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The Calgary Stampeders clinched second place in the West Division and home-field advantage in the West semifinal with a 34-32 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on a snowy Saturday evening at McMahon Stadium.
The Stamps (10-6) overcame seven turnovers including four interceptions and three fumbles with some big defensive plays including Keon Raymond’s 100-yard interception-return touchdown, a 54-yard fumble return by Juwan Simpson and six sacks including two each by Raymond and Charleston Hughes.
Calgary hung on for the win when a potential game-winning 30-yard field-goal try never got to the foot of Ticats kicker Luca Congi because of a botched snap and hold.
“It was a game of mistakes, there’s no question about it,” said Stampeders head coach and general manager John Hufnagel, who has led the Stamps to the playoffs in each of his five seasons with the club. “The conditions had a lot to do with it. We had way too many and (Ticats head coach) George Cortez is probably saying the same thing. We got a break at the end, but we did win the game. We hung in there after having three fumbles in a row in the first quarter. Except for the first drive, the defence kept us in the game in the first half.”
Jon Cornish, the CFL’s leading rusher, was held to just 27 yards on the ground but he did have a rushing touchdown, not to mention 108 receiving yards and a major through the air.
Hamilton jumped out to a 10-0 lead. First, Bakari Grant scored on a 51-yard catch-and-run on the Ticats’ first offensive play and Congi kicked a 27-yard field goal.
Raymond then got the Stamps on the board with his 100-yard pick-six.
>> Raymond’s big night
>> Keon’s pick-six
After a Josh Bartel punt single for the Ticats, the Stamps took their first lead of the night on a seven-yard TD catch by Cornish. A safety conceded by Calgary punter Rob Maver closed out the first-half scoring and made the score 14-13 at the break.
Hamilton took a 16-14 lead early in the second half on a 44-yard Congi field goal before the Stamps took the lead for good on Maurice Price’s first CFL touchdown — a 56-yard reception. Cornish’s seven-yard rushing touchdown made the score 27-16 after three quarters.
The Ticats staged a fourth-quarter comeback attempt with a 30-yard Chris Williams touchdown catch, a two-point convert and a safety. Calgary cushioned its lead thanks to a one-yard Bo Levi Mitchell sneak, which was set up the Simpson fumble return.
The Stampeders have six interceptions and 11 turnovers in the past two weeks.
“Our defence has done a great job getting better each and every week even with the changes they’ve had to put up with (because of injuries),” said Hufnagel.
Chevon Walker scored on a one-yard run with 54 seconds to play to get the Ticats to within two points but the two-point convert attempt failed. The Ticats’ recovery of the onside kick led to the ill-fated game-winning field-goal opportunity.
Calgary plays its final regular-season home game on Friday, Oct. 26 against the first-place BC Lions. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
>> Stamps to host West semifinal
>> Video: Game balls
>> Video: Price’s TD
>> Video: Cornish finds the end-zone
>> Video: Player comments
>> Photo gallery