The BC Lions faced the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the Canadian Football League West finals at BC Place on Sunday, beating the Calgary Stampeders 30-16 in the semifinals.
After a slow start to the game, with the two teams trading two field goals each, Lions center Nathan Rourke completed his first touchdown pass of the game to Alexander Hollins with minutes remaining in the second quarter.
The crowd favorite returned to the field and passed receiver Keon Hatcher by 14 points on Antonio Pipkin’s 45-yard pass, his only attempt of the game.
In retrospect, the guests were never able to reduce the deficit to less than two possessions.
Rourke finished the game by finding a receiver on 22 of 30 attempts for 321 yards and two touchdowns.
At Stampeders camp, neither Jake Maier nor Bo Levi Mitchell were able to find a receiver in their opponent’s end zone. Maier completed just 12 of 22 passes for 138 yards while his teammate completed eight of 11 attempts for 147 yards.
The Lions and Blue Bombers battle it out for a spot in the Gray Cup Finals next Sunday at IG Field in Winnipeg.
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