The Carlton Crusaders football team wrapped up their 2019 campaign on a winning note Friday in Saskatoon as they cruised to a 35-14 win over the Bedford Road Redhawks in the Saskatoon Secondary Schools Athletic Directorate Division III championship game.
“We got off to a really good start and we just kept building from there,” Crusaders head coach Lindsay Strachan said.
“After we lost to St. Mary the previous week, we told the guys that we still had a chance to control our fate with one more game and we had a chance to take care of business. We always try to look after things on both sides of the ball and I thought we did a great of that.”
The Adamkos once again led the way for the Crusaders, as Justin caught two touchdown passes and also ran into the end zone.
His younger cousin Ryan also had a rushing touchdown and also connected with Mason Harris on a 22-yard pass for six points.
“We actually threw less in this game than we had for most of the season,” Strachan said. “We went in with the mindset that we wanted to run the ball and we were very effective on the ground.
“With our defence, we really focused on their passing game and we did a great job of keeping them from moving down the field until the fourth quarter, which is when we brought in some of our younger guys to gain more experience after we went up 35-0.”
Parker Dale completed a pair of touchdown passes to Brock Dale and Aman Khan in the final quarter.
With Friday’s triumph, the Crusaders posted a 2-5-1 record in 2019, with their other victory coming against the E.D. Feehan Trojans at Max Clunie Field earlier this month.
“We had a veteran group this year that I’m sure would have liked to have been in the Tier II playoffs once again, but it wasn’t meant to be,” Strachan said.
“With that said, we finished the year strong and it’s always a good thing to say that you won your last game of the season.”
The St. Mary Marauders will wrap up their campaign Friday at 5 p.m. as they’ll play the Aden Bowman Bears in the SSSAD Division II title game at the Saskatoon Minor Football Field.
