After two tough losses, the Estevan Century 21 Chargers got back into the win column in fine fashion this past week. In what was their last game of the regular season, the Chargers downed the Weyburn Eagles 32-6 on Saturday.
Estevan came out of the gates on fire, opening the scoring just three minutes into the first quarter when Evan Stabenow returned a Weyburn punt all the way for a touchdown, putting the Chargers up 6-0. Estevan tried for a two point conversion, but were unsuccessful.
The Chargers doubled their lead on the first play of the second quarter. After marching downfield, they ran the ball into the end zone from the one-yard line to make it 12-0. The two point convert was again unsuccessful.
The Chargers first half dominance continued, as they added another second quarter touchdown, and completed the two point conversion this time to take a 20-0 lead at halftime.
Although they had multiple possessions, Weyburn wasn't able to generate any kind of attack through the first three quarters, as Estevan's defence - which had been strong all year - simply overwhelmed them.
"Our defence, I can't say enough about those guys. Every game we've played, they've really stepped up and made tremendous plays to give us a chance," said Chargers coach Steve McLellan. "Even our losses, they haven't been blowouts and a lot of that is due to our defence."
Estevan added to their lead halfway through the fourth, as they ran the ball for a 15-yard touchdown to make it 26-0.
The Eagles offence finally got going late in the final frame, scoring a touchdown with just over a minute to play. But the Chargers answered right back on their next possession. Quarterback Kristen Skjonsby scrambled for a 40-yard touchdown run with no time left on the clock, to give Estevan the 32-6 win.
After the game, McLellan said his team was happy to get back into the win column.
"For sure, it was great to get back on the winning track. The kids really deserved a good win, and to end the regular season on a high note is definitely what we needed, he said."
Up until now, the Chargers won most of their games by being defensively sound, and hadn't put up a lot of points but McLellan said the offence is starting to really get going.
"I think our offence is finally getting into their clicks, we're recovering from injuries and what have you," he said. "Our (offensive) line played awesome, our backfield - the blocking was just incredible - I was amazed. I was really impressed with how we played."
The Chargers now have a week off before their first playoff game on October 16.
