X-Men defeat Mounties in double OT to clinch playoff berth

SACKVILLE - Mount Allison’s first-ever night game turned out to be one wild ride. When the dust had settled, the StFX X-Men needed nearly four hours and two periods of overtime to defeat the hometown Mounties 42-41.

Mount Allison opened the scoring when Alec Curtis connected with a 12-yard field goal 3:41 seconds into the game. StFX answered back with a field goal of their own at 7:58. The X-Men took the lead when quarterback Corey Wensley ran it in from five yards out just before the end of the first quarter.

The hometown Mounties came to life in the second quarter, scoring 24 unanswered points on their way to a 27-10 lead at half time. The rally started when Jake Hotchkiss found Adam Molnar in the end zone from 10 yards with 6:01 gone in the second quarter. Three minutes later Nick Kukkonen found a seam and busted open a run for 66 yards and the major. The Mounties showed a different look when Adam Molnar threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to quarterback Jake Hotchkiss in the corner of the end zone to make the score 24-10. Before the end of the half, the Mounties scored again when Alec Curtis connected from 27 yards to run the score to 27-10.

StFX started to climb back in the game in the third quarter, starting with a rouge from Anthony Alix on a missed field goal. StFX forced Mount Allison to concede a safety at 7:14 to make the score 27-13 and then Andrew Hickey scored from 12 yards out to make it 27-20. Fifty-five seconds into the fourth quarter Cory Wensley hit Jordan Catterall for a 29-yard touchdown to knot the score at 27. With the ball back, the Mounties drove the field again, capped off by a one-yard touchdown by Nick Kukkonen, his second of the game.

With the score 34-27 Mount Allison, X-Man Jordan Catterall returned a missed field goal 119 yards for the major to tie the game at 34 with four and a half minutes remaining. The game finished tied 34-34, but not before Anthony Alix twice hit the uprights on consecutive field goal attempts.

Both teams traded single points during the first overtime, as Anthony Alix and Kyle McLean both earned rouges for their team. With the ball first in the second overtime, Jake Hotchkiss drove the Mounties down the field, eventually calling his own number from 6 yards for the touchdown. Needing to win by eight points to keep their playoff hopes alive, the Mounties tried for the two-point conversion only to have Nick Kukkonen’s pass deflect off Jarrett King’s outstretched arms in the end zone.

StFX scored two plays later when Ashton Dickson ran the ball in from seven yards. When Anthony Alix’s single point sailed through the uprights, StFX finished a 42-41 thriller.

Mount Allison’s Jake Hotchkiss finished 19-35 for 323 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Hotchkiss also had one running touchdown and one touchdown receiving. Nick Kukkonen led the way on the ground with 136 yards on 14 carries and two touchdowns. For StFX Ashton Dickson had 209 yards on 24 carries while Cory Wensley was 11-26 for 151 yards and one touchdown.

With the win StFX has secured third place and a playoff spot while Mount Allison will finish out of the playoffs. The Mounties finish their season next Saturday, October 29th at Saint Mary’s while the X-Men will host Acadia on Saturday at 2:00 pm.