When the clock struck halftime, things were looking good for the Estevan Sherritt Coal Miners, as they sought their first win in their last game of the season.
However, things went south in the second half and the atom football team lost 38-21 to the Regina Lions on Saturday in the provincial capital.
Estevan scored three touchdowns in the first half and led 21-16 after the second quarter. But the Lions scored three of their own in the second half.
"It was another game that was a tale of two halves. We won the first half. They shut us down in the second," said Miners head coach Wanda Harron.
"The first half was so good. I don't know what it was, but after we scored that first touchdown, you could honestly see it in their face, click, it went on."
She added the first half was "something else, especially when, on our first series, we marched down the field and scored. I was really proud of those kids and their attitudes coming off the field."
On the Lions' first possession, Levi Krienke and Reife Bachorcik forced a fumble, which led to the Miners' first major.
"That positive start on D really sparked our offence, because we put together a touchdown drive highlighted by the blocking we've been looking for all season. The drive included a longer run where Keagan Merriman made some nice moves down the middle of the field. It was capped off by (quarterback) Kaleb Bechtold handing it off to James Knibbs for a two-yard run up the middle to score," Harron said.
Later in the first quarter, Merriman found an opening in the middle and rushed the ball about 70 yards to the end zone. That gave the Miners a 13-0 lead.
Late in the first, Regina scored on a short handoff up the middle and successfully went for two.
The Miners answered with another touchdown in the second quarter. Knibbs ran from midfield to the 13 to set it up. Several plays later, Bechtold broke the plane on a one-yard plunge.
A major on a long reverse play by the Lions wrapped up the first half.
"Regina got their touchdowns in the second half on marches that featured long runs up the middle," said Harron.
The Lions led 32-21 after the third quarter.
Harron noted that Merriman and Hayden Borhot got hurt, and they were missing key defender Kolby Forseth.
"I honestly think if we would have had three subs on each side of the ball, we would have won that game.
"The defence was strong, but we got killed on the reverse and that's one thing we have to work on in practice this week."
After finishing the regular season with an 0-6 record, the Miners will play in a bowl game on Saturday, but as of press time did not know who they would be playing.
