By Joel van der Veen

HANLEY — A decisive win over the LCBI Bisons means the Hanley Sabers are headed to provincial quarter-finals.

The second-place Sabers hosted the third-place Bisons in the 1A six-man conference consolation game on Oct. 24 before a large hometown crowd, dominating from the first quarter onward and ultimately finishing with a score of 88-52.

The high-scoring match offered plenty of opportunities for Hanley’s offence to shine, though LCBI certainly was no slouch in that area either.

Quarterback Tareq Halabi scored three touchdowns in the opening quarter, giving Hanley a 22-14 lead at its close.

The first minutes of the second quarter saw back-to-back touchdowns by Colten Olyniuk and Tareq Halabi, allowing the Sabers to extend their lead beyond the Bisons’ reach.

Coach Mark Anderson said the team’s strong physical game was a major factor in developing that lead, bringing the score to 52-36 at the halfway point.

Second-string quarterback Conor Prosofsky had an impressive run later in the game. He also made a major contribution throughout as the team’s placekicker, cementing the win with a successful string of conversions.

“He sure throws a beautiful ball,” observed Anderson, recalling that Prosofsky had also stepped in during the Sabers’ previous match with the Bisons.

The Hanley coach complimented LCBI’s athletes but noted that having to work both offence and defence proved exhausting: “You can see the toll it takes on them by the endof the game.”

On his team’s defensive end, Anderson had particular praise for the efforts of Marshall Prosofsky and Liam Maley. He added that the Sabers would need to tighten up defensively in preparation for the quarter-final.

“It’s great to score points,” he said. “It’s nice to prevent points as well.”

For the full story, please see the Nov. 2 edition of The Davidson Leader.