The Estevan Comprehensive School (ECS) Elecs faced a formidable challenge in their first road game of the season against the Yorkton Raiders last Friday. Although the final score ended in a tough loss at 62 to nothing, Head Coach Mark Schott remains hopeful about the team's progress.
Coach Schott opened up about the game, acknowledging the tough start they had against a high-powered Yorkton offence.
"Yeah, the final score was pretty lopsided. We lost 62 to nothing. We found ourselves down big early again," Coach Schott recounted. "Yorkton is a high-powered, efficient offence, and they score quickly and in bunches and capitalized on our mistakes. So it was a tough start."
Despite the challenging scoreline, Coach Schott highlighted some positive aspects of the game, particularly in the second half. The Elecs managed to shut out the Raiders in the third quarter, showcasing their defensive improvement. However, they were unable to capitalize with points of their own.
"Well, we did see some improvement from our first week against Weyburn to our second game against Yorkton. Our offence moved the ball a little bit better. We had some more success moving the ball on the ground," Coach Schott noted. "Defensively, again, it's hard to recognize this with the score the way that it was. We gave up some big plays to Yorkton, but aside from those big plays, we made some big stops on 3rd down to force a turnover on downs a couple of times."
A critical area of focus for the Elecs moving forward is limiting the big plays from the opponent while also bolstering their offensive performance.
Regarding the road experience, Coach Schott emphasized its value for the team's cohesion. The late-night return after the 7:00 PM game allowed the players to bond during the journey.
"It was a good experience to get on the bus, get out on the road. It was a late night. We didn't get back to ECS until almost 2:00 AM, so it was a long day, but it was good to get the guys on the bus and just kind of enjoying each other's space," Coach Schott explained.
Coach Schott also acknowledged the challenging schedule they've faced so far, going up against highly-ranked teams in the country.
"Canada Football Chat puts out high school football team rankings, and for the small schools in Canada, which is what our league is, we opened up with the 5th and 9th ranked teams in the country, and that's a tall task for our team, which we're not on that level," Coach Schott said. "We want to get there one day, but we're not there right now. We have to take what we can from these games, improve where we can, and hopefully have some more success against the other teams in our league."
Looking ahead to their next game, the Elecs are preparing to face the Peacock Tornados on Saturday with a 1:00 PM start time. Coach Schott shared that Peacock is in a similar situation, having experienced 2 lopsided losses.
As the Estevan Elecs regroup and strive for their first win of the season, Coach Schott remains optimistic and determined to see improvement in their upcoming matchups. The challenges they've faced in the early part of the season have only fueled their determination to grow as a team and compete at their best.
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