Another strong season in the standings for the Sacred Heart senior football team came to an end over the weekend.
The 4-1 Saints headed to the Melfort and Unit Comprehensive Collegiate early Saturday morning to tangle with one of only four teams in Saskatchewan High Schools Athletics Association (SHSAA) 9-man senior football division.
The Melfort Comets had been blowing up on teams left, right and centre almost all season, except when the Saints rolled into town.
Melfort had combined for one of the top points-for totals in 9-man football but didn't add a whole lot to that total Saturday vs. Sacred Heart.
"I'm a little disappointed," admitted Senger following what ended up being his team's second loss of the season. The two losses fell within three weeks of each other. "We just couldn't move the ball (at Melfort)."
The Comets had pasted opponents this season for 301 points going into their match with the Saints; they had a lead at halftime of 7-0.
"The defence played well," recalls Senger, adding that based on how well the Comets have played this season, he wasn't too upset with the loss.
"I'm happy with how we played."
They are a strong offensive team. The weather didn't play a factor at all," he added.
He said that by halftime, "we had a really good shot at winning."
Through the third and fourth quarters, they managed two touchdowns, plus forcing SHHS into giving up a safety and won the game 22-0. Despite a few shortcomings, including missing several players who were playing in provincial soccer playdowns, the football Saints kept themselves in it for all four quarters against Melfort.
They got a bit of a boost on defence and special teams early on when kicker/punter/safety Robert Okeny made the trip to the MUCC shortly after kickoff. His contributions included a 47-yard punt.
Senger said it gave the team a little bit of a boost despite Okeny still suffering from a knee injury so he wasn't playing at 100 per cent.
"A little bit," he replied when asked if Okeny's showing helped the team.
It didn't help however when he got re-injured in the game.
"We put him in to kick," says Senger, who said he also played a little at defensive back.
