KINGSTON, Ont. (Oct. 19, 2024) - Queen's Football defeated the Waterloo Warriors 54-7 in front of a sold out crowd of 9,100 fans at Richardson Stadium in their annual Homecoming Game.

Queen's got off to a quick start, with Anthony Lio (Kinesiology) and Nathan Falconi (Health Studies) connected for a highlight reel 23-yard touchdown pass to cap their opening drive, and Queen's never looked back on their way to a 47 point win.

Jared Chisari (Graduate Studies) had a big game for Queen's offence, finishing with 16 carries for 134 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Chisari's touchdowns came late in the first quarter and early in the second quarter to increase Queen's lead to three scores early in the game.

Backup quarterback Russell Weir (Economics) added a fourth touchdown for Queen's late in the first half with an electrifying 60-yard run.

After Waterloo scored their lone major early in the third quarter, Lio connected with Nico Kwemo (Kinesiology) for another highlight reel touchdown grab, this one a 29-yard score.

Weir added another rushing touchdown with a one-yard plunge and kicker Tyler Mullan (Arts & Science) finished the game with two field goals, six PATs, and four rouges for 16 points.

Queen's Football Head Coach Steve Snyder was asked about the sold out crowd on Homecoming Game and said the team felt the energy in the stands as they played.
 
"It's the best, you can see the difference. You get a little bit of momentum and it snowballs for you. When you go on the road and you play in environments like this, you have to be really careful it doesn't snowball on you. It's nice when it's going your way. It was loud, it was energetic, and it definitely helped us today."

Queen's defence was dominant all game and finished with six sacks in the win, with Silas Hubert (Environmental Studies) grabbing one sack and another tackle for a loss. Eric Johnston (Environmental Studies) also had a sack and two tackles for a loss, and finished tied for the team lead in tackles with Josh McBain (Economics) with 3.5.

Iain St Arnault (Economics) continued impressing on Special Teams Saturday, with a number of big returns, finishing the game with 203 yards on 10 punt returns and 106 yards on two kick returns.

With the victory, Queen's finished the season 5-3 and fifth in the OUA standings. Queen's will travel to Windsor, Ont. to take on the Windsor Lancers in Round 1 of the OUA Playoffs next Saturday at 4 p.m.

Snyder said the team still has some things to clean up ahead of the playoffs, but was very happy with Saturday's performance.

"Today was our best four-quarter, three phase football game."