Vortex season comes to a close
Daryl Martin-Breault
Staff Reporter
(File Photo) The season has officially come to a close for the Vegreville Vortex, with a 32-7 loss to Athabasca. Vortex coaches say next year is the year the rebuilding process finally comes to fruition.
The 2010 season is in the books for the Vegreville Vortex, a 32-7 loss to Athabasca being the final nail in a trying season. The future is bright though.
Athabasca got a shot in the arm from 3 players from Lac La Biche that joined the team, one of which says Coach Colby Coers was the best player on the field.
A much closer match up for the Vortex, the defense shut down Athabasca at the Vortex 3 yard line but the offense went two and out from there. Owen Essery got the Vortex out of trouble with one of his trademarked booming punts. Getting the ball back, Athabasca pulled out a trick play that fooled the Vortex defense and Athabasca got the early score. The Vortex stopped the Athabasca 2-point try.
Daniel Titterington has been one of the Vortex best player’s all season long and a 30 yard run by Titterington put the Vortex in scoring position early in the second. Coers says that a communication problem calling plays burned the Vortex on the drive and the offense fizzled deep in Athabasca territory.
Athabasca took advantage of the Vortex problems, going on a roll and ripping off three unanswered touchdowns for a 26-0 halftime lead. The Vortex stopped Athabasca twice in three tries on 2-point conversions after the touchdowns.
Athabasca scored again in the third, converting the 2-point, for a 32-0 lead but the Vortex switched things up on offense, moving from a quick-hit running offense to a power offense. Titterington took the change and ran with it, literally, pushing, pulling, and dragging the Vortex down the field for their lone touchdown. Neither team would score again and the game would finish 32-7.
All in all, Coers says he is quite pleased with the season, “Everyone wants a W but we knew it was a rebuilding year. I know we have heard that term, “rebuilding”, the past couple years, but unlike past years, we are training young players and putting them in key positions. Next year will be exciting for us, our leading rusher, passer, receiver, tackler and pass rusher are all returning.”
Despite the losses and lopsided scores the Vortex have reasons to be optimistic. As has been stated before through the season, a major key will be finding enough players and just as importantly, keeping all those players all year long. Rebuilding has been the theme for the Vortex over the last three seasons, and hopefully, the rebuilding plan will come to fruition soon.
