The ranks were running thin on the sidelines for the Duchess Park Condors junior football team.
By the time the shooting had stopped, they were down to just 13 players.
The Mission Roadrunners took advantage of their strength in numbers and rolled over the Condors 52-21 in a B.C. High School Football Association junior varsity quarterfinal playoff Friday night in Chilliwack.
The Condors' chances of advancing were dealt a serious blow early in the game when star running back Colburn Pearce suffered a hip flexor injury when he got tackled to the turf in the first quarter.
Pearce, who scored all of the Condors' points in a 45-6 win over the Prince George Polars Oct. 29 in the junior P.G. Bowl, missed a few plays but stayed in the game. He ended up scoring all three Condor touchdowns against the Roadrunners and kicked the converts.
"We scored right off the bat and then Colburn got hurt in the second series," said Condors co-coach Richard Bundock. "He played hurt the rest of the game and we lost three more people.
"Colburn was in and out and that hurts when it's your main running back. We only had 16 against their 30-something, and in the second quarter we couldn't get anything going."
Mission led 26-7 at halftime.
Pearce went in at quarterback to give his injured leg a break and spell off starting QB Andrew Johnson, who played receiver while Pearce was taking the snaps. Pearce scored his first major off a 40-yard sweep and got his next two touchdowns in the second half off quarterback keepers.
"We kind of settled down in the second half and put some points back up but it was definitely a band-aid (fix), moving people around with three of our 16 out," said Bundock. "So we only had one sub."
The Condors went 6-0 in their run to the Northern Conference title and won their preliminary-round provincial playoff 25-17 over Vernon on Nov. 12 in Kamloops.
"I'm proud of our people," said Bundock. "Everybody played well and got lots of playing time and they had some fun. We made it to the dance and deserved to be there."
The senior football season also ended Friday for the Prince George Polars, who lost 24-20 to the Carson Graham Eagles of North Vancouver in a BCHSFA double-A varsity quarterfinal in Kamloops.
