Saskatoon ends three
game skid with win in Calgary
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| Lachlan Horsley has made some big catches for the Hilltops. |
Looking back on his entire football career from when he first started playing the game, the 22-year-old receiver said the best experiences he has had in the game have come from being a member of the storied CJFL club.
“I always played flag when I was young,” said Horsley, who stands 5-foot-11 and weighs 185 pounds. “It was just natural that I was going to play tackle in peewee six-a-side.
“I think I’ve played ever since I was seven and just kept going. After high school, I had the opportunity to go play post-secondary with the (University of Saskatchewan) Huskies and now here. I’ve been playing my whole life and really found a home here with the Saskatoon Hilltops.”
On Sunday, Horsley and the Hilltops ended a three game losing streak posting a 35-17 victory in a CJFL regular season contest over the Colts at Shouldice Athletic Park in Calgary. The Hilltops improved to 3-3 and moved into third place in the PFC after the Winnipeg Rifles fell at home 29-23 at IG Field Sunday to the visiting Regina Thunder.
While both the Hilltops and Rifles have identical 3-3 regular season records and they split their two head-to-head regular season games, Saskatoon holds the standing tiebreaker having outscored Winnipeg 35-29 head-to-head. The Rifles sit fourth in the PFC, and the Colts fell to 2-4 with their loss to the Hilltops to occupy fifth in the PFC.
The Thunder sit first in the PFC with a 6-0 mark and need to win one of their last two games to lock up top spot in the conference. On Saturday, the Edmonton Huskies thumped the Edmonton Wildcats 48-14 in Sherwood Park, Alta.
The Huskies have won three straight and improved to 4-2 to sit second in the PFC. The Wildcats fell to 0-6 and were officially eliminated from contention for a post-season berth.
As for Horsley, he graduated from Warman High School in June of 2018, and he first joined the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Football Team in the U Sports ranks.
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| Lachlan Horsley had a big day in a PFC semifinal win last year. |
While going through that campaign just practicing with the Huskies, Horsley found he was jumping to get back into game action. He thought that in his personal situation joining the Hilltops would allow him to get on the field in game situations quicker than if he remained with the Huskies.
“I was originally just OK to red shirt and have like this long played out career there,” said Horsley, who is playing through his final campaign of CJFL eligibility. “Then, I was pretty eager to start playing again and to actually start.
“I was climbing the depth chart quite a bit, but I made the decision to come over to the Hilltops here. Then, I was kind of a scout team guy the first year, but I took the time to develop and kind of flourish a bit.”
Horsley joined the Hilltops for the 2019 CJFL campaign. He got to see the field for limited game action that season catching two passes for 10 yards and returning two kicks for 14 yards in regular season play.
During what was a learning campaign for Horsley, the Hilltops posted a perfect 12-0 record in 2019 winning the Canadian Bowl as CJFL champions for a sixth straight year. He made enough progress that the coaches were tabbing him for a starting role in 2020.
The 2020 CJFL campaign was ultimately cancelled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that gripped the world. The Hilltops did practise as team for six weeks in September and October of that year.
Last season, Horsley’s hard work and perseverance paid off as he hit the field as a starter. During the Hilltops eight regular season games, he hauled in 24 passes for 365 yards and scored two touchdowns.
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| Lachlan Horsley, left, had a big game versus the Thunder on Sept. 10. |
“Finally last year, I got my first real taste of the starting life,” said Horsley. “I got two years now here.
“I love it. I feel like I fell in love with football when I came here.”
Horsley’s growth has been noticed by the Saskatoon coaching staff too. Hilltops legendary head coach Tom Sargeant said Horsley is a prime time player who is getting rewarded for the hard work he has put in over the years.
“He was a quality player coming out of high school,” said Sargeant. “He was a quality player when he got here.
“He paid his dues. He waited his time, and he is taking advantage of his situation.”
Sargeant said he wishes Horsley could have had a better opportunity to make a key play in the Hilltops 29-21 overtime loss to their provincial rivals the Regina Thunder on September 10, 2022. In that contest, Horsley caught nine passes for 122 yards.
The Hilltops had the first possession in the extra session played under the CFL’s shootout rules format. They gambled on a third and goal situation from the Regina six yard line and Horsley came open in the end zone, but the pass that came his way was thrown behind him.
“He’s got a lot of gifts, so that is why we threw him the ball a lot, and he made his plays,” said Sargeant. “It is too bad we didn’t get him the ball in a better spot for him to make that play at the end of the game, because I believe if it was a good throw he makes the play and maybe the outcome is a little different.”
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| Lachlan Horsley has come up clutch in big situations. |
After the Huskies scored to go ahead 27-24 with 1:18 remaining in the fourth quarter, Horsley made three key catches on the Hilltops final drive to set up quarterback Damon Dutton hitting veteran receiver Dillan Heintz with a five-yard touchdown toss to win the game by two points with 21.3 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
“To be honest, the stadium energy was low,” said Horsley. “Our sideline energy was low.
“As much as we went out there and, ‘Yeah, we’re going to win this game,’ I didn’t feel like the expectations were that high. Then a couple of guys made a play or two and that switch just flipped, and it was like, ‘Hey, we’re going to do this.’ I got a couple of balls thrown my way and made all my catches.
“We’re matching the field, and then, it became a reality you know what we were actually going to do this. We finished it off. That is probably my favourite football moment of my life so far.”
While the Hilltops hit a rough stretch losing three in a row after starting out 2-0, Horsley believes his squad has the players to end the campaign on a high note. He is focused on doing his part to write a good end to his final CJFL season.
“I suppose I am a fifth year, but regardless of what year you are in when you play for the Saskatoon Hilltops, you’re expected to win the Canadian championship for the fifth years regardless,” said Horsley, who travel to Edmonton next weekend to face the Wildcats. “It is my last year.
“It would be terrific to win, but right now, we have our work cut out for us. I’m excited, because I am a workaholic if you ask any of our coaches. We’re going to get to work, and we’ll get this thing figured out.
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| Lachlan Horsley and the Hilltops face the Wildcats next. |
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