SAINT JOHN - In a battle for first place in the Maritime Football League and home-field advantage in the playoffs, the Riverview Mustangs defeated the Saint John Wanderers 24-8 at Simonds High School Field on Saturday.

With the win the Mustangs improve to 7-0 while the Wanderers fall to 6-1. The loss ended the Wanderers 24-game winning streak.

Quarterback A.J. Gallant and running back Steve Cormier led the way for the Mustangs. Gallant threw for 188 yards and a touchdown pass to Jordan Beyea.

Cormier had 140 yards rushing on the game and two TDs. Josh Scott converted the three TDs and kicked a field goal.

The Wanderers' lone score came on a trick play in the second quarter.

Wide receiver Mike Thomas took a handoff and tossed it to Matt Smith in the end zone.

Dave Grandy then hooked up Smith on the two-point conversion.

The Capital Area Gladiators edged the Saint John Longhorns 21-20. Reece Roche had three TD passes on the day for Saint John including a 60-yard strike to Jim Mather on the second play from scrimmage. The Longhorns missed the convert which was the deciding factor in the game.

"It was a tough loss," said Longhorns head coach Eric Sabean.

"The Gladiators are a good team that have been up and down this year."

Roche's other TD passes were caught by Mather and Gary Brown. The loss drops the Longhorns record to 4-3 while the Gladiators improve to 3-4.

On Saturday, the Dartmouth Knights shut out the Prince Edward Island Privateers 37-0.

Riverview completes the regular season Saturday when it hosts the Saint John Longhorns at 4 p.m. at Dobson Field.

Meanwhile, the Moncton Doc Dylan's Marshals broke through for their first win of the season yesterday and it couldn't have come at a better time.

Randy LeBlanc ran for a pair of touchdowns and the Marshals beat the UNBSJ Wolves 27-14 at Rocky Stone Memorial Field.

The Marshals (1-7) and Wolves (1-6) are tied for eighth place in the nine-team league.

The ninth-place team will miss the playoffs, which begin in two weeks.

The top four clubs will advance to the playoffs and compete for the Maritime Bowl. The fifth-through eighth-place teams will also go to the playoffs and battle for a consolation championship trophy.

Moncton has already completed its regular season schedule and has a bye next week. If UNBSJ loses its final game to the Halifax Shockers on Saturday, the Marshals will grab the eighth and final playoff spot.

"The guys knew they had to come up big and go get this one. It's come down to us and the Wolves," Moncton head coach Dan Fougere said.

"We knew if we could win, it would give us a shot at the playoffs and the guys were pretty fired up for this game and went out and got it done."

Ryan Sabean rushed for a Marshals touchdown and quarterback Caleb Jordan hooked up with Scott LeBlanc for another major.

Scott LeBlanc kicked three converts and Sabean also recorded an interception.

The Moncton Vipers completed the Maritime Women's Football League regular season with a 14-8 win over the Halifax Xplosion Saturday at Rocky Stone.

The Vipers finished with a 4-2 record. The Xplosion went 3-3.

Moncton received touchdowns from Tara Keohan and Mandy Mallais. Michelle McLeod replied for Halifax.

The Vipers will host the Xplosion in a league semifinal Saturday at 4 p.m. at Rocky Stone.

SAINT JOHN - In a battle for first place in the Maritime Football League and home-field advantage in the playoffs the Riverview Mustangs defeated the Saint John Wanderers 24-8 at Simonds High School Field on Saturday.

With the win the Mustangs improve to 7-0 while the Wanderers fall to 6-1. The loss ended the Wanderers 24-game winning streak.

Quarterback A.J. Gallant and running back Steve Cormier led the way for the Mustangs. Gallant threw for 188 yards and a touchdown pass to Jordan Beyea.

Cormier had 140 yards rushing on the game and two TDs. Josh Scott converted the three TDs and kicked a field goal.

The Wanderers' lone score came on a trick play in the second quarter. Wide receiver Mike Thomas took a handoff and tossed it to Matt Smith in the end zone.

Dave Grandy then hooked up Smith on the two-point conversion.

On Sunday, the Capital Area Gladiators edged the Saint John Longhorns 21-20. Reece Roche had three TD passes on the day for Saint John including a 60-yard strike to Jim Mather on the second play from scrimmage. The Longhorns missed the convert which was the deciding factor in the game.

"It was a tough loss," said Longhorns head coach Eric Sabean. "The Gladiators are a good team that have been up and down this year."

Roche's other TD passes were caught by Mather and Gary Brown. The loss drops the Longhorns record to 4-3 while the Gladiators improve to 3-4.

In action on Sunday, the University of New Brunswick at Saint John Wolves 27-14 decision to the Moncton Marshals on Sunday.

Randy LeBlanc ran for a pair of touchdowns to lead the Marshals at Rocky Stone Memorial Field.

The Marshals (1-7) and Wolves (1-6) are tied for eighth place in the nine-team league. The ninth-place team will miss the playoffs, which begin in two weeks.

The top four clubs will advance to the playoffs and compete for the Maritime Bowl. The fifth-through eighth-place teams will also go to the playoffs and battle for a consolation championship trophy.

Moncton has already completed its regular season schedule and has a bye next week. If UNBSJ loses its final game to the Halifax Shockers on Saturday, the Marshals will grab the eighth and final playoff spot.

"The guys knew they had to come up big and go get this one. It's come down to us and the Wolves," Moncton head coach Dan Fougere said.

"We knew if we could win, it would give us a shot at the playoffs and the guys were pretty fired up for this game and went out and got it done."

Ryan Sabean rushed for a Marshals touchdown and quarterback Caleb Jordan hooked up with Scott LeBlanc for another major.

LeBlanc kicked three converts and Sabean also recorded an interception.

On Saturday, the Dartmouth Knights shut out the Prince Edward Island Privateers 37-0.

Meanwhile, the Moncton Vipers completed the Maritime Women's Football League regular season with a 14-8 win over the Halifax Xplosion Saturday at Rocky Stone.

The Vipers finished with a 4-2 record. The Xplosion went 3-3.

Moncton received touchdowns from Tara Keohan and Mandy Mallais. Michelle McLeod replied for Halifax.

The Vipers will host the Xplosion in a league semifinal Saturday at 4 p.m. at Rocky Stone.

The Riverview Molson Mustangs have had this game circled on their calendar for nearly a year now.

The Mustangs have seen their Maritime Football League season come to an end in each of the last two years at the hands of the Saint John Wanderers.

The last time these two teams met was last August when Saint John came up with a 36-33 win in the New Brunswick Conference championship game. The Wanderers went on to win their second consecutive Maritime championship.

Riverview gets its shot at revenge on the road tomorrow at 4 p.m. at Simonds Field in Saint John. It's the game everyone in the league has been waiting for.

"It always is when it comes to these two teams. There's a lot of history here," Mustangs star running back Steve Cormier said this week.

"I've been thinking about that loss to the Wanderers ever since last year. It was discussed at our end-of-the-year meeting. We came back and set our goals really high this year. We know this is the biggest game of our season."

In a league that desperately lacks parity, Riverview and Saint John have completely dominated the competition this season. They are tied for first place at 6-0 with the Mustangs outscoring their opponents 274-14 with the Wanderers nearly as good at 241-26.

Tomorrow's winner will lock up the regular season pennant and receive home field advantage throughout the playoffs, which begin in two weeks.

The Moncton Marshals edged Saint John 29-27 in the New Brunswick Conference championship game en route to winning the 2004 Maritime title. Most of that Marshals team left to start up the Mustangs the following season, but they haven't been able to beat the Wanderers since.

Saint John has defeated Riverview in all four meetings -- two conference finals and two regular season games -- over the last two seasons. Most of the games have come down to the final minute.

"That just drives us even more to beat them. These are two teams that have strong defences, productive offences and we just come to the field ready to play. We both work hard and take this seriously. You always know it's going to be a good game," said Cormier, 24, a member of the 2004 Moncton championship team.

"We're the top two teams in the league and there's a lot of respect there, but at the same time, we really hate them, too. You have to have that athletic mindset that they are the best team, so you want to kick their butt."

The big question heading into tomorrow is whether Riverview and Saint John are prepared to rise to another level of play after facing a lower tier of competition this season.

The Mustangs' closest game was a 31-7 win over the Dartmouth Knights while the Wanderers' toughest test came in a 27-7 victory over the Saint John Longhorns.

Cormier said that won't be a problem tomorrow.

"To tell you the truth, we don't change anything going against them. From Day 1, we play hard. It doesn't matter if it's against the Wanderers or anyone else," he said. "We want to come off the field after each game knowing that we played our best.

"As much as it hurt to lose to them last year, we have to erase that from our minds. This is a whole new season and we have a brand new clean record and that's what we have to remember."

Meanwhile, the last-place Moncton Doc Dylan's Marshals (0-7) also have a big game this weekend.

They complete their regular season schedule by hosting the eighth-place UNBSJ Wolves (1-5) Sunday at 4 p.m. at Rocky Stone Memorial Field.

The Marshals and Wolves are battling to stay out of the league basement. The ninth-place team will miss the playoffs.

SAINT JOHN - If this doesn't test the Saint John Wanderers, nothing will.

The Port City pigskin squad is missing star quarterback Jon Hachey, who's on the sidelines for the rest of the season with a broken hip. That's not what the Wanderers needed going into their upcoming game against the Riverview Mustangs. The two 6-0 teams will begin the battle for provincial bragging rights on Saturday at 4 p.m. at Simonds Field.

Although each Maritime Football League club has one regular season game left after this weekend, the contest will serve as the New Brunswick championship game. Hachey's absence means the Wanderers will look to former Saint John High QB Tanner McDevitt.

"Tanner throws the ball well and he reads the defences well,'' Wanderers head coach Mark Gallagher said. "He's starting to gain confidence. We've got all the confidence in the world in him.''

By starting McDevitt at QB, Gallagher loses a quality cornerback. But due to a recent rash of injuries, moving players around the field has become routine for Gallagher.

"We're kind of looking forward to seeing who steps up,'' the Saint John bench boss said. "If you lose players, other guys have to step up.''

The Wanderers have waged some epic battles with Riverview in the past, and Saturday's tilt figures to be more of the same. The Mustangs' 274 points is the only total better than Saint John's 241.

"This game will be the best game in the Maritimes for the rest of the season,'' Gallagher predicted.

As for McDevitt, his coach likes what he sees so far.

"He played great for us last weekend against P.E.I.,'' Gallagher said. "We were really happy with him and this week he looked amazing in practice.''

There's talk Riverview QB Paul Guimond may also miss Saturday's game, but Gallagher won't believe that until he sees it. Regardless, the stakes are still the same.

"This is a huge game,'' Gallagher said. "We have to play our best game of the season to beat these guys.''

Meanwhile, the MFL's weekend docket includes three other games. The P.E.I. Privateers (2-4) visit the Dartmouth Knights (3-3) at 4 p.m., the Capital Area Gladiators (2-4) host the Saint John Longhorns (4-2) at 1 p.m. in Oromocto and the Moncton Marshals (0-7) welcome the UNBSJ Wolves (1-5) at 4 p.m.