Teams set to honor seniors, runners eye State success

The playoffs effectively start Friday for Butte High and Butte Central’s football teams.

Both teams will close out the regular season with Senior Night games in Uptown Butte. Butte High will play defending State champion Helena Capital in a Western AA game at Naranche Stadium, while Central will take on Dillon in a Southwestern A tilt on Montana Tech’s Bob Green Field.

No so conveniently for Butte sports fans, both games kick off at 7 p.m.

While these games are not part of a bracket, they are very much do or die for the Bulldogs and Maroons. So, for all intents and purposes, these are playoff games.

A win by the Maroons would send BC to the Class A playoffs for the first time since 2019. Butte High can qualify for the Class AA playoffs with a win over the Bruins coupled with a loss by Kalispell Flathead at Missoula Sentinel.

The Bulldogs and Bruins both enter the game at 2-6 overall and 1-5 in conference. They are vying for the No. 6 playoff seed from the West.

Butte High, which has not missed the playoff since 2017, is coming off last Thursday’s 36-10 win over Missoula Hellgate at Washington-Grizzly Stadium in Missoula.

Junior quarterback Raeder Grey threw for two touchdowns and ran for one more to lead the Bulldogs in the victory that halted a five-game losing streak. He threw touchdowns to senior Hudson Luedtke and sophomore Kodye Kjersten.

Butte High got the running game going for the first time in several weeks behind the offensive line comprised of seniors Gannon Sullivan, Keegan Swisher, Waylond Hicks and Kaydyn Sommer, junior Mason Swanson and sophomore Sawyer Casey. Senior Peyton Johnson picked up 98 yards on 24 carries. Grey scrambled for 63 yards on 14 carries, and senior Gunner Bushman added two touchdowns on the ground.

Per usual, senior defensive back Mitch Verlanic led the Bulldogs with eight tackles, all of Whicher were the solo variety. Junior linebacker Finn Wortham, who has been one of Butte High’s best defenders since injury forced him into the lineup early in the season, followed with eight. Bushman, senior Bridger Brancamp and junior Jaeger Hansen each got in on four takedowns.

Brancamp also was credited with three or Butte High’s season-best six sacks. Luedke had two, and senior Jacob Galle registered one.

The Bruins come to town with wins over Belgrade and Flathead. They beat Flathead 27-20 Oct. 3 in Helena. That win was followed by a 35-14 loss at Hellgate and a 35-0 home loss to Sentinel.

Junior quarterback Carson Toivonen, whose parents were both standout athletes at Butte High, is completing 60 percent of his passes for the Bruins.

Senior Brit Linder leads a formidable Capital rushing attack. He is averaging 7.1 yards per carry for 870 yards and 12 of Capital’s 17 total touchdowns.

The Bulldogs will honor their seniors and their parents before the game. The seniors are Cayde Stajcar, Johnson, Kaleb Celli, Bushman, Jeremiah Johnson, Verlanic, Luedtke, Brooks Vincent, Preston Jensen, Cole Coyne, Galle, Brancamp, Caden Phillips, Hicks, Sommer, Grady Foley, Sullivan, Swisher, Carlos Navarro and Drew Henson.

Stajcar missed the season with a medical issue, while Jensen suffered a season-ending injury early in the campaign.

The Maroons have suffered a pair of lopsided road losses to Frenchtown and Hamilton the past two weeks. That came after BC ripped off four straight victories.

Dillon comes to town at 2-5 overall and 2-2 in Southwestern A play. BC is 4-3 and 2-2.

Junior quarterback Canin Christiansen lead the Beavers into action. He has passed for 1,309 yards and 11 touchdowns. He has been picked off just two times. He has also run for 182 yards and four touchdowns.

Senior Hank Hagenbarth averages 4.8 points per game. He has scored twice.

Senior quarterback Ryan Peoples has passed for 1,270 yards and 15 touchdowns in seven games. Senior GG Fantini and junior Joshua Sutton each caught three of the TD passes. Senior Jack Nagle caught two, while sophomores Jaxon Hiatt and Treigh Hollow and freshman Henly Mansanti each caught one.

Mansanti joined Peoples with two rushing TDs. Hiatt scored one.

Mansanti, Hollow, senior J.J. Taylor and sophomore Palmer Kellicut share the team lead in sacks. Kellicut was named the BC Player of the Week.

BC will honor their seniors and parents before the game. The seniors are Nagle, Peoples, Keltan Keane, Manny Weang, Tony Stajcar, Fantini, Taylor and Colt Hassler.

Keane missed all but the first play of the season with a knee injury.

BC spikers set to honor seniors

Butte Central’s volleyball team did not pick up a victory Saturday in Corvallis. The Maroons, though, continued to show improvement and a competitive attitude in a 25-16, 29-27, 25-21 Southwestern A loss to the Blue Devils.

The Maroons will be back on the road Thursday to take on Frenchtown in a Southwestern A battle. Then, BC will celebrate Senior Day Saturday when Hamilton comes to town.

Central’s seniors are Arika Stajcar and Logan LeProwse.

The Maroons will close out the regular season Oct. 28 at Dillon.

Butte High’s volleyball team, meanwhile, has not played since the Bulldogs beat Missoula Big Sky 3-1 Oct. 14 in Butte. Butte High will play host to Kalispell Flathead and Kalispell Glacier this Thursday and Friday.

Thursday’s varsity action begins 6 p.m., and Friday’s varsity match begins at 4 p.m.

The Bulldogs will celebrate Senior night Oct. 28 against Helena High. They will then close the regular season Oct. 30 at Helena Capital.

Butte High soccer closes season

The Bulldog soccer season came to an end Friday with losses to Kalispell Glacier Friday at Bulldog Memorial Stadium.

Butte’s boys fell 6-0, while the Bulldog girls dropped a 10-0 decision. Neither Butte High team qualified for the Class AA playoffs, which start this week.

Butte High, though, saw steady progress as the season went on, and the Bulldogs are looking forward to good things to come in the near future.

On the girls’ side, Butte High will lose seniors Jessie Trudgeon, Peyton Liva, Mya Murphy, Jessica Blow, Chloe Salusso, Lydia Revenaugh and Mattie Stepan.

The team, though, will return juniors Elly Rumler, Sapphira Walking Child, Alaina Grochowski and Rory Trafford; sophomores Madi McGee, Clara Sigler, Ava Williams, Mattison Neighbor and Katie Breitmeyer; freshmen Irelynn Cullen, Frankie McNichols, Adelyn Cloonan and Adalie Grochowski; and eighth-graders Bella Salusso and Kynley Willaims.

Butte High’s boys will say goodbye to seniors Ziggy Okrusch, Obi Breeton, Josh Liston, Tino Riojas, Darryn Rossiter, Josh Schrader, Philip Russo, Jaxon Jonart, Cohen Andrews, Kyler Carpenter and Ben McAdams. The Dogs will return juniors Aiden Maesar, Kato Kuusisto and Timothy Revenaugh; sophomores Kellen Williams, Daniel Schaible and Liam Boese; and freshman Cian Irons.

State cross country set for Saturday

The prep cross season will come to an end Saturday at the MHSA State Cross Country Meet at the University of Montana Golf Course. (Schedule)

The busy day begins with the Class A boys’ race at 11 a.m. A new race is started every 30 minutes. The Class A girls run at noon, the Class AA boys go off at 1:30 p.m., and the Class AA girls close out the day with a 2:30 p.m. race.

Butte High seniors Camden Houchin, Levi Wiltse and Lincoln Zell lead the Bulldogs boys into action. Both are looking to be the school’s first All-State runner since Josh Panasuk took seventh in at the State meet in 2011. The top 15 earn All-State distinction, and Houchin placed 21st last year.

Freshman Sophia Houchin, sophomore Penelope Luebke and freshman Elsa Theiszen lead the Butte girls.

As an eight-grader last year, Houchin placed 40th, which was the highest place for a Butte High girl since Hailey Nielson took 22nd in 2020.

The last Butte High girl to earn All-State accolades was Keli Dennehy, who placed third in 2008 and 2009.