REGINA — Trevor Harris threw for 268 yards and two touchdowns as the Saskatchewan Roughriders retained first place in the CFL’s West Division with a 21-18 victory over the Edmonton Elks on Friday.

The win improved Saskatchewan’s record to 6-1, one win ahead of the Calgary Stampeders, who fell to 5-2 with a 23-21 loss to the Montreal Alouettes on Thursday. The Elks, coming off a bye week, dropped to 1-5 and sit last in the West.

Leading 11-4 at halftime, the Riders took control of the game in the third quarter on both sides of the ball.

While Saskatchewan’s offence scored 10 points, the defence limited the Elks to four yards of total offence on three possessions. The Riders collected three of their eight sacks in the quarter.

Saskatchewan increased its lead to 18-4 on an eight-yard touchdown pass from Harris to KeeSean Johnson midway through the frame. A 46-yard field goal by Brett Lauther on the final play of the quarter put the Riders ahead 21-4.

The Elks narrowed the gap to 21-11 early in the fourth quarter when Cody Fajardo hit Kaion Julien-Grant on a 57-yard scoring pass.

Fajardo, forced out of the pocket, found a wide-open Julien-Grant in the left flat. After a Riders defender missed his tackle, the Canadian receiver took it to the end zone.

Despite the heavy pressure, Fajardo continued to move the Elks in the fourth quarter, culminating with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Steven Dunbar Jr. to cut the Saskatchewan lead to 21-18 with 1:56 left in the game.

The Elks chose to kick the ball away after the touchdown, rather than attempting an onside kick. The Riders responded with consecutive first downs before punting the ball away.

Edmonton started its final possession on its own five-yard line with 24 seconds remaining.

The Elks moved to the 32-yard line after a 12-yard scramble by Fajardo and a 15-yard roughing penalty against the Riders.

Saskatchewan, however, sealed the victory by sacking Fajardo on the final two plays of the game. Micah Johnson, Malik Carney and Shane Ray had two sacks each for the Riders, while A.J. Allen and C.J. Reavis added one sack apiece.

Fajardo totalled 346 passing yards and two touchdowns on 26-of-33 completions in his first start this season.

The Riders saved the best for last in a rather pedestrian first half, scoring 10 points in the final two minutes of the second quarter. With the Elks leading 4-1, Riders slotback Samuel Emilus took a shovel pass from Harris and scooted 15 yards around the left end for the game’s first touchdown.

Saskatchewan increased its lead to 11-4 when Lauther made a 51-yard field goal with 22 seconds remaining in the first half.

Both offences had their challenges in the first half, although Fajardo connected with Dunbar Jr. and Zach Mathis on passes of 41 and 35 yards, respectively.

Fajardo, who played for the Riders from 2019 to 2022, was making his first start against Saskatchewan since leaving the franchise as a free agent and signing with the Alouettes in 2023.

Until the late outburst before halftime, Saskatchewan’s best opportunity was midway in the second quarter when it reached the Edmonton two-yard line. Facing a third and goal situation, the Riders gambled but the Elks stuffed backup quarterback Tommy Stevens at the one-yard line.

The Elks host the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Aug. 2.

The Riders travel to Montreal to take on the Alouettes on Aug. 3.