KELOWNA – The Edmonton Elks suffered their first loss of the 2026 CFL season, falling to the BC Lions by a score of 36-24 at the Kelowna Apple Bowl on Saturday (July 4).
In the second edition of the CFL’s Touchdown Kelowna game, Edmonton led only briefly, during the second quarter, but otherwise spent most of the contest trailing the host Lions.
“We were never really in this game,” Elks head coach Mark Kilam said on 880 CHED, radio home of the Elks. “We kind of started to make a game of it late, and every time we had a little bit of momentum or started to get things going, we had a negative play and that’s what set us back.”
Elks quarterback Cody Fajardo completed 31 of 54 passes for 395 yards, and had three touchdown tosses, two to Kaion Julien-Grant and one to Austin Mack.
Mack led the Elks with 141 receiving yards from eight receptions. Edmonton running back Justin Rankin set CFL career highs with 10 catches and 100 receiving yards, but was limited to just 19 yards rushing.
“Our brand of football is running the football, and they had a good plan for us and they stopped us,” Fajardo said on 880 CHED. “We’re one of the No. 1 teams in the league running the ball, when you stop us in the run, it just makes it difficult because it takes us out of our game plan a little bit.”
BC got two touchdowns apiece from running backs Zander Hovarth and James Butler. Lions quarterback Nathan Rourke threw for 320 yards on 27-of-36 passing.
Turnovers proved costly for the Elks, who lost the ball four times, including three interceptions and one fumble. BC turned the ball over twice, both on interceptions thrown by Rourke.
Elks linebacker Joel Dublanko made a significant impact on the defensive side of the ball, picking off one pass and causing another interception, while also recording a team-high eight total tackles and two knockdowns.
“We weren’t pleased with the product we put on the field today,” Dublanko said on 880 CHED. “It wasn’t us and we’ll be better. We’ll be better for our city and our fans, and we’re gonna be back. We’re gonna be back, absolutely.”
An explosive first half, in which the teams combined for 51 points, was proceeded by a relatively quiet final 30 minutes, in which a total of only 10 points were scored.
BC struck first, jumping in front 7-0 when Horvath rushed for a one-yard touchdown midway through the first quarter.
FIRST CAREER INT FOR DJAMBOME#GoElks pic.twitter.com/PukdY8Lim8
— Edmonton Elks (@GoElks) July 4, 2026
Edmonton linebacker Dariel Djabome intercepted BC quarterback Nathan Rourke at the Lions’ 25-yard line and returned the ball to the eight-yard line, setting up an Elks touchdown pass from Fajardo to Julien-Grant that cut BC’s lead to 7-6.
Sean Whyte booted a 16-yard field goal before the end of the first quarter to the make the score 10-6 in favour of the Lions.
Edmonton took its first lead, early in the second quarter, going in front 14-10 after Julien-Grant caught a four-yard touchdown pass from Fajardo, followed by a two-point conversion scored by T.J. Luther.
The Lions responded with consecutive touchdowns from James Butler, who scored on rushes of three and four yards. Whyte then kicked a field goal from 33 yards, putting BC ahead 26-14.
With less than a minute remaining in the second quarter, Fajardo found Mack in the end zone with a back-shoulder throw for a 24-yard touchdown.
BC got the ball back and drove into field-goal range, where Whyte hit a 40-yard field goal on the final play of the half to send his team into the break with a 29-21 lead.
After the third quarter went without a single point scored, BC opened the fourth quarter with a touchdown on a pass from Rourke to Hovarth, who caught the ball at Edmonton’s two-yard line and rumbled his way across the goal line, as the Lions extended their lead.
On the ensuing possession, Edmonton kicker Vincent Blanchard hit a 45-yard field goal to make the score 36-24 in favour of BC, but the Elks could get no closer.
With the loss, Edmonton now has a mark of 3-1 and is tied with the Saskatchewan Roughriders first place in the CFL West Division. BC improves its record to 1-3.
The Elks will be back in action at Play Alberta Field at Commonwealth Stadium on July 9 (7 p.m. MDT), when they host the Ottawa RedBlacks for Salute to Service presented by YEGPlus. Tickets are available now.