With about four minutes left in the fourth quarter, it was like the Estevan Comprehensive School Elecs just flipped a switch.
Trailing 32-1 to the Vanier Vikings at that point in their most lopsided game of the season, the Elecs' offence took it to a new level and managed three touchdowns in as many minutes, with two-point converts on all of them.
The sudden flurry wasn't enough to pick up their first win though, as the Vikings won 35-25 in Moose Jaw High School Football League action.
"It was great to see. I wish we could've seen more of that in the first half," said Elecs head coach Mark Schott. "It was a bit of a reversal for us, usually we start out strong and then things don't usually go our way in the second half."
The Elecs (0-5) relied heavily on the connection between quarterback Kolby Fleury and receiver Ian Ferguson to get back in the game.
Ferguson had two touchdowns and caught a pair of two-point converts on the day, reeling in six catches for 97 yards.
Fleury completed only 13 of 35 passing attempts, but he made them count, totalling 239 passing yards.
However, most of the game was a tale of dominance for the visiting Vanier side (2-3).
Vikings receiver Matt Morris struck first, catching a 35-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Haydenn Terrian four minutes into the game.
Devon Schweiger extended the lead to 10-0 after the first quarter with a 28-yard field goal.
Morris picked up an eight-yard major early in the second quarter to give the Vikings a 17-0 lead.
With five minutes left in the half, Elecs kicker/punter Jesse Mack booted the ball 62 yards to give ECS their only point of the half on a rouge.
Vanier added another touchdown before halftime, with Terrian and Morris connecting for a 90-yard play that developed after a missed tackle by ECS at midfield.
Schott said those mistakes shouldn't be happening at this point in the season.
"It was disappointing. When you're coming into a game where it's our last home game of the year, and for a lot of seniors, it's their last home game ever, you'd expect a better effort and just a better overall performance. For some reason that didn't happen for us in the first half. We addressed that at halftime and I think we responded a lot better in the second half."
There was no scoring in the third quarter.
With 5:15 left in the game, the Vikings extended their lead to 32-1 on a 16-yard run by Terrian into the end zone, a score that came one play after Fleury threw an interception.
That was when the Elecs woke up.
Fleury and Ferguson did it all on Estevan's next possession, as a 30-yard completion to Ferguson got the Elecs down to the five-yard line. That was followed by a touchdown pass and a two-point convert, both to Ferguson, using the same play.
Schweiger kicked a 22-yard field goal about a minute later to make it 35-9, but ECS returner Cole MacCuish took the ball 93 yards the other way on the ensuing kickoff. The two-point convert was completed to Ferguson to make it 35-17.
MacCuish had returned a punt 70 yards for a touchdown earlier in the game, but it was called back on a penalty.
The Elecs quickly got the ball back and embarked on another drive, which included major gains of 32 yards on a pass to Evan Tarnes and 28 yards on a spectacular catch by Ferguson.
A 10-yard pass to Ferguson gave the Elecs their third major in three minutes. Tyler Thiessen caught the pass for two points.
Schott said that although the late charge was encouraging, the Elecs need to perform that way for an entire game.
"It was nice that our team responded when we were down, in the face of adversity. It shows a lot about the character of our team," he said.
"(But) we just weren't sharp to start the game and we dug ourselves a big hole. Luckily we were able to put some points up on the board in the second half to keep the game interesting, but if we could've played a full game, I think the outcome would've been a different story."
As has been the case all season, penalties were again an issue for the Elecs, as they took eight of them for 60 yards.
"That hurts us. We've got them second and long and we get a roughing the passer or an offside to give them second and short, and that's a different situation there," said Schott.
The Elecs' final regular season game will be next Tuesday when they visit the Yorkton Raiders.
