Mustangs blow into league final

The Highwood Mustangs countered the wind with a win last Saturday, defeating the visiting Olds Spartans 35-12 in their Big Sky Football Conference Tier 4 semifinal. It was the second time in as many weeks that the Mustangs beat the Spartans in High River, including a 46-7 decision Oct. 18 in their final regular-season game. “I’ve seen a real big change in our team over the past couple of weeks,” said Mustangs senior co-captain Tyler Harding. “During practice, we’ve been doing more stuff, and we’re making more plays at the right times. We’re more like a family now, because we — the seniors — have been so close to not ever playing again with everyone else.” The second-seeded Mustangs will play again this Saturday in Calgary against the top-ranked Rundle College Cobras in the Tier 4 final. Rundle’s head coach was in High River last Saturday to scout the Mustangs, and Highwood head coach Nathan St. Dennis went to Calgary later in the day to watch the private school defeat the Bow Valley Wolverines of Canmore 30-7 in the other semifinal. The Mustangs are anxious for another shot at Rundle, which tied Highwood 7-7 in a September game at High River. “I’m pretty sure we can (beat the Cobras), because we tied them last time and we weren’t really playing good,” said Harding, one of six seniors with the Mustangs. “It should be a big game.” In the provincial Tier 4 rankings released Monday, Rundle remained No. 1 and Highwood jumped to fifth from seventh. After winning back-to-back Big Sky titles at the Tier 3 level, the Mustangs dropped down this year in a rebuilding season. In the past two weeks, Highwood has scored points like the Mustangs of old, posting a combined 81 points in the two wins over Olds. Despite strong winds last Saturday, the Mustangs built up a 21-0 lead in the first half and withstood the Spartans’ comeback attempts in the second. Mitch Welland broke through for a couple of Olds touchdowns, but Paul Desjardins responded both times with majors for Highwood. Grade 10 student Charlie Vryhof, with two, and Harding scored the Mustangs’ other touchdowns. Both players stood out offensively and defensively, St. Dennis said. “Charlie showed up big time on both sides of the ball. He’s just a very focused kid and that’s what we need from our team. It’s nice to see that in a Grade 10 kid.” Rotating between linebacker and fullback, Harding has made the transition to two-way play in his Grade 12 year. “It’s pretty tiring,” he said. “I’m getting used to it, though. The last two years, I just played defence. “All of us get trained to play both ways, so if I ever need a break, they can pop someone else in.” The Mustangs got the job done in the semifinal, even if it wasn’t as smooth as their previous week’s effort. “Some of the younger guys were being a little cocky, but we just told them that we can’t do that, because (the Spartans) could be a completely different team,” Harding said. “We beat them before, but we needed to dig it out and do it again.” Highwood weathered a wind that left fans trying to bundle up and hang on to their hats. Mustangs quarterback Mark Black, who likes to make the long passes, held his own under trying circumstances. “That was probably one of the most difficult games ever,” said Black, a Grade 10 student. “The day before, on Friday, it was windy and coach was talking that conditions might be the same (Saturday). And I was, like, ‘No way, it’s not going to happen.’ And it was. It was pretty brutal. “It definitely kept picking up. It was not slowing down, at all.” Black threw a touchdown pass to Vryhof in the first half, but reading the wind was mostly a challenge. “It was really hard to tell,” the quarterback said. “It kept shifting. Sometimes, it was coming right at me — it felt like. And then, we got turned around, so I’m, like, ‘Oh, wait, we have the wind now.’ And then, it was going sideways, not blowing toward one of the end zones we were going to, so it was really messing with me a bit.” Steady hands like Vryhof stabilized the Mustangs. “Charlie is really athletic and he’s a really hard worker,” Black said. “I enjoy having him on the field with me, because I trust him. He’s sure-handed and he’s a really good runner.” St. Dennis said many of the Mustangs arrived at the field early Saturday in anticipation of their first playoff game. “They couldn’t sleep the night before,” he said. “You could tell they were excited. We knew that it was sudden death — you lose and you’re done for the rest of the year. Of course, if you’re in Grade 12, that’s a scary, harsh reality. “The nice thing was, a little out of our character, we got off to a strong start. But, it wasn’t the full effort that we wanted, because we kind of just went through the motions and sat back on our heels. It’s not something we’re happy with, but something we can work on. “It didn’t look real bad, but we need to have a different mentality against higher-calibre teams. That effort won’t work against a team like Rundle.” Rundle plays some of its games at McMahon Stadium, but the Mustangs were still waiting for word Monday whether the Tier 4 championship would be played at the home of the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders. “That’s what I’m hoping for,” Harding said. “It would be fun.” St. Dennis, however, confirmed Monday night that the game will be played at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Calgary’s Shriners Field, where some Mustangs played midget.