Although the final spread was 15 points, the Estevan Steelers were closer than ever to their first victory of the season on Sunday.
The Steelers failed on a two-point convert to tie the game in the dying moments and the Regina Dinos responded with two late touchdowns for a final of 33-18.
"The score does not reflect how well the guys played today. We just had a couple of unlucky breaks and we're going to work on fixing those so they don't happen anymore," said Steelers head coach Preston Majeran.
The Dinos built a 20-6 lead at the half, but Estevan's defence held firm throughout the third quarter and gave the offence a chance to put some points on the board.
Early in the fourth, Brody Dreher broke out for a long run from midfield to set up a short touchdown rush by Steelers quarterback Calder Clark. That made it 20-12 for the visitors.
The Steelers' defence made another big play with about five minutes left, recovering a fumble at the Regina 50 to set up a dramatic drive.
"Getting that ball back on that fumble is exactly what I asked them to do and they did it," said Majeran.
"That's all I can ask for. When I ask them to do something and they do it, that's perfect."
Clark capped the drive with an 11-yard rushing major to get the Steelers within two, but they couldn't cross the goal line again on the convert.
"I was definitely biting at my nails. I could have used some Ritalin to calm me down," Majeran laughed. "The guys played absolutely great."
The ensuing kick-off pinned the visitors deep, but they would explode for a running play of about 90 yards to give them some breathing room.
The Dinos added another major with seven seconds left.
The teams traded touchdowns in the early going, with the Dinos breaking loose from midfield 59 seconds into the first quarter and Estevan responding with a long drive ended by Dreher's five-yard scamper over the goal line.
Regina added two more touchdowns before the half, one on a roughly 60-yard rushing major on the last play of the first quarter and the other on a short plunge late in the second.
But the Steelers stopped the bleeding in the second half.
"I gave them the little speech, 'Let's go out there and do our jobs properly,' and that's exactly what happened. They did their jobs and they did them well in the second half," Majeran said.
The Steelers are home again this Sunday, hosting the Regina Packers at 2:30 p.m.
