CFL.ca Staff

EDMONTON -- Cary Koch and Hugh Charles each had a touchdown, while the Esks defence smothered Travis Lulay as the Eskimos are out to a 15-9 lead at halftime over the Lions on Saturday night at Commonwealth Stadium.

Steven Jyles threw for 159 yards and a touchdown on 12-14 passing, including a stretch of 12 consecutive completions. Charles had 53 yards from scrimmage, while receiver Nate Coehoorn added four catches for 47 yards in possibly the team's best all-around half of football this season.

The Lions opened with a quick surge as Tim Brown returned the game’s opening kickoff across their own 50, setting up Lulay with prime field position. But the Esks defence showed up early to force a quick two-and-out followed by a punt.

Starting deep in their own end, the Esks shifted field position with a decent drive up to midfield, before Grant Shaw boomed a 75-yard punt through the Lions end zone for the game’s opening single point.

Both teams exchanged punts from there, but while the Lions sputtered offensively out of the gate with just one first down on their opening three drives, Jyles and the Esks continued to move the ball on offence.

The Esks’ 30-year-old pivot finished with nine completions on 10 passing attempts in the opening quarter, but despite that the Green and Gold were held to just a single point and a 1-0 edge through 15 minutes of play.

On BC’s third two-and-out of the game, Joe Burnett would make the Lions pay for their offensive struggles, bursting up the seam on a long punt return to set the Esks up at the Lions 24-yard-line.

After Jyles was sacked on first down, the veteran pivot dropped back and fired for the end zone on second and long, finding Koch in coverage for a 27-yard touchdown pass to put the Esks ahead 8-0.

This only awakened Lulay and the Lions offence though. After a long run by Brown was negated by a Lions facemask penalty, the young quarterback found Kierrie Johnson on a long completion down to the Esks’ 20-yard-line.

But the Lions couldn’t capitalize, forcing Paul McCallum for a 37-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 8-3.

The Esks stayed hot though, as Charles dashed up the middle on a screen pass for a 20-yard gain, setting up Coehoorn’s fourth reception of the game for a 32-yard gain to move Edmonton to the four-yard-line.

Charles did the rest from there for his first touchdown of the game, putting the Esks in front with a commanding 15-3 lead with seven minutes remaining in the opening half.

The Lions moved into position quickly to respond, but once again stalled from inside scoring range, forcing McCallum out for his second kick of the game from 35 yards.

McCallum would add one more from 28 yards before the half, cutting the deficit to six points as the Esks hold a 15-9 lead through 30 minutes.

Lulay finished with 133 yards on just 12-20 passing for the Lions, but appears to be heating up after leading a pair of scoring drives to end the half.

More to come...