It was a defensive slugfest in the first half, but the Miller Marauders found a way to beat the LeBoldus Golden Suns in the second half to win the Regina Intercollegiate Football League’s Schwann Conference title.
“I was a little nervous after the first half, but in the second half we really pulled it together,” said Miller offensive lineman Ben Schmidt. “The defence was playing lights out the whole time.
“I was proud of everybody.”
The two teams went into halftime tied at three, but Miller found the end zone early in the second half, as running back Marshall Erichsen scored the first touchdown of the game, to go along with 193 rushing yards on 27 carries. The Marauders went on to win 27-9.
“It was a great battle with the guys especially against our rival LeBoldus,” said Miller quarterback Winston Chapman. “The defence showed up. Our o-line played like they could. Our receivers made the big time catches. And Marshall Erichsen did what he always does. I was happy to come out with the win.
“We’ve been a second half team all year, so we had the confidence heading into the second half that we were going to deliver.”
Miller captured its first 6A city championship since 2018, when several players like Schmidt were Grade 9 rookies. Now in Grade 12, this title is much sweeter, especially considering the league wasn’t able to play in 2020 due to the pandemic.
“It sucked missing out on last year, but it’s just awesome this year,” said Schmidt. “We won in Grade 9, but kind of got carried, so it feels great to be the carriers.”
The Marauders now travel to Saskatoon to take on the Holy Cross Crusaders for the 6A provincial championship on Saturday at 1 p.m. at SMF Field.
“It’s really exciting,” said Chapman. “I am looking forward to making the trip to Saskatoon and hopefully winning the provincial title there against a good Holy Cross team.”