Saturday Sports: USports, WHL, NFL, CFL, MLB

CANADA WEST

Renzel Arinaza’s first U SPORTS touchdown early in the fourth quarter put the University of Regina into the lead for good and Noah Pelletier set a school record as the Rams outlasted Saskatchewan for a 33-28 victory on Friday night in a U-Prairie Challenge thriller at Mosaic Stadium.

Pelletier finished with video game numbers in the win, completing 26 of his 31 passes to set a U of R single-game record with an 83.9% completion percentage. The previous record was 78.8%, which Noah Picton set in a game against Saskatchewan back on Oct. 30, 2015 at the old Mosaic Stadium. Off to a 2-0 start for the second time in four seasons under head coach Mark McConkey, the Rams will head into Week 3 tied for first in the Canada West standings with Manitoba. Alberta and Calgary both sit at 1-1, with Saskatchewan and UBC at 0-2 to start the year.

(ReginaRams.com)

WHL PRESEASON

The Regina Pats defeated the defending WHL champion Moose Jaw Warriors 7-4 on Friday night at Affinity Place in Estevan, Sask. It was Regina’s start that really set the pace of the game early on, as the Pats took off with a 3-0 lead in the opening eight minutes of action. They never looked back from there, firing home another three goals in the second period to lead 6-2 after two.

Cole Temple had a career night with a four point-game (2G-2A) and Sam Oremba added three points (1G-2A). Jaxsin Vaughan (1G-1A) and Brayden Smith (2A) chipped in with multi-point efforts. Madden Mulawka got the start, stopping 28 shots in the win.

(ReginaPats.com)

NFL

• Quite an Eagles debut for Saquon Barkley. He scored three touchdowns to lead Philadelphia to a 34-29 win over Green Bay in the first NFL game in Brazil. Packers quarterback Jordan Love limped off the field with assistance after getting injured with six seconds left. The severity of Love’s leg injury is unclear. Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur had no update on Love after the game. Love signed a four-year contract extension worth 220-million-dollars U-S earlier this summer.
• A calf injury may keep Pittsburgh quarterback Russell Wilson out of the Steelers’ opener at Atlanta this weekend. He was limited in practice this past week but hopes to be able to play. Backup Justin Fields will get the nod if Wilson is unavailable. 

CFL

• The BC Lions are in sole possession of first place in the CFL’s West Division after a 37-23 victory in Montreal on Friday. BC is two points up on Winnipeg and three ahead of Saskatchewan. The 10-and-2 Alouettes have a comfortable lead in the East Division standings.
• A CFL tripleheader kicks off Saturday afternoon with Ottawa at home to Toronto. The evening matchup also features provincial rivals as Calgary visits Edmonton. Winnipeg entertains Saskatchewan in the other game. The Blue Bombers need a win to pull even with first-place BC in the West.

MLB

The Toronto Blue Jays are still looking for their first win in September. Their losing streak is up to four games after a 3-1 loss to Atlanta. The Braves remain tied with New York for the final wild-card spot in the National League. The Mets beat Cincinnati 6-4 for their eighth win in a row.

(Canadian Press)