McCorriston arrives at perfect time for Valkyries

Grace McCorriston hauls in a TD catch for the Valkyries.

Grace McCorriston was ready for the opportunities the hand of fate sent her way in the kicking and receiving games with the Saskatoon Valkyries.

McCorriston played flag football when she was really young before moving over to play soccer for a lengthy period of time. After graduating from Centennial Collegiate, McCorriston started studying in the education program at the University of Saskatchewan.

She wanted to get back into football after watching her boyfriend and now fiancé in Zach Moehler play receiver for the CJFL powerhouse Saskatoon Hilltops. Moehler was with the Hilltops from 2018 to 2021 helping them win CJFL championships in his first two seasons.

McCorriston decided she wanted to join the Valkyries, who are a powerhouse squad in the WWCFL. Originally, McCorriston focused on playing receiver like Moehler. She wanted to wear number 81 like Moehler did with the Hilltops, but she elected to wear #82 as #81 was taken by Valkyries star veteran receiver Rachelle Smith.

Along with becoming a receiver, McCorriston decided to give the kicking game a try with the place kicker and punting positions due to her soccer background.

“I found that when I was younger I could catch the ball quite well,” said McCorriston, who recently graduated from the U of S with her bachelor of education. “I thought I would give it a try.

“That was how I got into receiving. Kicking, definitely the soccer background I knew that I could kick that ball if I needed to and get good at it, if I practised.”

Now in her third season with the team, the 22-year-old is a starting receiver and the squad’s main place kicker and punter. McCorriston first joined the Valkyries for their winter workouts at the start of 2020.

Grace McCorriston (#82) boots a field goal for the Valkyries.

Things came to a halt on that front in March of 2020 as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic gripped the world. The 2020 WWCFL campaign was ultimately cancelled.

The Valkyries got back to practising in 2021, and while the WWCFL campaign was again cancelled that year, they were able to face the Regina Riot in a three-game exhibition series in July of that year. McCorriston said the practices and those contests provided a valuable opportunity to learn and gain experience playing the game.

“It was very new,” said McCorriston, who stands 5-foot-6. “I had a lot to get used to.

“I think the hardest part was blocking and also memorizing all the different calls and what everything meant and different positions and what they meant and how to do those. It was a big eye-opener for me, because tackle football is very much different than soccer and very much different than flag football. It was a huge adjustment, but so far it has turned out pretty good.”

McCorriston received a sizable amount of reps in the kicking game along with running back Drew Lundquist and played receiver during that three-game series in 2021. At the time, Valkyries all-time great running back Sam Matheson and veteran star defensive back Rienna Rueve were penciled in to be part of the kicking game having done those roles at various times during their playing careers with the Valkyries.

When the WWCFL returned to full regular season play in 2022, Matheson was lost to a season ending knee injury in the team’s second regular season game and elected not to return to the club this season. Rueve only played half of the regular season games in 2022, but suited up for all the team’s post-season contests.

Due to some minor nagging injuries, Rueve didn’t take part in the kicking game as much as she did in the past where she often handled the majority of the punting duties. As a result, McCorriston and Lundquist handled a bigger part of the kicking game, where McCorriston took the majority of the field goal opportunities.

“It was definitely something that someone had to step up,” said McCorriston. “I feel like anybody would have, but I think I knew that I had it in me that I could do it.

Grace McCorriston unload a punt for the Valkyries.

“With that when I take things on, I tend to work at it and push to achieve what I want to achieve. Doing that in that season, I used a lot of Rienna’s techniques and all her advice. She helped me quite a bit in the start, and then she kind of eased off more and more.

“I used her words of kindness and wise words to help me out.”

Valkyries head coach Pat Barry said the fact McCorriston could handle all the field goal kicks played a big part in helping the team win a seventh WWCFL title in 2022. As both Matheson and Rueve didn’t rejoin the team this season, McCorriston has handled the Valkyries punting and field goal kicking.

With the departure of team’s two star veterans in Matheson and Rueve, Barry was thankful McCorriston became as proficient in the kicking game as quickly as she did.

“It was a big deal,” said Barry. “She is working her way to being an excellent kicker.

“She is doing punting and place kicking. Drew (Lundquist) still does our kickoffs. It is something to see her (McCorriston) grow as a kicker.

“It is just impressive.”

McCorriston said another thing that helped her with her skills in the kicking game was the fact she got to practise with the Rylan Kleiter, who was the Hilltops proficient kicker who graduated from the team following their 2019 CJFL championship win. Moehler helped set up McCorriston’s practice sessions with Kleiter, when McCorriston was starting out with learning the kicking skills in football.

“Kleiter gave me some pointers and tips on how to properly kick the ball,” said McCorriston. “So far, I’ve taken what he has told me and taught me and rolled with it and it has worked pretty well.”

The highlight of playing for the Valkyries so far for McCorriston was helping them win the WWCFL title game last year. In the Valkyries 36-6 WWCFL title game win over the Winnipeg-based Manitoba Fearless on June 25, 2022 at Saskatoon Minor Football Field, McCorriston caught a 16-yard touchdown pass and booted a field goal from 30 yards out.

Grace McCorriston (#82) took on kicking upon joining the Valkyries. 

“It was unreal,” said McCorriston. “It is amazing to be part of this team and the dynamic that we have.

“The winning is also very fun. I’ve never experienced a loss with this team, so if that were to ever happen, I’m not even sure what kind of feelings I would feel.”

McCorriston believes she has had an overall better season 2023 due to the game experience she gained in her previous two years with the team. With the Valkyries having topped the WWCFL’s Prairie Conference with a 4-0 record in the regular season, McCorriston is looking forward to the post-season.

The Valkyries host the Prairie Conference final against the Regina Riot, who were 2-2 in regular season play, at Saskatoon Minor Football Field on either Saturday, June 17 or Sunday, June 18 at a time to be announced. Saskatoon advanced to the Prairie Conference title game thanks to a forfeit victory over the Winnipeg Wolfpack.

The Riot downed the Fearless 26-13 in a quarter-final contest on Saturday at Mosaic Stadium in Regina to get to the Prairie Conference final.

The Western Conference final will see the Calgary Rage, who were 3-0 in the regular season, host the Edmonton Storm, who were 2-1 in the regular season, on either Saturday, June 17 or Sunday, June 18 in Calgary at a place and time to be announced.

The conference championship game winners will advance to the WWCFL Championship Game that will be hosted in Saskatoon on Saturday, June 24 at 2 p.m. at Griffiths Stadium.

McCorriston wants to help her club finish out the 2023 campaign with anther league title win.

“It feels like the stakes are a little bit higher,” said McCorriston. “I know that we have a good support system and the fans are great.

Grace McCorriston (#82) makes a TD catch in the 2022 WWCFL final.

“I think that we have a good chance going in. I think that if we keep playing our game and we keep our heads held high and play football how we know how to play I think we will do just fine.”

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

-------

If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.