Everyone at the Hamilton/Stevensville football game on Friday night certainly got their money’s worth. For Hamilton fans, the Broncs played tough and held the lead for most of the game. However for the Stevensville fans, the last seven seconds was over the top when the ‘Jackets gambled on a two-point conversion for the win. Final score, Stevensville 48, Hamilton 47.

Stevensville scored first when quarterback Caleb Vance went up and over the goal line just minutes into the game. But then it was all Hamilton the rest of the half. Although they didn’t score in the first quarter, they scored three times in the second.

Hamilton’s Tyler Pigman (88) keys in on Stevensville quarterback Caleb Vance at Friday night’s game. Jean Schurman photo.

Right before the end of the first quarter, Hamilton quarterback Josh Brenneman broke loose for 40 yards to move the Broncs into scoring position. They scored two minutes later when Cody Noffsinger ran seven yards for the six points. The PAT by Seth Mason was good and Hamilton had the lead.

Two minutes later, Hamilton scored again when Brenneman hit Tucker Lehr from 20 yards out. The PAT attempt was wide but the Broncs now had a seven-point lead. The Broncs continued to apply defensive pressure and kept the Yellowjackets out of the end zone. Brenneman’s next target was Kyle Kohn. But the ball popped out and Beau Maus recovered the fumble and raced 35 yards for the touchdown. Mason made the PAT and the Broncs had a 14-point edge.

But Stevensville wasn’t done. After a talk at halftime, the team came out ready to play. Coach Hank Praast told his team at halftime that everyone has to be accountable. “They talked about it and figured out what to do.”

The ‘Jackets took over at their own 34 yard line and then marched up the field behind Vance’s passing and a committed offensive line. Three and a half minutes into the third quarter, Vance threw a 15-yard pass to Josh Haynes who made the diving catch for the touchdown.

Hamilton came right back and was knocking on the door when Vance made an interception for Stevensville. He then turned around on offense and threw a bomb to Josh Lords for a 60-yard touchdown reception. With the two-point conversion run by Vance, the game was tied at 20-all.

Brenneman was not to be outdone for the Broncs. He hit Maus from 25 yards out for a TD. Not even a minute into the fourth quarter, Brenneman hit Tyler Pigman from 11 yards out for the score. Mason kicked the PAT and the Broncs were up by 14. But Vance again called his own number and raced 17 yards for a ‘Jacket score. The Mitch Blakey PAT was good.

With the clock ticking down, the teams were throwing fast and furiously. Hamilton scored on a Brenneman two-yard plunge with six minutes remaining to give Hamilton an edge. But Vance went up the middle and put six points on the board. With the PAT, Stevensville was only nine points behind. On the ensuing kickoff, Stevensville opted for a short kick and had their team ready to pounce on the ball. Hamilton’s receiver fumbled and Mitch Blakey picked up the ball and scored the TD. Stevi was down by one point. Praast then gambled and went for the win with a two-point conversion attempt. Hamilton’s defense stepped it up and stymied the attempt. Hamilton still had the lead. Brenneman made another touchdown play again with an 8-yard run. The PAT hooked to the left but the Broncs still had the lead. Brenneman rushed for 186 yards on 21 carries. He completed 18 of 28 passes for 304 yards and two interceptions.

Stevensville took over with 90 seconds on the clock. On a second and 15 yards to go, Vance tiptoed down the sidelines to make a first down at the 13-yard line. Vance then hit Haynes from 13 yards out for the touchdown.

Praast gambled again. “Davis (assistant coach Steve Davis) and I agreed, we didn’t come down here to tie.”

Vance hit Josh Schultz in the end zone for the two points and the Yellowjackets took the lead and the game, 48-47.Vance finished with 181 yards on 23 carries. He was 24-of-45 in the air for 382 yards and two interceptions.

“Give them credit,” said Hamilton coach Steve Weston. “They just kept bouncing back. It was like who ever had the ball last won.”

Undefeated Florence lost to Troy, 34-23. Spencer Burns had a one-yard touchdown run to start the scoring for Florence. Brady Pickering had a five-yard run and a 12-yard run for touchdowns. Zach Newbary kicked a field goal for the Falcons.

Dillon, Hamilton fall to Lady Yellowjackets

Stevensville won two close games on the volleyball court over the weekend, topping Hamilton and Dillon. Both matches went to five games but the Lady ‘Jackets hung tough and pulled out the wins.

Against Hamilton, Stevensville lost the first game but then came back to win the second and third games before dropping game four. They controlled the fifth and final game to win the match.

“It was the first time we’ve gone to five (games) and won this year,” said Stevensville coach Lindsey Day. “It’s always good to get their confidence up so we can know that we can get it done in five games.”

Strong play at the net by Britney Chilcott, Kyla Paulsen and Molly Brewer kept Hamilton from gaining an advantage in game five even though Mary Conwell, Rebecka Hood and Presley Chadwick worked hard for the Hamilton points.

Stevensville’s Britney Chilcott makes a block during the Hamilton game.Jean Schurman photo.

Stevensville and Dillon traded wins in their match on Saturday but again, the Lady ‘Jackets relied on their overall play and handed the Beavers their first loss at the hands of a Class A school this season. Maddie Jones had 15 kills for Stevi in the win.

“They are so coach able,” said Day. “They want to win. They have the drive. They want it sometimes too much where they play tight and tense. I’ve just got to get them loose and playing smart all the time.”

Hamilton bounced back on Saturday and topped Frenchtown in three games. Hood played tough at the net with 12 kills and on the back row as well, digging up nine balls.

Corvallis defeated Darby in inter valley play. They lost to Anaconda on Saturday.

Florence dropped a match to Loyola in three games.

Stevensville def. Hamilton, 15-25, 25-16, 25-15, 20-25, 15-10.

Kills - Stevensville 42 (Britney Chilcott 16, Maddie Jones 12), Hamilton 34 (Rebecka Hood 15, Mary Conwell 9). Blocks - Stevensville 7 (Chilcott 5), Hamilton 4 (Hood 2). Digs - Stevensville 26 (Jones 8), Hamilton 79 (Colleen McGibbon 22). Assists - Stevensville 33 (Alexa Omlid 20), Hamilton 24 (Mary Conwell 18). Aces - Stevensville 18 (Jones 9, Omlid 6), Hamilton 12 (Hood 4).

Stevensville def. Dillon, 25-15, 16-25, 25-20, 18-25, 15-11.

Kills - Stevensville 41 (Jones 15), Dillon 40. Blocks - Stevensville 10 (Molly Brewer 4), Dillon 4. Digs - Stevensville 26 (Jones 6), Dillon 52). Assists - Stevensville 35 (Omlid 20), Dillon 37. Aces - Stevensville 7 (Kyla Paulsen 3), Dillon 17

Corvallis def. Darby, 25-19, 25-27, 25-15, 25-15.

Kills - Corvallis 39 (Alex Ewing 15), Darby 25 (Heidi Heiland 11). Blocks - Corvallis 4 (Brooke Heckeroth 2), Darby 5 (Sarah Jakober 4). Digs - Corvallis 64 (Lairen Phinney 20), Darby 26 (Julie Abrahamsen 8). Assists - Corvallis 30 (Phinney 15, Laura Berner 15), Darby 17 (Sydney Bergren 16). Aces - Corvallis 15 (Whitney Jessop 6), Darby 5 (Abrahamsen 3).

Hamilton def. Frenchtown, 25-10, 25-14, 25-18.

Kills - Frenchtown 13, Hamilton 34 (Hood 12). Blocks - Frenchtown 2, Hamilton 4 (Rebecca Lyons 2, Cara Schulz 2). Digs - Frenchtown 45, Hamilton 35 (Hood 9). Assists - Frenchtown 9, Hamilton 24 (Conwell 20). Aces - Frenchtown 2, Hamilton 11 (Conwell 5).

Loyola def. Florence, 21-25, 25-21, 25-18, 25-18.

Kills - Florence 30 (Courtney Byrne 9), Loyola 37. Blocks - Florence 11 (Byrne 3, Casey Mann 3), Loyola 8. Digs - Florence 28 (Taylor Maricelli 12), Loyola 58. Assists - Florence 21 (Makenzie Bauck 20), Loyola 30. Aces - Florence 7 (Bauck 3), Loyola 19.

Superior def. Darby, 19-25, 25-18, 25-19, 25-23.

Kills - Darby 27 (Julie Abrahamsen 8), Superior 38. Blocks - Darby 1 (Sara Jakober), Superior 3. Digs - Darby 44 (Jakober 14), Superior 40. Assists - Darby 18 (Sydney Bergren 18), Superior 30. Aces - Darby 13 (Abrahamsen 8), Superior 16.

Broncs cruisin’ through soccer

The Hamilton boys topped Frenchtown, 4-2, on Saturday and wrapped up an undefeated conference season with a record of 10-2. They are 10-2 overall.

Hamilton scored their first goal at 30 minutes when Daymon Halstead hit the first of three goals off of a Michael Johnson assist. Steffan Stewart scored at 41 minutes off of a Halstead assist. Halstead came right back and booted in a goal from a pass by Justin Heath. Halstead scored the final Bronc goal at 57 minutes. Nasi Johnson had the assist.

Hamilton took 18 shots on goal while Frenchtown had six. Niall Clancy of Hamilton had one save as keeper. Hamilton also took 12 corner kicks while Frenchtown had none.

The win was Hamilton’s 10th win of the season. They finished conference play with a record of 10-0 and are 10-2 overall. This record gives them a home field advantage throughout the playoffs. They will host Libby, the No. 2 team from the North at 2 pm on Saturday.

Although they finished third, the Corvallis boys defeated Stevensville, the No. 2 team in the conference, on Saturday, and 2-0. Chris Grenfell scored for the Blue Devils at the 30-minute mark. Tristan Powers scored at 58 minutes. Corvallis took nine shots on goal while Stevensville took seven. Corvallis’ Eric Kercher had four saves while Lindsey Brassfield had eight saves for Stevensville.

Corvallis will travel to Polson to play the Pirates who are the No. 1 team in the North. Stevensville will travel east to Belgrade to play the Panthers. Game times had not been announced as of press time.

The Hamilton girls also finished an undefeated conference season and regular season. They blanked Frenchtown, 3-0, on Saturday. Kelsi Almond scored all three goals to lead the Broncs. She had an unassisted goal at 19 minutes, a goal off a Nellie Moran assist at 62 minutes and another Moran-to- Almond goal at 68 minutes. Hamilton took 37 shots on goal. Frenchtown’s keeper, Rebecca Weiss had 34 saves.

Corvallis and Stevensville battled to a 1-1tie. Corvallis led most of the match after Ayden Eickhoff scored just a minute into the match. Stevensville didn’t score until the 75th minute when Blaire Brookshire hit Ashlie Larum who booted the goal. Corvallis took nine shots on goal while Stevensville tried 24 times. Corvallis’ Amanda Carter had three saves and Michelle Cassens had 10 saves. Anna Tom had seven saves for Stevensville and Zoe Bradshaw had a save as well.

Hamilton will host Columbia Falls at noon in the first round playoffs. Stevensville, the No. 3 seed from the south, is up against Whitefish, the No. 1 seed from the north.

Corvallis boys defeated Valley Christian, 2-0, on Thursday. Tristan Powers scored an unassisted goal at 42 minutes. The second Blue Devil goal was scored by Skylar Mousley off of a Jan Zdralek assist. Keeper Eric Kercher had four saves for Corvallis.

Ravalli County High School Rodeo

The Ravalli County High School Rodeo club held their fall rodeo in Hamilton over the weekend. Over 100 contestants from across Montana competed in the high school division while 30-plus junior high cowboys and cowgirls competed in the Wrangler division. Ryanne Tracy of Victor tries to rope a calf during the break away roping. Jean Schurman photo.

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