It was painful at first, as most splits tend to be.
When Kalispell made the historic decision to build a new high school a decade ago, some residents worried that it spelled the end of competitive success for local athletes in the foreseeable future.
Ten years later, that sentiment has in many ways been proven wrong.
Kalispell is now home to a state champion football team, the 2014 Glacier Wolfpack, which won the city’s first title in decades and stands out as one of the most statistically dominating teams in Montana history. This two-school town is still producing state-champion distance runners — Glacier’s Annie Hill and the Perrin siblings from Flathead High being the latest — and the track teams are contending for titles year after year; the 2015 Braves won a share of the state championship for the first time since 2003.
Volleyball, speech and debate, wrestling — the list of individual and team successes has only grown in the last decade along with participation among student athletes.
The addition of a new high school has also added a fun dynamic to the mix — the competition between crosstown rivals.
Kalispell’s sibling rivalry is front and center this Friday night under the lights at Legends Stadium as the town’s two football teams square off in the 10th annual showdown.
Glacier (7-1) will take on Flathead (3-5) starting at 7 p.m. In a relatively short period of time, the Wolfpack have become perennial playoff contenders. With only two weeks left in the regular season, Glacier is tied for second place in the Class AA standings. Flathead is already playing like it’s the postseason, hoping to win out and secure a playoff berth for the second year in a row.
“It’s crosstown — anything can happen,” Glacier head coach Grady Bennett said. “We know we’ll get their very best. Coach (Kyle) Samson has instilled in his guys great character and work ethic. They’ll play hard. They’ll fight until the very end.”
Bennett remembers growing up in Kalispell and seeing the excitement other towns such as Missoula and Helena enjoyed playing crosstown rivalry games. Just over 10 years ago, he was the head coach of the Flathead Braves with a future NFL quarterback in Brock Osweiler and prospects of bringing a championship to Kalispell. When he decided to take over the Glacier program in 2007, Bennett received some criticism and even heard himself described as a traitor to his hometown and alma mater.
“It was a hard decision. It would’ve been very safe to stay (at Flathead). It was a huge risk,” he said. “I wondered at times if we were going to go 0-30 and I’d be done.”
But the opportunity to start a new program at a new school was the chance of a lifetime.
“How many people get a chance to do that? It was really cool to start over professionally and have an opportunity to build a program from the ground up,” he said. “But it was definitely challenging.”
That first season was painful. Playing with only juniors, sophomores and freshman, Glacier went 0-10 and was outscored a combined 79-487. In the inaugural crosstown game, Osweiler torched the Pack for three touchdowns and Bryce Stacy ran for 135 yards as Flathead won 49-13.
“There were definitely times during that first season when I wondered, ‘What are we doing?’” Bennett said. “I definitely wondered if it wasn’t going to work out and after three years they’d tell me I’m not the guy.”
Instead of letting panic take over, Bennett and his assistant coaches stayed the course and focused on building a solid foundation around strong work ethic and a positive culture.
Within three years, Glacier was in the playoffs and finished 7-4. Within seven years, the Pack were the first Kalispell football team to play for a state title in 54 years, and the following year the team became the first champion since 1970, when the Braves finished the regular season with the best record and were the de facto champs.
Last year Kalispell had two of the eight football teams competing in the postseason, another example of growing success among the programs.
“I think it’s been the best thing ever just overall for our community,” Bennett said of the addition of Glacier.
“The crosstown games in all sports are great. More kids are involved in activities, which is a good thing. It’s just awesome.”
Kalispell’s Crosstown History
Oct. 13, 2007 — Flathead 49, Glacier 13
Flathead’s junior standout quarterback Brock Osweiler threw for 195 yards and three touchdowns en route to the victory. Bryce Stacy ran for 135 yards, including a 65-yard touchdown. Flathead finished the season 6-5 and Glacier went 0-10.
Oct. 18, 2008 — Flathead 38, Glacier 28
Senior quarterback Brock Osweiler scored four touchdowns, including three on the ground, to lead Flathead to victory. Osweiler finished 12-for-19 for 178 yards passing along with 115 yards rushing. Flathead finished the season 6-5 after losing in the first round of the playoffs and Glacier went 2-8.
Sept. 9, 2009 — Glacier 41, Flathead 7
Glacier quarterback Shay Smithwick-Hann combined for 184 yards and three touchdowns and the Wolfpack defense had its best showing of the season in the program’s first victory over Flathead. Glacier back Taylor Hart scored a pair of TDs on the ground and Bryan Chery caught two passes for touchdown. Glacier finished the season 7-4 after losing in the first round of the playoffs to Billings Skyview. Flathead finished 2-8.
Sept. 24, 2010 — Glacier 48, Flathead 35
The Wolfpack emerged victorious in a shootout that saw 11 touchdowns and 818 yards of offense between both teams. Glacier quarterback Colter Hanson passed for 173 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for another pair of scores. Flathead receiver George Sherwood caught 16 passes for 161 yards and three TDs and quarterback Mike VanArendonk passed for 377 yards and five TDs. Glacier finished the season 6-5 after losing in the first round of the playoffs to Helena. Flathead ended up 1-9.
Sept. 30, 2011 — Glacier 56, Flathead 44
Glacier quarterback Taylor Hulslander passed for 384 yards and five touchdowns, including three scoring drives to Kyle Griffith, who finished with 162 yards receiving, as the Wolfpack improved to 5-1 on the season, the best start for a Kalispell team in 20 years. Flathead piled up 510 yards of offense behind quarterback Matt Tokarz, who passed for 272 yards and rushed for another 133. George Sherwood caught seven passes for 182 yards and three TDs. Glacier advanced to the state semifinals before losing to Billings West and finishing the season 9-3. Flathead finished 4-7 and lost in the opening round of the playoffs to West.
Sept. 28, 2012 — Glacier 55, Flathead 14
Six different Glacier players scored a touchdown and the defense forced six turnovers to keep Flathead winless on the season. Kyle Griffith scored three TDs for Glacier, which went on to advance to the state semifinals for the second year in a row before losing to Bozeman and finishing the season 9-3. Flathead finished 1-9.
Nov. 1, 2013 — Glacier 56, Flathead 7
Noah James rushed for 146 yards and four touchdowns as Glacier rolled to victory and improved to 9-1 on the season. Josh Hill had 16 tackles in the game for the Pack and Brady McChesney passed for 340 yards and four TDs. Glacier advanced to the state title game, becoming the first Kalispell team in 54 years to play for a football championship, but lost to Bozeman and finished the season 11-2. Flathead went 3-7.
Oct. 31, 2014 — Glacier 27, Flathead 7
Running back Thomas Trefney piled up 144 yard rushing and three touchdowns to keep Glacier perfect on the season. The Wolfpack went on to win the Class AA state championship, defeating Great Falls C.M. Russell 56-19 and finishing the season 13-0. Glacier became Kalispell’s first state championship team since 1970, when the Flathead Braves finished the regular season with the best record, earning top honors, and the first Kalispell team to roll through the playoffs and win the state championship since the 1959 Braves. Flathead finished the 2014 season 3-7.
Oct. 23, 2015 — Glacier 41, Flathead 26
Senior Thomas Trefney powered in four touchdowns to lead the Wolfpack to their seventh win in a row and seventh consecutive crosstown victory. For the first time in history, both Kalispell teams advanced to the playoffs. Glacier finished the season 9-3 after falling in the state semifinals and Flathead went 6-5 after falling to Helena Capital in the first round.
Oct. 21, 2016 — Glacier (7-1) vs. Flathead (3-5)
7 p.m., Legends Stadium