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Eskimos make easy work of Alouettes

Aug 9, 2014 - 3:35 AM Montreal, QC (SportsNetwork.com) - Kendial Lawrence tallied 123 total yards and caught a touchdown pass, as the Edmonton Eskimos dismissed the Montreal Alouettes, 33-23, at Percival Molson Stadium.

Lawrence had 68 receiving yards on four receptions and turned nine carries into 55 yards for Edmonton (5-1), which bounced back from a loss to Calgary its last time out. John White was also impressive out of the backfield with 102 yards and a major on just seven carries.

Mike Reilly completed 15-of-21 passes for 206 yards, two touchdowns and an interception for the away team, with Adarius Bowman (seven receptions, 81 yards, TD) acting as his primary target.

"We came out with real intensity and focus after a week layoff," Reilly said. "We had two really good quarters of football offensively and defensively, probably our best two quarters of the season."

For the struggling Alouettes (1-5), Troy Smith completed less than half his pass attempts (20-of-45) for 231 yards with a touchdown and a pick. Duron Carter was busy with 10 receptions for 112 yards, and Brandon Whitaker had a strong all-purpose night with 79 rushing yards, 48 receiving yards and a score.

Edmonton jumped ahead on its first possession, as a 35-yard touchdown pass from Reilly to Lawrence put the visitors up 7-0 less than three minutes in.

After Montreal got on the board with a single, the Eskimos extended their lead when Grant Shaw knocked through a 30-yard field goal at the 6:14 mark of the first quarter.

The Alouettes cut their deficit to five, 10-5, before the end of the quarter following another single and a 30-yard field goal off the foot of Sean Whyte.

Montreal added another field goal early in the second quarter (32 yards), but Edmonton struck back two minutes later when White ripped off a 58-yard touchdown run.

The Eskimos made it a 20-8 game midway through the quarter on a 35-yard field goal by Shaw.

Edmonton distanced themselves even further late in the half. Reilly hooked up with Bowman for a 25-yard scoring strike with 2:37 remaining, then Shaw connected on a 42-yard field goal in the final minute to put the Eskimos ahead 30-8 heading into intermission.

The Alouettes put up the first points of the second half on a 28-yard field goal by Whyte at the 5:15 mark of the third quarter. Whyte chipped in another field goal (29 yards) early in the fourth.

Whyte (32 yards) and Shaw (43 yards) exchanged field goals late in the game. Montreal added a meaningless major in the final minute when Whitaker scored on a 43-yard pass from Smith.

"In the last 50 years, our organization has only won three times (in Montreal)," Edmonton head coach Chris Jones said. "It wasn't pretty, but it was a win."

Game Notes

Edmonton extended its advantage in the all-time series against Montreal to 38-29-2 ... The Eskimos will host the Alouettes on Sept. 12 ... Edmonton's defense sacked Smith four times ... Neither kicker missed a field goal on the evening.