Braves win NDA Jr. football title

The Braves celebrate during their come from behind victory in the NDA Junior Football final. Photo by Lucas Punkari.

By Lucas Punkari

The Northern Braves clawed their way back from a 13-0 deficit in the first quarter to win the NDA Junior football championship over the Algonquin Barons by a score of 25-19 on Saturday afternoon at Cundari Field. The victory also marked the Braves first Junior division title since 2000.

Braves running back Mitch Brouillette found the endzone with 2:22 left in the fourth quarter from three yards out to give the Braves the lead. Following a unsuccessful two point conversion, it was up to Northern’s defense to clinch the title, and they did just that forcing a turnover on downs with 25 seconds remaining.

"The last drive was obviously crucial," Braves head coach Daniel Stevens said following the victory. "We really needed the defense to hold them off. Giving up the football to them with less than three minutes is something you don’t want to, but we we’re down there close to the end so we had to score.

"The defense did a phenomenal job holding them back there. I think their offense got a little discouraged there on the drive and that was the break that we needed."

Despite Algonquin’s third straight loss in the NDA Junior finals, head coach Ryan Desbiens was pleased with his team’s effort.

"We knew it was going to be a battle and it came down to that last possession," Desbiens said. "We were driving the ball well and then we had two costly penalties for holding and a block in the back. If those didn’t happen, you could of had a different outcome."

The first quarter was all Algonquin as they opened up a 13-0 lead. Following a fumble by the Braves on the very first drive of the game, the Barons pounded their way to the endzone with a one yard run from Collin Glass.

After stopping a fourth and five play by the Braves, Algonquin would extend the lead with a two yard run up the middle from Eric Joly.

The Braves got themselves back into the game after a long drive in the second quarter, as Brouillette found his way across the goal line from a yard out. A botched snap on the point after attempt however would leave the score at 13-6.

On the first play of the Braves next possession, it would be Sam Levac coming up with a big 42 yard touchdown reception, that would tie the game up at 13.

"We told our guys after the first to keep plugging away and that’s exactly what happened," Stevens said regarding the second quarter comeback. "The guys came through, the holes started to open up and away we went."

Brouilette would complete the comeback with his second touchdown of the afternoon on a 35 yard reception on a screen pass, putting the score at 19-13 following an unsuccessful convert attempt.

In the fourth quarter the Barons would tie the game back up on Joly’s second touchdown of the day from a yard out. Levac would come through again for the Braves as he blocked the point after attempt, leaving the game tied at 19, which set up Northern’s game winning drive.

After starting the season at 1-3, being able to come back and take home the championship was something that coach Stevens was very proud of.

"It’s phenomenal," Stevens said. "The memories that the guys are going to have from this season is something they’re going to talk about years from now."

"We were a little rough around the edges at the start of the season. We had a lot of new players and only had 27 guys going up against much larger teams. They came together at mid-season and never looked back since. We’ve been undefeated in our last six teams so we stand alone right there."

For Barons head coach Ryan Desbiens, making the championship game with such a young team leaves a lot of optimism for the future.

"We only had nine returning players this year along with our 31 first year players, so I’m really proud of the effort that they gave all season," Desbiens explained.

"This is the third year in a row we’ve been in the finals, so we’re starting to build a good program here and hopefully will be able to take that final step next season."