Thunder snatch victory away from Hilltops

Regina pulls out 29-21 OT win in miraculous fashion

Ryland Leichert (#32) scores the OT winning TD for the Thunder.

The Regina Thunder pulled a game that was seemingly lost out of the fire leaving the Saskatoon Hilltops to wonder what might have been.

On Saturday at Saskatoon Minor Football Field, the Hilltops saw a 21-14 advantage disappear right before the end of the fourth quarter as the Thunder scored to force overtime and proceeded to pull out the CJFL regular season clash in the extra session 29-21 before 1,477 spectators.

Thunder star running back Ryland Leichert ran home the winning touchdown from 15 yards out in overtime, and Regina star quarterback Carter Shewchuk hit star receiver Isaac Foord with a pass for a two-point convert to round out the final outcome.

Ryland Leichert (#32) had 139 yards rushing for the Thunder.

“Shoutout to the O-linemen,” said Leichert. “They had great blocks.

“They made a hole for me. I just hit it. A lot of that goes to them.

“It just feels good to get the win.”

With less than two minutes to play in the fourth quarter, Hilltops defensive back Dylan Cook recovered a Thunder fumble to set Saskatoon up with an offensive possession just inside Regina’s side of midfield. The host Hilltops led the Thunder 21-14 and were looking to run out the clock.

The Hilltops offence went two and out. After a punt by Saskatoon kicker Connor Green, the Thunder had the ball with just over a minute to play deep in their end with no timeouts.

Carter Shewchuk threw for 319 yards for the Thunder.

Very quickly, Shewchuk connected on a number of intermediate routes to move the ball downfield. The visitors would then find themselves facing a third-and-eight situation from the Saskatoon 31 yard line.

Shewchuk proceed to throw a duck pass that seemed destined to fall incomplete on the Saskatoon five yard line on the right side of the field. Thunder star receiver Isaiah Woodley, who was running a go route down the right sideline, broke to the middle, and he hauled in the underthrown and wobbly pass.

Woodley then zipped in to the end zone for the touchdown that evened the score at 21-21 with 16.8 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter and ultimately forced overtime.

Isaiah Woodley celebrates his late fourth quarter TD catch.

In overtime, the CJFL plays CFL shootout rules, where offences scrimmage from the opposing 35 yard line attempting to drive the short distance for a score and teams have to go for two-point conversions after major scores. The Hilltops got the first possession in overtime and got down to the Regina six yard line after quarterback Damon Dutton hit Lachlan Horsley with a 29-yard pass.

The Hilltops drive stalled and a third down gamble pass to Horsley in the end zone fell incomplete.

That set the stage for Leichert to put up the winning points on the Thunder’s ensuing possession.

“We got a little too high,” said legendary Hilltops head coach Tom Sargeant, whose team will face the Thunder again this coming Saturday at 1 p.m. at Mosaic Stadium in Regina. “We still struggle in moments and situations, and that seems to be the flavor of this team right now.

Hilltops R Lachlan Horsley, left, had nine catches for 122 yards.

“At the end of the day, that falls directly on me. Preparation is half the battle. At the end of the day, we didn’t close the game, which has been a theme.

“Regina wanted it more than we did at the end. That was pretty simple. Good for Regina, and we’ll see them next week.”

The Hilltops opened the game’s scoring in the first quarter going up 3-0 with a 12-yard field goal from Green. Just 61 seconds into the second quarter, the Thunder evened things up at 3-3 with a 32-yard field goal from star kicker Eric Maximuik.

At the 5:06 mark of the second quarter, Dutton hit Hilltops backup running back Tanner Szakacs with a nine-yard touchdown pass to give the hosts a 10-3 advantage heading into halftime.

Charles Sawi, left, returns a missed field goal 125 yards for a TD.

Green booted the second half kickoff into the Thunder end zone, where it was downed for a single point to increase the Hilltops lead to 11-3. 

At the 5:30 mark of the third quarter, Green hit a 39-yard field goal to increase the Hilltops advantage to 14-3.

With 1:40 remaining in the third quarter, Thunder running back Keane Szabo dove into the Saskatoon end zone from a yard out for a touchdown. Following Szabo’s major score, Shewchuk hit Leichert with a five yard pass for a two-point conversion that trimmed Saskatoon’s lead to 14-11.

Boston Davidsen (#24) had 128 yards rushing for the Hilltops.

Early in the fourth quarter, Maximuik attempted a 45 yard field goal to pull the Thunder even on the scoreboard. His kick sailed wide, and Hilltops 17-year-old rookie running back Charles Sawi ran the ball back 125 yards the other way for a touchdown to give Saskatoon a 21-11 edge.

With 6:21 remaining in the fourth quarter, Maximuik connected on a field goal from 31 yards out that cut the Hilltops lead to 21-14. That set the stage for the dramatics inside the final two minutes of the fourth quarter and overtime.

“It didn’t end the way we want it to,” said Hilltops defensive end Daylen Hartz, who had a sack and three total tackles on Saturday. “The fun thing is that we get to play them again next week too.”

The Hilltops celebrate an interception from Konner Johnson.

Hartz said the Hilltops missed a lot of opportunities in key situations that would have helped them win the game. The veteran, who is in his final season of CJFL eligibility, said his will continue to work on getting better in practice to cash in on those missed opportunities.

“There were a lot of things everyone could have done a bit better,” said Hartz. “That is what this next week is for.

“A chip on the shoulder helps with working a bit harder, and I think we’re definitely going to be working a bit harder this week.”

During Saturday’s game, Dutton completed 19-of-32 passes for 221 yards and one touchdown, while throwing one interception. Horsley caught nine passes for 122 yards to lead the Hilltops in receiving.

Damon Dutton (#19) threw for 268 yards for the Hilltops.

Star power running back Boston Davidsen led the Hilltops on the ground carrying the ball 24 times for 128 yards.

Shewchuk completed 27-of-42 passes for 328 yards and one touchdown, while throwing two interceptions for the Thunder. Foord led the Thunder in receiving with eight catches for 127 yards.

Leichert paced the Thunder’s ground game carrying the ball 19 times for 91 yards to go with his game-winning major score. He said Saturday’s win improved his team’s confidence about pulling out games in desperate situations.

“I think that just goes to show our confidence and our effort,” said Leichert. “That is how we play all season.

“There is not going to be a game where it is not over. We’re going to be playing hard until the whistle blows. That is our mentality.”

Isaac Foord (#8) had eight catches for 127 yards for the Thunder.

Defensively, Hilltops star outside linebacker Konner Johnson had eight total tackles, two pass knockdowns and an interception. Defensive end Riece Kack had eight total tackles and one sack for the Hilltops, while defensive back Justin Adamko had an interception.

Thunder defensive back Adam King led his team with nine total tackles. Linebacker Kenten Effa had 7.5 total tackles and a sack for the Thunder, while defensive back Justin McKerracher had four total tackles and an interception for the Regina side.

Regina remained undefeated with the win improving to 4-0, while the Hilltops fell to 2-2 having lost two straight.

The Thunder celebrate their game-winning score on Saturday.

“At the end of the day, we have to get back to drawing board, and we have to figure out how to become more effective as a football team in all three phases,” said Sargeant. “At the end of the day, third and eight the defence could have won the game right there too.

“We didn’t. They made more plays. They were a better football team tonight.”

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