(PHOTO COURTESY OF QUEEN'S SPORTS INFO OFFICE)

KINGSTON, Ont – Quarterback Frederic Paquette-Perrault threw for 201 yards and produced a pair of touchdowns -- one rushing, one passing -- but it was not enough as the visiting McGill Redmen fell 38-24 to long-time rival Queen's in U SPORTS preseason football at Richardson Stadium, Saturday. The Gaels improved to 102-75-5 lifetime against McGill, in a series that dates back to 1884.

Elsewhere in games involving Quebec-based teams, Laval clocked Carleton 45-2, the Montreal Carabins crushed Toronto 63-4, Sherbrooke clipped York 21-9 and Concordia prevailed 23-16 over Laurier.

After McGill was first on the board with an early 13-yard field-goal by sophomore Findlay Brown, the Gaels went to work and put up 28 points in the first half against the Redmen. Queen's, which posted a 3-5 record in the OUA conference last season, led 7-3 after the opening quarter, 31-17 at halftime and 38-17 going into the final frame. The swing play of the game came when Gaels defensive lineman Zac Sauer jarred the ball loose on a sack. Teammate James Donald recovered and carried deep into the McGill zone and Matteo Del Brocco took a Nate Hobbs ' short pass in for a major score, which made it 14-3 Queen's early in the second quarter. The Redmen, who finished 4-4 in the RSEQ conference, had a shot for a comeback near the red zone in the final minutes but were sacked on back-to-back plays, turning the ball over on downs to the Gaels, who ran out the clock.

Paquette-Perrault, a 6-foot-2, 212-pound sophomore, completed 13 of 23 pass attempts and rushed twice for 15 yards. The 21-year-old accounting major hooked up with fellow sophomore receiver Joel Soucy for a 21-yard TD catch to cap a six-play, 95-yard scoring drive early in the second quarter. He then rushed for a two-yard TD with less than two minutes remaining in the half, narrowing the gap to 28-17.

"It's great that our second-year quarterback was really throwing the ball well and our receivers benefited from that but we have to be more consistent and not drop the easy passes," said third-year McGill head coach Ronald Hilaire. "We need to punch it in when we are in the red zone and we didn't."

Three McGill receivers reached the 90-yard plateau, led by Mathieu Soucy who collected a game-high 96 yards on five receptions. Teammate Felix Lupien also finished just shy of the century mark with 94 yards on four catches.
 
Freshmen pivot Dimitri Sinodinos took over for McGill in the second half and went 6-for-13 for 78 yards.

The McGill offence produced 345 net yards while the Gaels amassed 454. Queen's also had a 31-21 edge in first downs. Both teams lost one fumble in the game and McGill had the lone interception -- returned 25 yards for a touchdown by freshman linebacker Alexandre Pare-- which reduced the gap to 38-24 midway through the final quarter.

Both teams were penalized 13 times with Queen's losing 109 yards of real estate, compared to 91 yards conceded by the Redmen.

Hobbs was an efficient 17-for-25 for 225 yards and threw for two touchdowns. His first TD toss was to Connor Weir at the seven-minute mark of the first quarter to put the Gaels ahead 7-3. The Gaels leading rusher was Jake Puskas who carried seven times for 78 yards and a TD.

McGill was held to just 55 rushing yards, including 21 on two carries for freshman Pearce Dumay. 

Queen's opens their OUA campaign on Aug. 26 when they host Carleton, while McGill begins their RSEQ season on Friday, Sept. 1 at home in a 7 p.m. kickoff against the defending Vanier Cup champion Laval Rouge et Or.

REDMEN RAP: Sophomore defensive back Vincent Dethier led all tacklers with seven total take downs for the Redmen... McGill, which gave up four QB sacks, had sacks from Ousmane Guindo and Jonathan Lawson... Andrew Seinet-Spaulding was credited with a forced fumble and Antoine Mongeau registered a fumble recovery... On special teams, freshman Joshua Lucas collected 211 return yards, including 131 on six kickoff returns and 80 on seven punt returns,

SEE VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS ONLINE AT QUEEN'S WEBSITE

SOURCE:
Ryne Bondy & Earl Zukerman
McGill Sports Info Office