by Scott Sacry
The West defeated the East, 45-13, in the 76th annual Montana East West Shrine football game in Butte at Naranche Stadium on June 17th.
Seven players from Bitterroot Valley schools played for the West team. The Hamilton players included guard Derrick Saltzman, wide receiver Eli Taylor, and linebacker Liam O’Connell. The Florence players included tackle Jonathan Luhmann, defensive end Colten Rice, and quarterback Patrick Duchien. And for Stevensville, Kellan Beller played as a linebacker. Helena Capital’s Kyle Mihelish was the head coach of the West squad, Florence’s head coach Pat Duchien was an assistant coach for the West.
As expected, the Bitterroot Valley players excelled. Florence’s Colten Rice sacked the East’s quarterback Gage Norslien for a safety in the 1st quarter. Florence’s Patrick Duchien threw for two touchdowns in the game, including a 7 yard touchdown pass to Hamilton’s Eli Taylor in the 3rd quarter. This was the 3rd straight win for the West squad.
The Montana Shrine Game is the state’s premier all-star football game. Every year since 1947, the top outgoing seniors from all Montana high schools are selected to compete in a game to raise money and awareness for the Shriner’s Hospital in Spokane. Over the last 10 years the game has raised nearly $1 million.