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Prairie Conference Summary

By Ryan Watters (@ryan2tswatters), 10/18/21, 7:15PM PDT

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The Thunder, Hilltops and Colts score a Week 9 victory

Photo courtesy of Gord Mellor

Regina Thunder 45
Edmonton Huskies 42

It was arguably the best game of the CJFL season with the Thunder coming back to win in overtime to clinch first place in the Prairie Conference.   

Down by 16 points heading into the final frame the Thunder came roaring back and forced overtime where they scored nine points including a 35-yard game winning screen pass to Brayden Long.

In all quarterback Carter Shewchuk was solid throwing for 363 yards on 23 completions and had four touchdowns, three of which went to Rylan Sokul and the game winner to Long.  Sokul caught eight balls for 105 yards and Isaac Foord hauled in five for 83 yards.

Defensively Bobo Kisusari made eight tackles and recovered a fumble and Ryan Mills made a game high nine solo tackles and forced a fumble.

The Huskies let this game slip away gaining 576 total offensive yards against one of the top defences in the country.    

The return of All-Canadian running back Brandt Burzuk complimented Alex Gayle who is on pace for a possible All-Canadian nomination.  The dynamic duo combined for three touchdowns on 41 carries and 283 yards.  Meanwhile quarterback Declan O’Flaherty threw for 306 yards found Adner St. Hilaire for a touchdown and ran for one on his own.

The only quarter the Huskies were shutout in was the fourth, which proved disastrous as the Thunder mounted their comeback.

This coming weekend both teams will conclude the regular season with the Thunder (7-0) hosting the Calgary Colts (1-6) and the Huskies (4-3) hosting the Edmonton Wildcats (2-5) in a possible playoff preview.

Saskatoon Hilltops 44
Edmonton Wildcats 7

The Hilltops officially clinched second place in the Prairie Conference and a first round playoff bye with their weekend victory.

Offensively the Hilltops used almost everyone on their roster in their final home game.  They used three quarterbacks led by starter Damon Dutton who threw for 214 yards and three touchdowns.  Trey Reider saw his first action and was 6-6 for 90 yards and threw a major.   

A total of 10 different receivers caught passes led by Dillan Heintz who caught four balls for 120 yards and a pair of touchdowns, all in the first half.  Noah Flaman and Josh Wiebe also had touchdown receptions.   Meanwhile on the ground Boston Davidsen scored twice on 17 carries.

The only defensive blemish was a second quarter touchdown.  Other than that the Wildcats had difficulty moving the ball.   Joe Yauise had an interception as did Dylan Cook and punter Doug Fleming got on the board with a pair of singles.

This Sunday the Hilltops (5-2) travel to meet the Winnipeg Rifles (2-5) while the Wildcats (2-5) will face the Edmonton Huskies (4-3).

Calgary Colts 23
Winnipeg Rifles 17

The Colts recorded their first win of the season on Sunday thanks in large part to an Yvenson Saintus interception with 20 seconds to go in the fourth quarter.

Offensively the Colts gathered 458 total yards including 300 through the air, mostly from quarterback Nick Kennedy who completed 22 passes for 276 yards and threw a touchdown to Brandon MacIsaac.  His favourite target was Shemar McBean who caught five passes for a game high 123 yards.   Kennedy also ran for a touchdown as did running back Ike Okafor.

The CJFL’s leading tackler Austin Daisy collected seven more tackles, a sack and an interception.

The Rifles on the other side saw a solid game from quarterback Bryson McNeil who completed 16 passes for 233 yards and hit Tim Solypa for a 24-yard touchdown strike.   McNeil also rushed for a touchdown of his own.

Linebacker Brayden Clarke had an outstanding game with seven solo tackles and an interception.

This weekend both teams will conclude their regular season when the Colts (1-6) visit the Regina Thunder (7-0) and the Rifles (2-5) host the Saskatoon Hilltops (5-2).