NOVEMBER 17, 2022 VOLUME 116 ISSUE 4
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Western football plows Queen’s, remains OUA kings RYAN GOODISON SPORTS EDITOR MILES BOLTON SPORTS EDITOR
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SOPHIE BOUQUILLON GAZETTE The Mustangs football team lifts the Yates Cup for a second season in a row, Nov. 12, 2022.
Faculty strike averted. Now what? ADSHAYAH SATHIASEELAN NEWS EDITOR
The University of Western Ontario Faculty Association reached a tentative agreement with Western at 10:23 p.m. on Nov. 14, averting a strike that was set for 11:59 p.m. that night. The strike would have shut down most classes across main campus, though the tentative deal meant all activities continued as scheduled Nov. 15. The terms of the agreement will not be disclosed publicly until both UWOFA and Western University’s Board of Governors have viewed the tentative deal and voted to ratify it. UWOFA had not scheduled a date for ratification voting by the morning of Nov. 15.
Western’s Board of Governors is set to meet Nov. 17, though ratifying the agreement was not on the agenda at time of publication. The board’s next scheduled meeting is not until Feb. 2, 2023. Western said in a statement after reaching the tentative deal that the parties “will soon vote on whether to ratify the agreement.” The next step in the negotiation process for the union will be presenting the tentative contract to its Board of Directors. In 2018, the UWOFA Board of Directors recommended the tentative agreement be brought to the full membership for ratification a week after the tentative deal was reached. An overview of the tentative agreement was provided at a faculty Bargaining Unit meeting before the ratification vote, and
members could also review the details of the agreement by signing into the private members’ area of the UWOFA website with their Western credentials. The agreement was ratified by 90 per cent of UWOFA members during in-person and electronic voting on Nov. 22 and Nov. 23, 2018, two weeks after the tentative agreement was reached. Western’s Board of Governors ratified the new four-year collective agreement with UWOFA on Nov. 29, 2018, which included a salary scale increase of 1.5 per cent in each of the first three years of the agreement, and 1.75 per cent in the remaining fourth year. CONTINUED ON P2
estern defeated Queen’s in the 114th Yates Cup 44– 16, winning the OUA football championship for the second consecutive year. “I’m so proud of our players, our coaches and our staff. This was a total team victory,” said Mustangs head coach Greg Marshall. Western University battled the Queen’s University Golden Gaels in mistake and snow-heavy football. The Mustangs had multiple wild snaps throughout the first half, giving up a field-goal opportunity. Haylor-Semotiuk Field at Western Alumni Stadium was covered in snow Saturday afternoon, making it difficult for running backs and receivers to find much traction throughout the game. “You expect this in Canada, [it's the] Yates Cup [in the] middle of November,” said Mustangs defensive coordinator Paul Gleason. “We're used to this, we're built for this, and [the team is] too. [What matters is] whoever is going to be able to run the ball [and] whoever is gonna be able to stop the ball. It's typical Canadian playoff weather." But Western fought through. The team came up with massive plays and held the lead going into the half. Mustangs’ quarterback Evan Hillock had a huge 57yard pass to receiver Savaughn Magnaye-Jones for the game's first touchdown. But the team made a mistake on the point-after attempt with another wild snap, leaving the game at 6–0. Western running back Keon Edwards made it through the Queen’s defensive line with a huge 81-yard run, taking it all the way to the Gaels' 10-yard line. Hillock faked a pass with an empty hand during the play to draw the secondary off of Edwards. Running back Keanu Yazbeck finished off the drive with a 10-yard touchdown. Edwards ran for 173 yards in the first half alone — and the Queen’s defence couldn’t stop him. “[Edwards] is an every-game player. What you see is what you get. You get consistency, effort and he runs hard,” said Marshall. Second-string running back Edouard Wanadi didn’t play in the Yates Cup due to personal family matters, according to Marshall. But having only one half of the Mustangs' two-headed purple monster didn’t hurt Western’s run game. CONTINUED ON P7
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