On Sunday afternoon at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium, the Montreal Alouettes hosted the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the Eastern Semi-Final. For two seasons, the Tiger-Cats advanced to the Eastern Finals. However, on this day, the Alouettes dominated the game, preventing Hamilton from going to the Eastern Final for the third year in a row.
In the first quarter, Montreal quarterback Trevor Harris threw three straight passes for 40 yards. Then, Harris threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Jake Wieneke. Wieneke did a nice job separating himself from a Hamilton defender to catch the touchdown, putting Montreal up 7-0 with 11:49 left.
After this, Hamilton quarterback Dane Evans threw two passes for 29 yards. Hamilton could not get the first down, and kicker Seth Small made a 47-yard field goal, cutting Montreal’s lead to 7-3 with 9:26 left.
Later in the first quarter, Montreal quarterback Trevor Harris threw a 33-yard pass to Eugene Lewis. Four plays later, backup quarterback Dominique Davis scored a touchdown with a quarterback sneak, making it 14-3 with 2:01 left.
Hamilton had the ball for the rest of the first quarter, reaching Montreal’s 36-yard line to begin the second quarter. The Tiger-Cats moved the ball toward Montreal’s 16-yard line before Seth Small made his second field goal for 23 yards, trimming the Alouettes’ lead to 14-6 with 12:35 left of the second quarter.
Afterward, Montreal quarterback Trevor Harris threw three passes for 34 yards. Furthermore, running back Walter Fletcher ran to his left side, breaking a tackle on his way into the endzone for 33 yards to blow the game open 21-6 with 9:43 left.
When Hamilton got the ball back, quarterback Dane Evans’s pass was intercepted by Mike Jones. However, the Tiger-Cats’ defense stopped them, forcing Montreal to punt. Hamilton punt returner Lawrence Woods let the ball bounce in the endzone before conceding a single point. It was now 22-6 Montreal with 8:29 left.
With the five-seconds left, Montreal kicker David Cote missed a 55-yard field goal wide right, and Lawrence Woods returned it out of the endzone before getting tackled to end the first half.
Montreal quarterback Trevor Harris was 21/27 for 219 yards, one touchdown, and one interception while running back Walter Fletcher had four carries for 47 yards, and one touchdown as part of Montreal’s 278 yards on offense.
Meanwhile, Hamilton quarterback Dane Evans was 6/8 for 112 yards, and one interception, while running back Wes Hills had three carries for 28 yards as part of Hamilton’s 143 yards on offense.
Midway through the third quarter, Hamilton made a quarterback change with Matthew Shiltz in for Dane Evans to try and spark the offense. Shiltz threw three passes for 36 yards before throwing a 12-yard touchdown pass up the middle to Steven Dunbar. After this, Hamilton successfully converted a two-point conversion, cutting Montreal’s lead to 22-14 with 7:55 left.
Late in the third quarter, Montreal returner Chandler Worthy returned a punt for 47 yards. After failing to get the first down, Montreal kicker David Cote made a 33-yard field goal for a 25-14 lead with two seconds left.
In the fourth quarter, Hamilton kicker Seth Small made a 35-yard field goal, making it 25-17 with 11:55 left, but Montreal got those points back with 18 seconds left on a 12-yard field goal by David Cote for a 28-17 lead. Hamilton had two opportunities to get down the field, but Montreal’s defense knocked the ball on the ground, ending the game.
The Alouettes knocked off the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 28-17 to advance to their first Eastern Final since 2014. Montreal will play the Toronto Argonauts next Sunday at 1 pm on ESPNEWS. This is the first time since 2012 that Toronto and Montreal faced each other in the Eastern Final.
Montreal quarterback Trevor Harris went 27/34 for 243 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Running back Walter Fletcher had seven carries for 77 yards, and one touchdown, while wide receiver Jake Wieneke had five catches for 60 yards and one touchdown. Montreal’s defense allowed 287 yards, with 41 tackles, six sacks, three forced fumbles, three pass breakups, two interceptions, and one forced fumble.
Hamilton quarterback Dane Evans was 7/10 for 123 yards, and one interception, while backup quarterback Matthew Shiltz was 11/19 for 127 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Running back Wes Hills had five carries for 34 yards, and wide receiver Tim White had eight catches for 142 yards. Hamilton’s defense allowed 388 yards, with 57 tackles, three sacks, two pass breakups, and one interception.
This will be an interesting offseason for the Tiger-Cats. They will have to decide on who leads the team heading into next season between Evans and Shiltz. In addition, they need to retool both sides of the ball if they are going to get back to the Grey Cup next season.
