Raiders 27 Trojans 16
Once the Lindsay Thurber Raiders found their footing in the Central Alberta High School Football League this season, they proved tough to beat.
The Raiders won their fourth game in a row Friday, downing the Camrose Trojans 27-16 to finish the regular season at 5-3 and earn a berth in the third-place game next weekend against the Stettler Wildcats.
The Wildcats finished at 6-2 with a 41-7 win over the Wetaskiwin Sabres.
“It’s been a nice four-game run,” said Raiders head coach Dave Smith. “This wasn’t a pretty game as we had lots of penalties, which are something we have to fix, but still the guys played hard and didn’t panic when they made a run at us.
“There were a lot of bright spots and our key players stepped up . . . guys like Greg (Fowler) and Brody (Slagman). In fact there were a lot of guys. This is already one of our more successful seasons of late as the kids get used to winning.”
Slagman is one of the premier place kickers in the league and nailed a pair of 35-yard field goals which gave the Raiders a little breathing room after Camrose made the score 14-8 early in the fourth quarter.
“I take a lot of pride in my kicking,” said Slagman, who played a lot of soccer as a youngster. “I haven’t been to many kicking camps, but it (kicking) may be in my future.” Slagman has been contacted by several post-secondary schools including the University of Calgary, Montana and the U of Manitoba. “Good options. I’m not sure what will happen, but I know the U of C asked about being a receiver as well.”
Slagman, who is in Grade 12, plays linebacker for the Raiders.
“I enjoy it and wouldn’t mind going on and playing there as well . . . who knows.”
The Raiders defence has been their strong point all season. “We’re not big, but make up for it in speed,” said Slagman.
“The defence has been there when our offence was still coming together,” said Smith. “But as we went along the offence started to pick it up.”
One of the reasons was tailback Greg Fowler, who only played the final five games in the backfield. He led the team Friday with 187 yards on 29 carries and three touchdowns.
Slagman finished with two field goals, two converts, a single and was credited with a safety.
Skylar Rambeau, on a one-yard run, and Stephen Nesdoly, on a 53-yard pass and run, scored touchdowns for the Trojans. Nesdoly also grabbed a pair of two-point converts.
In Stettler, the Wildcats used 10 different running backs as they jumped into a 14-0 first quarter lead and never looked back. Braden Nelson led the attack with 170 yards rushing on 10 carries while scoring once. Austin Cherewko, Drew Hunt, Tyler Stewart, Clayton Steel and Ricky Armstrong added touchdowns for the ‘Cats while Elliott Mabbot kicked five converts. Josh Jorstad had the Sabres’ lone major with Ian Krause adding the convert.
Armstrong had 53 yards on two carries for the Wildcats while Josh Majek had 70 yards on 13 carries for Wetaskiwin.
drode@www.reddeeradvocate.com
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