BC Lions claw back but come up short against the Saskatchewan Roughriders

JEN FIELD/ GATG

The BC Lions hosted the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Saturday July 19 at BC Place in front of a lively crowd. This came as part of their third annual Watermelon Smash Game, a unique theme night aimed at raising awareness for food insecurity across Canada.

In the Terry Fox Plaza ahead of kickoff fans took part in the festivities hosted by the Lions, which included watermelon-smashing contests, eating competitions, and food and beverage stands. 

But once the fun ended and the game began, it was the Roughriders who quickly stole the spotlight.The Lions received the opening kick, but were quickly forced into a punt after only gaining 7 yards on their opening drive. 

Quarterback Trevor Harris of the Roughriders connected on several hand off passes to running back A.J. Ouellette, who finished off the drive with a touchdown pass to Dohnte Meyers, giving the Roughriders an early 7–0 lead, only 5 minutes into the game. 

Despite getting the ball back in a return kick, the Lions fumbled the return, leading to a quick Roughrider possession, in which they were able to secure another field goal to extend their lead to 10-0 

The Lions’ next possession stalled, and Harris once again led the Roughriders down the field, this time finding Ouellette on a short-yardage touchdown pass to make it 17–0. 

It wasn't until the last 2 minutes of the quarter when Nathan Rourke was able to successfully drive down the field with the team and throw a 40 yard pass to Stanley Berryhill III for the Lions first touchdown, bringing the score closer to 17-8.

In the second quarter the Roughriders began moving the ball down the field before it was intercepted by Ronald Kent Jr of the Lions. Rourke and the Lions pushed the ball into Roughrider territory but were forced to punt after the drive stalled. 

The Roughriders responded by moving the ball from their own 23-yard line onto the Lion's 21-yard line. They were able to kick another field goal, followed shortly after by a 48-yard field goal from BC’s Sean Whyte, making it 20–11. 

To end the half the Roughriders were able to capitalize on their last drive and a 45-yard field goal to give them a 23-11 lead.  

In the third quarter the Roughriders kept control of the game. Harris connected again with Meyers, this time on a 30-yard touchdown, increasing the Riders' lead to 30–11. A few minutes later, Lauther added his fourth field goal of the night—this one from 16 yards out—to make it 33–11. 

The Lions attempted to respond to the scoreboard and added a touchdown to their points in the last 2 minutes of the third-quarter with a successful 2 point conversion, but were still trailing.

The fourth quarter was mostly a defensive standoff, as both teams traded punts and missed opportunities. Until the last 22 seconds when the Lions scored a touchdown and another successful 2 point conversion. However, it was not enough and they fell 33-27 to the Roughriders. 

The Lions next home game takes place on July 27 against the Hamilton Tigercats.