REGINA – Reigning Canada West MVP Matt Walter rushed for a career-high 259 yards to lead the No. 4 Calgary Dinos (2-1) to a 41-15 win over the Regina Rams (1-2) Friday night at Mosaic Stadium.

BOX SCORE

The total was the sixth best single game in University of Calgary history and put the third-year tailback over the 500-yard mark on the season – and he did most of it in just over two quarters.

For the third straight game the Dinos failed to score in the opening quarter, and Walter had just 12 yards after 15 minutes of play. But the Calgary offensive line paved the way and quarterback Erik Glavic mixed up the offence enough to keep the Rams defence guessing as the Dinos racked up 357 total yards against what had been the top-ranked run defence in Canada West.

“You have a premier running back in the country in Matt Walter, and a premier quarterback in the country in Erik Glavic,” said Calgary head coach Blake Nill. “It causes all kinds of problems for the defences because if they focus too much on defending Erik, it leaves a lot of room for Matt to run, and vice versa. You throw in (Anthony) Parker and (Nathan) Coehoorn, and it makes it very difficult on the defence.”

Despite the slow start, the Dinos ate up 589 yards of total offence on the night, bringing their total over the last two weeks to better than 1,100, en route to their first win in Regina since September 2005.

“We have to come out quicker on both offence and defence, so that is definitely a concern, but we're starting to show progress. This is a very good football team, and we just have to learn the culture of winning.”

Walter's 259 rushing yards came on 24 carries, giving him an average of 10.8 yards per rush. While he was kept out of the end zone along the ground, he did score an 11-yard touchdown through the air early in the third quarter. He left the game midway through the fourth and was replaced by rookies Steven Lumbala and Storm Bartsoff. Lumbala managed 14 yards on three carries, including the first touchdown of his CIS career, while Bartsoff ran for 58 yards on eight carries.

Glavic completed 16 of his 23 passes for 183 yards and two touchdowns, and also rushed four times for 31 yards. Anthony Parker was his top receiver, catching seven balls for 85 yards including an 18-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter. Parker also ran for an eight-yard touchdown late in the first half, giving the Dinos the lead for good.

Andrea Bonaventura led the Calgary defence with four solo tackles and seven assisted tackles, while Steve Truzak recorded 4.5 tackles and an interception on a strange play that saw the ball bounce off teammate Tye Noble's helmet into Truzak's arms.

Regina quarterback Marc Mueller completed 18 of 38 passes for 212 yards Mark McConkey, Brenden Owens, and Sheldon Tillotson each recorded a team-leading four receptions, while Graham Mosiondz led the Rams on the ground with eight carries for 55 yards.

Rams safety Kirby Kezama scored a team-leading six solo tackles and nine total tackles. Bruce Anderson had one solo tackle and ten assisted tackles.

The Rams built up a 10-point lead by the midway point of the second quarter, but 27 unanswered points gave Calgary a 17-point advantage at the end of the third. The Rams were able to cut that lead to 12 after a conceded safety and a field goal at the beginning of the fourth quarter, but two touchdowns by the Dinos put the game out of reach.

Both teams face off against B.C. opponents next week. The Rams travel to Vancouver to face UBC, while the Dinos will host the Simon Fraser Clan (2-1) in a rematch of the 2008 Hardy Cup and a battle for first place midway through the 2009 Canada West season.

Kickoff goes at 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 26 at McMahon Stadium.

SCORING SUMMARY
1st Quarter
REG – Scarcelli 43-yard FG, 13:10, 3-0 REG

2nd Quarter
REG – Owens 8-yard TD catch (Scarcelli convert), 6:44, 10-0 REG
CGY – Glavic 2-yard TD run (Ifield convert), 10:17, 10-7 REG
CGY – Parker 7-yard TD run (Ifield convert blocked), 14:25, 13-10 CGY

3rd Quarter
CGY – Walter 11-yard TD catch (Ifield convert), 2:49, 20-10 CGY
CGY – Parker 18-yard TD catch (Ifield convert), 9:17, 27-10 CGY

4th Quarter
REG – TEAM safety, 0:07, 27-12 CGY
REG – Scarcelli 38-yard FG, 3:30, 27-15 CGY
CGY – Glavic 8-yard TD run (Ifield convert), 5:28, 34-15 CGY
CGY – Lumbala 3-yard TD run (Ifield convert), 11:01, 41-15 CGY

-UC-