A cold Saturday night started off the University of New Brunswick Red Bomber’s first game of their six-game season. Their home opener was against the Holland College Hurricanes.
UNB kicked off first on Sept. 14 on home soil at the BMO field.
The first quarter was slow with the only point coming from a safety, after the ball trickled out of bounds in the Hurricanes defensive zone, making the score 1-0.
With 10 minutes left in the second quarter, the Hurricanes gained the lead with a field goal, earning three points.
When the Red Bombers gained possession, the running back Dylan Waugh helped the team get back into the lead with a touchdown. The kick and the Red Bombers took an 8-3 lead.
“Scoring touchdowns is always fun … [but] winning close games is [also] fun,” said Waugh.
Receiver Jackson Green completed a pass from quarterback Jonah Rawlines for the second touchdown for the Bombers and a successful kick, furthering their lead. With three seconds left in the quarter, the Hurricanes completed a pass with a kick making it 15-10 at the end of the second quarter.
In the third quarter, Green got his second touchdown of the night increasing the Red Bomber’s lead by another seven points. Holland attempted to take back the lead by getting a touchdown with the extra point. By the end of the third quarter, the Bombers still had the lead of 22-17 and kept the lead for the rest of the game. The final score was 28-17.
Waugh said there was bad blood with Holland which gave them extra motivation coming into the game.
“[We] beat them twice in the regular season, then we lost in the semi-finals,” Waugh said.
He said dedication is a big factor for the UNB Red Bombers, and the team “just [needs to] keep doing what we’re doing” to be successful the rest of the season.
UNB’s next game is Sept. 21 against the Dalhousie Tigers at 1 p.m at BMO field.
