ST. PAUL - The St. Paul Lions will continue the 2021 football season deeper into the month of November.
On Friday night, the Lions took on the Wainwright Commandos, winning 36-12 on their home field, and putting an end to the Commandos' season.
"Wainwright gave us a bit of a scare at the start," says head coach Mark Tichkowsky, speaking about Friday's game. While they had to battle their way back into the game, the Lions were able to rally and got three touchdowns in a row before the second half.
Heading into the last half of the game, the Lions kept pushing.
"We were able to score a couple more and kicked a field goal," says Tichkowsky. This lead allowed for some of the back-up payers to gain valuable experience on the field, which is always nice to see, says the coach.
Next up, the Lions will make the six-hour drive to Grande Prairie to take on the team from Sexsmith in the first round of Alberta Schools' Athletic Association (ASAA) provincials. The game is scheduled for Saturday.
St. Paul is heading into the first round of playoffs ranked third of all Tier IV teams in the province, while Sexsmith is the top ranked Tier IV team.
Elsewhere in the Wheatland Football League, The Holy Rosary Raiders took on their Lloydminster counterparts, the Lloydminster Comprehensive Barons, Friday night. The game was a clear one-sided match with the Raiders winning 52-0.
Holy Rosary will take on Sylvan Lake in the first round of playoffs in the Tier III division.
According to Football Alberta, most of the qualifying has been done and most of the opponents are set for next weekend’s first round of the ASAA Provincials. There is a game set for Tuesday in the metro Edmonton region between Leduc and Bellerose to determine the Tier II rep that will play the Lloydminster Barons.
