Hosting just one national championship, regardless of which sport, is a daunting logistical undertaking.
St. Clair College is pulling off the unthinkable this weekend, as it prepares to host both the 'Canadian Bowl' Canadian Junior Football League (CJFL) Championships, as well as the CCAA Cross-Country Running National Championships.
"Quite honestly, this is unheard of," said Ron Seguin, a Senior Advisor in the President's Office at St. Clair College. "I can't thank our Athletic Department enough for the incredible amount of work it takes to host two National Championships on the same day, but Saints Nation is up to the task."
"But this work creates memories that can last a lifetime for our students. And it's an overt example of how St. Clair values our community," Seguin said.
CROSS-COUNTRY RUNNING
The Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association Cross-Country Running National Championship is being hosted by St. Clair College at Windsor's Malden Park on Nov. 9, where hundreds of men and women from 38 Colleges across the country will compete for national bragging rights.
This will be the second time the Saints have hosted the national championship, previously hosting in 2003.
The course at Malden Park features mixed terrain, including pavement, grass, gravel, and dirt, not to mention a behemoth of a hill, which St. Clair College Cross-Country head coach, Paul Boots said will challenge the field.
"It's a pretty solid test, in my opinion," said coach Boots. "It's harder than most. Some of the hills are subtle, and then the one big, nasty one is hard. This course is tougher than average, and the winners will be true winners. There's no luck involved here."
The women run a six-kilometre course at noon, followed by the men, who run eight kilometres at 1 p.m.
"The general public can come by and see the runners a couple times and realize, holy smokes, they're fast!" exclaimed Boots.
The women's squad is led by Victoria Horrobin of Wallaceburg, Ont., who earned First-Team All-Ontario honours for the Saints, finishing sixth at the Ontario Collegiate Athletic Association championships two weeks ago. The women's team finished fourth at the OCAA race.
Carter Free of Napanee, Ont. leads the way for the men, with Melein Keflay and Noah Nicoletti both hoping for strong finishes. Free captured the silver medal at the CCAA's back in 2019, and is considered an individual medal contender going into the event, with three All-Canadian honours already under his belt.
"Our guy's team had some tough luck at provincials," said coach Boots, noting they came fifth, but were only a few finishers out of second place in Ontario. "We're hoping to bounce back and beat some of the Ontario teams that are ahead of us, and we should have a decent showing running in our own backyard."
The event will be live streamed coast-to-coast by We-Digital Productions. Live results will also be available online.
MEN'S FOOTBALL
Later that evening on the gridiron, the St. Clair Saints are playing host to west-coast powerhouse, the Okanagan Sun at the Canadian Bowl, which serves as the CJFL national championship game.
"It's a big honour. There'll be a big, big crowd and it's a fun atmosphere," said Saints Football head coach Mike LaChance. "The whole country's eyes are on you. And really, we're representing the whole province now. It's exciting to rep your city in Windsor, and rep the College, obviously. And now we've got the whole province behind us."
The two teams last squared off at the CJFL national semi-final in 2022, where the Sun edged out the Saints 42-24, later going on to win the Canadian Bowl.
In 1999, the Saints defeated the Sun, which marks the last time the Saints organization, formerly AKO Fratmen, won the Canadian Bowl. A team from Ontario hasn't won the Canadian Bowl since, as the west-coast teams have stepped up and dominated the CJFL circuit ever since.
While The Saints have cruised to an undefeated record during the 2024 campaign, regularly beating opponents with lopsided scores, coach LaChance points out this game will be very different.
"It's not going to be a 75-point blowout, like normal. The Okanagan Sun is a completely different animal coming into town and are right at the top of the food chain in the in the Canadian Junior Football League," said LaChance. "They have an outstanding coaching staff, and they've got a really good, veteran team. We'll be ready for it, but they're definitely going to look different than the teams that we played up to this point."
Despite some recent injuries to star players, coach LaChance is hopeful the home crowd and energy at Acumen Stadium will propel the Saints to the storied franchise's fourth Canadian Bowl championship title.
"They're hungry. We've been undefeated for four years in Ontario. We've lost a couple big games on the big stage, just like we did in the 90s. And it's time to show what we can do on the national stage against the premier opponent," said LaChance. "If we show up and play our game, we could make history."
Game time is 7 p.m. at Acumen Stadium at St. Clair College's Main Windsor Campus.