbled away a punt return, the Riot were in business again. The turnover resulted in a 22-yard field goal from Morgan Turner to put Regina ahead 9-8.
    With 1:58 remaining in the second quarter, Aimee Kowalski connected with her sister Alex Kowalski for a long 75-yard home run strike to put Regina up 16-8. At that point in the game, the Riot had all the momentum and were making the majority of the plays.
    The Valkyries tightened things up scoring just 45 seconds later, when Boldt hit Kiselyk from eight yards out to cut the gap to 16-14. A two point conversion attempt failed, but Saskatoon was successful in stopping Regina's momentum.
    After Boldt connected for her third touchdown pass of the game to Friesen to put the Valkyries up 21-16, the Riot didn't go away. Near the halfway point of the fourth quarter, Regina had a golden chance to go back in front, but Aimee Kowalski's end zone pass to open rookie receiver Rachelle Smith was dropped.
    The Riot proceeded to turn the ball over on downs, but the Valkyries had to concede a safety on the ensuing series shirking their edge to 21-18.
    Regina would be doomed from two more mistakes. While running downfield after a catch, Alex Kowalski fumbled the ball away near her own 35 after getting tackled by Valkyries defensive back Amber Buchholz and linebacker Beth Thomson. Thomson recovered the ball for the visitors.

Valkyries DB Carisa Polischuk, right, takes down Riot receiver Diane Nesbitt.

    It appeared Regina would hold Saskatoon to scoring just a field goal, but the Riot were penalized for contacting Valkyries kicker Rienna Rueve. The infraction gave the Saskatoon a first down, so the visitors took the field goal off the board by accepting the penalty.
    The Valkyries proceeded to run more time off the clock before Friesen ran in for the clinching major. Regina attempted a last play field goal in case the points were needed for a standings tiebreaker down the road, but settled for a single.
    With the win, the Valkyries improved to 2-0, while the Riot fell to 1-1. After a bye weekend, these two clubs meet again on Saturday, May 30 at 7 p.m. at Saskatoon Minor Football Field.
    Regina needs to win that contest by 10 or more points to claim the season series. With that in mind, hopes are high that the next clash will be as compelling as Sunday's match was.

    If you have any comments about this blog, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. To see more photos of the Valkyries victory over the Riot, check out Twitter @StanksSports.