The Steinbach Regional Secondary School's junior varsity football team saw its 2018 season come to an abrupt end Tuesday at A.D. Penner Park.

The Sabres gave up 21 second half points and lost 28-11 to the Dakota Lancers in the quarterfinals.

Trailing 21-11 with 2:30 remaining in the fourth quarter and the ball at the Dakota five-yard line, the SRSS had a great chance to get within three points but the Lancers sealed the deal thanks to a pick-six that went 105 yards.

"Whether it was our assignments, throwing the ball accurately or tackles, we missed on some details and they capitalized on that," said Sabres head coach Kerry Friesen. "We saw that near the end of the game with our last throw close to the end zone. We tipped it, we almost caught it, and then they picked it off and returned it for a score. Little details made a big difference in the game."

SRSS running back Mason Hartung had a monster game as he carried the ball seven times for 75 yards, caught eight passes for 121 yards and Steinbach Regional's lone touchdown and returned five kicks for 102 yards.

Linebacker Jayden Vogt recorded seven tackles and fellow linebacker Caelan Poetker had two tackles and a quarterback sack.

Dakota enjoyed a 7-5 lead at halftime and then the Lancers started to pull away in the second half.

"We were trying to be steady and kind of chip away at it but once the lead got extended and then extended further, we had to rush a few things and maybe we made some poor choices in that sense," said coach Friesen. "It was a tough situation to be in, trying to stay level headed and manage that and obviously the tension goes up as the score gets bigger and bigger."

That playoff victory was the first win of the season for the Lancers who lost six straight in the regular season schedule.

"We knew going in that they have athletes," Friesen said. "Last time we played those guys it was in a blizzard. It was a totally different ball game. We reminded our kids that. In the preseason they beat us 42-0 and in the regular season we beat them 50-6. It was back-and-forth and we were going to see a dog fight. They had a few more breaks go their way and they made a few more plays than we did. They fought hard and they deserved the win."

Friesen says his junior varsity team made tremendous strides this season.

"It's cool seeing certain kids grow and develop. They come from not playing football at all to learning three positions in two weeks and contributing in every way possible. Some kids have played six years and have taken big steps as well. It's really encouraging seeing kids grow. There's moments when we see kids develop in a game from the first quarter to the fourth quarter - learning how to adjust and the speed and physicality of the game. That's one of the joys of coaching is seeing kids get it, seeing the light bulb go on and then seeing them have success on the field as well. It's pretty cool."