Newly formed Spruce Grove “Panthers” open 2009 season
Panthers running back Cameron Kolasa is surrounded by a swarm of Bev Facey defenders.
Local high school football team, the Spruce Grove Panthers, began their 2009 season on September 10th. The senior Panthers, formally the Parkland Predators, finished 3rd in the province this past season and were looking to start strong against a very skilled Bev Facey club from Sherwood Park. Bev Facey put the only blemish on the Predators 2008 season with a 50-0 win over our local boys in the Northern Alberta Tier 1 Finals.
The first quarter began as a defensive struggle. Panther wide receiver Nik Palek had a good opening kickoff return but the offense didn’t click and the Panthers went two and out. A event-less first quarter ended with a 7-0 score for the visiting Falcons on a 50 yard Conrad Whetstone punt return for a touchdown.
The second quarter, however, didn’t go quite the same way for the Panthers. The offense, yet again, failed to produce a good drive and the Falcons took advantage of the mistakes from the Panthers. The defense displayed mistakes in personnel which saw the Panthers take some costly penalties. Also the overall tackling and pass-coverage from the team was less then impressive as young quarterback Taylor Yaremchuk picked apart the Panther secondary nearly at will. The Facey Falcons went into half-time sitting with a comfortable 32-0 lead.
The second-half saw a quarterback change by the young Panthers in which veteran Sam Freidel took over for rookie Alex Samia. With Freidel at the helm the Panthers started moving the ball somewhat effectively but still failed to reach pay-dirt as one drive ended with a interception return for a touchdown by Bev Facey. This seemed to be a real “nail in the coffin” for the Spruce Grove Panthers. As the game came to a close the several more seemingly hopeful Panther drives abruptly stalled and the Bev Facey Falcons crusied to a 52-0 victory, there third of the exhibition season.
Despite the lopsided affair, the Panthers have a lot of good things to take out of the game. Having lost 22 starters to graduation last season, including a full offensive line, the overall inexperienced team showed poise at times. Some younger players stepped up to make plays and they always seemed to be playing aggressive, although they were physically outmatched by the monstrous powerhouse from Sherwood Park. The only thing that the local boys lacked was intensity, of any kind. The team was silent from start to end and it will be interesting to see who steps to try and take charge of the squad.
Spruce Grove looks to redeem themselves tomorrow as they take on the Lords from Strathcona High School in the first regular season game of the year. The Lords finished 2-4 last season and took a first round exit from the playoffs courtesy of our Parkland boys. The game is at Clarke Park in Edmonton at 7:30 pm.
