ESTEVAN — The Estevan Comprehensive School Elecs wrapped up their season on Saturday in a 36-21 loss to the Moose Jaw Vanier Vikings.
Coach Mark Schott said it was Estevan’s best offensive outing of the season. The Elecs put up more than 300 yards of total offence and moved the ball well through the air and on the ground. Khalifa Eishein had a 56-yard run for a touchdown.
The offensive line had another strong game against Vanier, he said.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Elecs were okay, he said, but Vanier was able to make some big plays offensively.
“Vanier ended up making more big plays than we did, and that was the difference in the game,” Schott said
In the last few games of the season, the Elecs used both Tristan Tober and Dorian Sifton at quarterback, and they played well on Saturday. Sifton completed a touchdown pass to Tober for the Elecs’ final score of the season.
“That was a unique thing to see, because it’s usually Tristan throwing to Dorian,” said Schott.
Tyson Czernick had the Elecs’ other score – a one-yard run in the first half. Estevan’s defence also recorded a safety. ECS was down 14-7 at halftime.
The game was the Tier 2 semifinal in the South Rural Football League. Vanier will now play the Swift Current Colts in the Tier 2 final.
Thirty-six of the 37 players from this year’s ECS team will be eligible to return next season. Their only graduate is offensive lineman Zack Goyette, who played just three games for ECS this season due to scheduling conflicts. When he played, Schott said Goyette was a strong presence on the offensive line who added some depth.
Goyette did not play in the final game against Vanier.
“We’re looking forward to getting everyone back, and taking a step next year to hopefully get some wins and hopefully compete for the Tier 2 title or move into the middle of the league [standings],” said Schott.
The league is typically dominated by Grade 11 and 12 players, and the bulk of the Elecs’ players this season were in Grades 10 and 11.
“We had some Grade 9s play some key roles for us, so across the board, another year of experience and just developing and learning the game, hopefully that can lead to some better success overall on the field for the future,” said Schott.
