MONTREAL – Ian McDowall of Dorval, Que., scored three tries in the final 21 minutes as McGill rallied from a 12-point deficit to defeat the Montreal Carabins 17-15 in men's university rugby before a vocal crowd of 834 at Percival Molson Stadium, Friday.
 
The Carabins had a chance to win in the final minute of play but fly-half Youssef Souihel missed a penalty kick, right in front of the goal posts, from 22 yards out. It was not a good night for kickers as the two teams combined for three missed penalty kicks and three missed conversions.
 
The result was McGill's seventh consecutive victory over the Carabins, dating back to a 25-15 loss on Nov. 13, 2016, improving the Redbirds head-to-head record to 12-4 lifetime.
 
Montreal took a 7-0 lead into halftime on the strength of a converted try by Julien Decarufel. The visitors upped their lead to 12-0 in the second half when Gabriel Lefebvre-Vehar tallied an unconverted try with 29 minutes remaining in the contest.
 
That opened the door for McDowell, a 23-year-old senior who returned for a master's degree in neuroscience after graduating last spring with a science degree, majoring in chemistry. The six-foot, 203-pound second row player who was slotted into the No. 8 position, scored his first try in the 59th minute, narrowing the gap to 12-7 after the conversion by Martin Laval. McDowell added a try in the 68th minute to reduce the deficit to 17-15 and then completed the hat-tick when he ran through on a one-yard plunge with five minutes remaining.
 
With two left to play in a six-game season, McGill (2-2) moved into a tie with Bishop's (2-0) for the third and fourth playoff berths in the seven-team RSEQ conference. Concordia (1-2) sits in fifth, five points ahead of the Carabins (0-3). Victories are worth four points in the standings, ties are worth two and teams can earn a bonus point for scoring four tries in a game or losing by seven points or less.
 
The Carabins face elimination if they lose their next contest, against visiting Concordia, on Oct. 7. McGill now enters two bye weeks and will prepare for their next game on Oct. 15, at Concordia, at 12 noon.
 
OFFICIAL SCORESHEET

RSEQ STATS & STANDINGS
 
RSEQ RUGBY (M) SCORING SUMMARY
 
McGill 17, Montreal 15
(@ Percival Molson Stadium, Sept. 29, 2023)
 
FIRST HALF

1. MCG Martin Laval (PENALTY KICK; MISSED) 4' (0-0)
2. MTL Romain Larcher (PENALTY KICK; MISSED) 36' (0-0)
3. MTL Julien Decarufel (TRY; convert MADE by Romain Larcher) 39' (MTL 7-0)

SECOND HALF

1. MTL Gaspard Jauffret (YELLOW CARD) 41'
2. MTL Gabriel Lefebvre-Vehar (TRY; convert MISSED by Sacha Laidouni) 51' (MTL 12-0)
3. MCG Ian McDowell (TRY; convert MADE by Martin Laval) 59' (MTL 12-7)
4. MTL Youssef Souihel (PENALTY KICK; MADE) 63' (MTL 15-7)
5. MCG Ian McDowell (TRY; convert MISSED by Martin Laval) 68' (MTL 15-12)
6. MCG Ian McDowell (TRY; convert MISSED by Martin Laval) 75' (MCG 17-15)
7. MTL Youssef Souihel (PENALTY KICK; MISSED) '80 (MCG 17-15)

SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
CELL: 514-983-7012
E-MAIL:earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca