FC Men playing their best footy; Jr. ‘Stangs win Kenemy Cup

Gameday in 5: A look to the week ahead — and a recap of the week that was (Aug. 1-6) — for London’s teams and athletes.

FC London’s men’s side has secured points in eight straight matches (four wins and four draws). (Photo: Martin Bazyl / League1 Ontario).

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FC London

With a 2-2 draw against Alliance United FC, a top seven team in League1 Ontario standings, FC London’s men’s team extended its impressive streak of securing points to eight straight matches.

Coming in having won two straight, FC London nearly made it three in a row by jumping out to a 2-0 lead on Alliance United on the road. Mike Sneddon had scored the game’s first goal in the 25th minute, and Nick Ferreira had doubled that lead in the 42nd minute. Unfortunately for the London squad, that lead slipped away in the second half — and quickly — as the home side rallied to tie things and come away with a draw. A pair of goals two minutes apart (54th and 56th minute) did the damage, and neither team was able to find the back of the net for the remainder of the contest.

With the draw, FC London extended its streak to eight straight games with points, a remarkable turnaround from the beginning of the season when the squad lost six of its first nine matches. Kuhle Bekwayo and Santiago Fonseca have led the team offensively, scoring six and four goals, respectively. Carson Wood and Nick Ferreira have three goals apiece.

Up next:

The men (5-6-6) have a two-game week ahead, beginning Wednesday with a home match against Windsor City FC. Then it’s another road contest — this time on Saturday in Hamilton.

Men:
Wed. Aug. 9 (9:00pm vs. Windsor City FC)
Sat. Aug. 12 (3:00pm @ Sigma FC)

London Majors

It was another week of mixed results for the Majors, who split their four games on the docket — buth won two of three over the weekend.

The week got off to a tough start with a 14-11 loss Tuesday to the Guelph Royals, the team London is trying to catch for sixth in the standings. And it was a back-and-forth affair that either team could have won. With their regular starting pitchers having gone over the weekend, the Majors went with a bullpen game. Robert Mackie got the start and allowed five runs (three earned) in 4 1/3 innings. Keith Kandel gave up four (three earned) in 2 2/3, and Braeden Ferrington surrendered five in a pair of frames. After back-to-back big innings in the 5th and 6th, London actually led 11-6 and seemed in good shape. But the Royals stormed back to claim the win. Starling Joseph smacked a grand slam in the loss, while Cleveland Brownlee, Kayne McGee and Eduardo de Oleo had three hits apiece.

The Majors landed a better result Friday, beating the Toronto Maple Leafs 16-7 back at Labatt Park. After beating Toronto in last year’s IBL Finals, thus earning their second straight championship, Friday’s contest was London’s first win against them this season. Starter Wilbur Martinez worked 5 2/3 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) with seven strikeouts. The home run was the story of the game, as the Majors hit four of them — including an Austin Wilkie grand slam to open up the scoring in a six-run second inning. Brownlee, de Oleo and Robert Mackie also homered, while Joseph went 4-for-5 with four RBIs. Regular infielder Tommy Reyes-Cruz pitched the final 3 1/3 innings, allowing three runs with a pair of strikeouts.

Riding their momentum from Friday, the Majors cruised to another victory Saturday, beating the Brantford Red Sox 13-4. In his second start as a London Major, Jordan Shulefand went seven innings and struck out 10 while allowing four runs on seven hits. Braeden Ferrington bounced back, throwing two clean innings in relief. Eduardo de Oleo had a big blow with a three-run homer in the 4th, while Drew Lawrence reached base four times and had three RBIs.

Closing out the week with a second matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Majors were unable to make it three wins in a row. Instead, they were on the wrong end of a lopsided 21-10 loss at Christie Pits. With Owen Boon unavailable, Skylar Janisse got the start and had a rough one, allowing 10 runs (nine earned) in just 2 2/3 innings. Down 15-2, the Majors put up eight runs in the 8th inning before Toronto responded with six more of their own in the bottom half of the frame. Brownlee hit his seventh homer of the season in a losing effort, while Joseph had another strong game at the plate, reaching base four times and knocking in three runs.

Up next:

The Majors (12-21) have yet another four-game week ahead, beginning Wednesday with a home game against the Hamilton Cardinals. They enter the week two-and-a-half games behind Guelph for sixth place in the IBL standings.

Wed. Aug. 9 (7:35pm vs. Hamilton Cardinals)
Fri. Aug. 11 (7:35pm vs. Kitchener Panthers)
Sat. Aug. 12 (8:00pm @ Brantford Red Sox)
Sun. Aug. 13 (2:05pm @ Hamilton Cardinals)

Junior Mustangs Football

The London Jr. Mustangs’ U18 squad were crowned KJ Kenemy Memorial Cup winners on Saturday after a convincing 40-21 win over the Myers Riders in the final at the Ontario Summer Football League (OSFL) championship weekend event in Windsor.

Meanwhile, though the U16 squad was eliminated from playoffs the previous weekend, the team had several league all-stars, including Ali Seif, Cameron Vermeer, Noah Miller, Weston Gower and Daniel Wojnowski.