Hilltops romp over Rifles, take PFC semifinal 60-26

Charles Sawi (#18) jets home on a 27-yard touchdown run.

The Saskatoon Hilltops put on a running display that would have made the NFL’s famed 1972 Miami Dolphins proud.

On Sunday at Saskatoon Minor Football Field, the Hilltops piled up 380 yards rushing as a team and romped over the visiting Winnipeg Rifles 60-26 in a PFC semifinal contest. Saskatoon jumped out to a 21-7 lead in the first quarter, improved their advantage to 29-12 at halftime and cruised to victory from there before a crowd of 528 spectators, who weren’t scared away by sporadic windy conditions and overcast skies.

For Hilltops fifth-year right tackle Victoire Bikulo, he couldn’t think of a better way to get his final run through the CJFL Playoffs started.

The Hilltops offensive line opened the way for 380 yards rushing.

“It felt amazing,” said Bikulo, who wasn’t able to dress for any post-season games due to a leg injury in 2023 when the Hilltops won their last CJFL championship. “I’ve been waiting for this for about three years.

“It felt pretty great. I am happy to be out here.”

The win allowed the Hilltops, who improved to 7-2 overall, to advance to the PFC final, while the Rifles finished out at 4-5 overall. For the fifth straight year, the PFC final will be contested between the Hilltops and their provincial rivals the Regina Thunder.

David Collins had 16 carries for 207 yards and two touchdowns.

The Thunder thumped the Edmonton Huskies 49-10 in the other PFC semifinal on Sunday that was played at Leibel Field in Regina to improve to 8-1 overall, while the Huskies finished out at 3-6 overall. Regina will host the PFC final this coming Sunday at 1 p.m. at Mosaic Stadium.

In the four previous meetings, the Hilltops picked up wins in 2021 and 2023, while the Thunder claimed victory in 2022 and 2024. For Bikulo, the Thunder are the only foe he has seen in the PFC final during his career with the Hilltops.

“We kind of always expect it to be them,” said Bikulo. “It is great to always play them, because they bring a lot of adversity, a lot of animosity and a lot of great energy that we kind of go against.

Corbin Ebben ran the ball six times for 24 yards and two TDs.

“It is pretty good there. They got a great team going on over there. They have a good running game, and we have a good one as well.

“I’m pretty sure we’ll be running the ball a lot, and it will be very interesting to see what their defence does this time. It will be fun. It will be interesting, and it is definitely something to look out for, for sure.”

In the win over the Rifles, the Hilltops relied on their stellar running back trio of David Collins, Charles Sawi and Corbin Ebben similar to how the 1972 Super Bowl winning 17-0 Dolphins relied on their ball carrying trio of Larry Csonka, Mercury Morris and Jim Kiick.

Collins ran the ball 16 times for 207 yards and two touchdowns, and he caught one pass for 21 yards. Sawi ran the ball three times for 104 yards and two touchdowns, and he returned three punts for 54 yards. Ebben ran the ball six times for 24 yards and two touchdowns, and he caught two passes for 17 yards.

Rifles receiver Cole Davies holds on to this catch for a 79-yard gain.

Bikulo said it was pretty advantageous to be able to block for that trio.

“It is unbelievable,” said Bikulo. “Once you have those three guys in the backfield, it messes up a lot of defences.

“You throw Corbin (Ebben) out at wideout. You throw Charles (Sawi) out there. You throw any of them out there it kind of throws away their defence and really helps us hone in on our ground game.

“We can really do a lot of things out of those formations. We can make a lot of things work, because we have those three guys in our offence in the backfield. You have Brex (Brexton Elias) back there who can throw it anywhere really, and it gets pretty dangerous and pretty awesome.”

Kaiden Banfield ran the ball 24 times for 123 yards and two TDs.

Elias got into the running parade too carrying the ball four times for 37 yards and one touchdown. Due to the fact the running game was rolling, Elias only completed 3-of-5 passes for 40 yards and no interceptions before giving way to backup Griffin Sander with just under five minutes to play in the third quarter with the Hilltops holding a 50-18 advantage.

Sander completed 8-of-9 passes for 87 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions before third stringer Charlie Molder entered the contest late in the fourth quarter.

The Hilltops also benefited from outstanding play from their starting offensive line in left tackle Davin Johnson, left guard Simon Clark, centre Matt Elash, right guard Jack Erlandson and Bikulo. Erlandson and Elash were announced as PFC all-stars before the start of Sunday’s games.

Riley Element had 338 yards passing for the Rifles.

“We have two all-stars there,” said Hilltops legendary head coach Tom Sargeant. “We feel we could have maybe one or two more.

“We’re a team that loves the offensive line. We coach into that and the defensive line. Today, we won the line of scrimmage, and that was the difference in the football game.

“We challenged those players that is what it was going to be, and they answered the bell. That is why we’re moving on to the PFC final next week.”

The Hilltops jumped out to a 14-0 lead early in the first quarter thanks to a five-yard rushing major by Ebben and a 16-yard touchdown run by Elias. The Rifles answered with a one-yard touchdown plunge by star 22-year-old running back Kaiden Banfield to cut the Hilltops lead to 14-7. Collins proceeded to break off a 56-yard touchdown run to push Saskatoon’s advantage out to 21-7.

The Hilltops defence deflects a Rifles pass into the air.

Right before the end of the first quarter, the Rifles elected to gamble on a third and goal situation from the Hilltops two yard line. Rifles star quarterback Riley Element threw a pass to star receiver Jarome Penner in the end zone. Penner stretched out attempting to make a diving catch where the ball hit his hands but he couldn’t haul it in.

The Hilltops would concede a safety due to the bad field position early in the second quarter to cut their own lead to 21-9. Saskatoon would proceed to get a 49-yard punt single from Molder and a 27-yard rushing major from Sawi on a reverse to allow the hosts to have a 29-9 lead.

Johnson, who is in his fourth year with the Hilltops, said it is fun to be able to block for Collins, Sawi and Ebben.

Nate Gallant had two interceptions for the Hilltops.

“It is nice having those three guys,” said Johnson. “They each have their own style, and they each can make big plays.

“As long as we stay or just catch someone and make sure that we’re getting a body on someone, they will make a big play out of it.”

Before the second quarter ended, Rifles kicker Gabriel Yaipen hit a 30-yard field goal to shave the Hilltops lead to 29-12.

The Hilltops started the third quarter rolling off 21 unanswered points to push their advantage out to 50-12. Sawi ripped off an 80-yard rushing touchdown on another reverse, Collins ran home a score from 55 yards out, and Ebben added a nine-yard rushing touchdown.

Winnipeg replied with Element connecting with Penner on a 30-yard touchdown pass. After a failed two-point conversion, the Hilltops lead sat at 50-18.

Brexton Elias jets to the end zone on a 16-yard TD run.

Right before the third quarter came to an end, Sander hit fifth-year receiver David Boyd Jr. with a 29-yard touchdown pass to push the Hilltops advantage out to 57-18.

In the fourth quarter, Hilltops kicker Ryden Gratton hit a 35-yard field goal to make his team’s lead sit at 60-18.

Banfield ran home a major from two yards out for the Rifles. After another failed two-point conversion attempt, Saskatoon’s lead sat at 60-24. The Hilltops would concede a safety late in the fourth quarter to round out the 60-26 final score in their favour.

When the game ended, Johnson admitted the Hilltops offensive line does take pride in helping the squad put up a big rushing yardage total.

The Hilltop Cheerleaders perform at halftime on Sunday.

“It is always exciting,” said Johnson. “It shows that everybody is working hard, (and) everybody is coming together.

“We’re making good blocks. The running backs, they’re always doing their job. They are making good runs.

“It is good to see.”

The Rifles did put up some good offensive numbers in defeat. Element completed 24-of-45 passes for 338 yards and one touchdown, while throwing two interceptions. He also had one carry for 12 yards.

Hilltops RT Victoire Bikulo blocks out a Rifles defensive lineman.

Penner caught eight passes for 119 yards to go with his major through the air. Receiver Cole Davies hauled in seven passes for 116 yards including a monster 79-yard reception that set up Winnipeg’s first major.

Banfield ran the ball 24 times for 123 yards to go with his two majors along the ground. He also hauled in one pass for three yards.

Hilltops second-year safety Nate Gallant led his squad with 6.5 total tackles and two interceptions. He almost had a third interception on Sunday too. Defensive end Noah Chelsom had a forced fumble and a fumble recovery for Saskatoon.

The Hilltops were without the services of fifth-year defensive tackle Nahom Menghestab and receiver/safety Isaiah Vallderruten due to injury.

Jarome Penner caught eight passes for 119 yards and one TD.

Middle linebacker Derek Gumieny recorded 6.5 total tackles, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery for the Rifles. Outside linebacker Kyler Banfield and defensive back Gage Richey each had 6.5 total tackles for Winnipeg. Defensive end Brock Beauchemin had one quarterback sack for the visitors.

“For three quarters, that is as good as we played all year,” said Sargeant. “The coaches did a great job of defining and setting what the game plans need to be, and the players did a heck of a job executing it.

“For 45 minutes, I was very happy with who and what we are, and then hey, our young guys got in and got to see that is a good football team there. You just have to look at the stats and see what they’ve accomplished this year. We need to be on point.

Charles Sawi (#18) rockets downfield on an 80-yard TD run.

“We got to jump to that early lead, and then boom, they came right back and hit us with a big shot up the middle. We learned a lot about ourselves. As a coach, I was very proud of the effort that I saw on this field today.”

Now, the Hilltops turn their attention towards the Thunder. The provincial rivals split their two head-to-head encounters in the regular season. Johnson expects the PFC final to be a physical contest and wasn’t surprised the Saskatoon versus Regina matchup materialized.

“That is what we expect when we come into the season,” said Johnson. “We know it is going to be them.

Griffin Sander completed 8-of-9 passes for 87 yards and one TD.

“They are a tough team. We’ve just got to be tougher, and it really comes down to the little things.”

NOTES – On Saturday, the Okanagan Sun downed visiting the Westshore Rebels 45-26 in the BCFC final at the Apple Bowl in Kelowna, B.C. The Sun improved to 12-0 overall, while the Rebels finished out an 8-4 overall.

Also on Saturday, the defending CJFL champion St. Clair Saints blanked the visiting London Beefeaters 54-0 in the OFC title game at Acumen Stadium in Windsor, Ont. The Saints improved to 10-0 overall, while the Beefeaters finished out at 7-3.

This coming Saturday, the Sun host the Saints in a CJFL national semifinal set for 1 p.m. local time at the Apple Bowl. The winner of that contest will travel to Saskatchewan to face the winner of the PFC final between the Hilltops and Thunder on November 9 in the CJFL championship game – the Canadian Bowl.

David Boyd Jr. (#82) celebrates a 29-yard TD reception.

The CJFL announced the PFC all-stars before Sunday’s game. That announcement can be found by clicking right here.

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