Okanagan Sun roar back in the second half for convincing win to open the BCFC season

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Story Wayne Moore castanet

The Okanagan Sun opened up defence of their BC Football Conference title in convincing fashion Saturday evening.

The Sun roared back from a three point, third quarter deficit and won going away, beating the VI Raiders 45-17 in Nanaimo.

It was their 26th regular season win in a row.

The Sun scored the final 31 points over the final 25 minutes in erasing a 17-14 deficit.

Newcomer Jaxon Allan scored four touchdowns, three on the ground and one through the air, amassing 166 combined yard to pace the Sun attack.

The Sun jumped on the Raiders early.

The first time the Sun touched the ball, starter Liam Kroeger marched the Sun down the field, capped by Marcus Christos' 10-yard scamper.

On their next possession, Kroeger again marked the team down the field, highlighted by a 24-yard strike to newcomer Devontae Mozee and a pass interference call on Colton Meikle.

Allan took the ball in from seven yards out for his first of four majors and a 14-0 lead.

It was all Raiders the rest of the half.

Gavin Whittingham capped off a long drive with a one-yard plunge before the first quarter was over then Dylan Moreno hit Morgan MacCubbin for a TD strike to send the teams to the locker room deadlocked at 14.

The Raiders took their first lead of the night early in the third when William Maras-Hilling connected on a 15-year field goal following a Kroeger interception.

The Sun were nearly flawless the rest of the way.

The defence shut down the Raiders the remainder of the night while the offence caught fire.

On the ensuing drive, Kroeger hit Mozee with a 65-yard strike and the Sun took the lead for good, 21-17.

After recovering the kickoff, Kroeger found Allan for a 15-yard strike and an 11-point lead heading to the fourth.

A 31-yard Grady Hay field goal and two short runs from Allan closed out the scoring.

Allan, in his first game with the Sun carried the ball 19 times for 98 yards and caught three passes for another 68.

Mozee caught six passes for 138 yards and the touchdown including a 63-yard strike that led to their second touchdown.

Meikle, in his first game in a Sun uniform, caught four for 35 yards.

Kroeger was 19 or 31 for 301 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.

The Sun turned the ball over twice while the Raiders did not commit any turnovers.

The offence amassed 462 yards while the defence held the Raiders to 281 total yards including just 85 yards on the ground.

The Sun return to the road next weekend to face the Langley Rams.

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