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The Regina Thunder saw their season come to an end on Sunday just short of making another trip to the Canadian Bowl.
Regina lost 28-14 to the Okanagan Sun at Liebel Field in the Canadian Junior Football League semifinals.
The Thunder, who had defeated the Saskatoon Hilltops to win the Prairie Football Conference, couldn’t muster much offence against a stout Sun defence, with only running back Sadik Sadik finding the endzone in the game for the home team.
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On a windy day, Thunder head coach Scott MacAulay gave praise to the Sun punter Grady Hay for being able to handle the conditions and make things tough field position-wise for Regina.
“His ability to kick into the wind was equally as impressive as kicking with the wind,” MacAulay said.
“In the second half we thought that we would have the wind in the fourth quarter. They did a good job moving the ball scoring some points (with the wind) and then going into the wind, they were able to get some success there, and that’s the difference.”
Thunder quarterback Ethan Hugg was intercepted by Sun defensive back David Lewis, who returned it all the way for a pick-six in the first half. While it was a pivotal play in the game, MacAulay said the Thunder had plenty of time to make amends for it.
“We weren’t out of the game. We were still able to come back and tie it up. Having the six points go against you there and then is not optimal but it’s not the end of the day,” MacAulay said.
The Sun got out to an early lead in the game with Sun linebacker Jacob Bond taking a handoff and running the ball in for a touchdown.
The Thunder were able to answer with the Sadik touchdown run and then a rouge on the ensuing kickoff had given Regina the one-point lead in the second quarter.
With 107 yards from Sadik and 96 from running back Ryland Leichert, the duo contributed 203 yards of rushing offence, but it wouldn’t translate to points.
Regina would muster just three field goals the rest of the game — eventually tying things at 14 in the third quarter but Okanagan answered with their own pair of field goals and a touchdown run by running back Elelyon Noa, along with a two-point convert. Noa had 84 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries.
With the Thunder down in the second half of the game, the team would have to rely more on a passing attack that couldn’t find a rhythm. Hugg had 66 yards on 10 completions along with two interceptions. Carter Moberg also threw six passes in the game, completing two for 27 yards.
“I thought they finished the game. We came out in the second-half and they jumped the gun on us and we weren’t able to respond in time and they took the win,” Leichert said.
The Sun has had success recently in Regina, with Okanagan winning the 2022 Canadian Bowl at Mosaic Stadium, beating the Regina Thunder in that game as well.
“They do a great job of recruiting guys. Most of their guys aren’t from Kelowna and they do a good job scouring the country. We will continue to take our Saskatchewan guys and keep trying to build them up,” MacAulay said.
While the season has come to an end, MacAulay said this team will look back at how they dug deep this season to reach this point. The Thunder had only lost two games this season — both to the Hilltops — before they beat their rivals in the third meeting this season.
“We dug in deep and changed up what we were doing and we were successful with it until this point, and kudos to our players for stepping up,” MacAulay said.
Leichert, who has another season of Thunder eligibility, said work now gets underway on making it back to this point.
“I think we are a group of resilient guys who are hard-working and have passion for the game. We’re going to take some time to enjoy the offseason and let it sink in but we will be back to work,” Leichert said.
The Sun will now play in the Canadian Bowl in Windsor, Ont. on Nov. 9 against the St. Clair Saints.
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