Two of our local football teams remained ranked in this week’s Associated Press high school polls, released yesterday.
With three weeks left in the season, Glacier (5-2) is ranked fifth and tied for third in the Class AA standings. The AA field is in flux with the top five teams shuffling around the poll. Winners of four straight, the Wolfpack have regained their preseason confidence as one of the best teams in the state. The offense has the second-best scoring average — 35 points per game — and quarterback Taylor Hulslander is the fifth best passer in the state. The senior is averaging 214 yards per game with 13 touchdowns and six interceptions. Senior Kyle Griffith has the most receptions in the state — 47 — and has compiled 687 receiving yards and 13 total TDs.
Glacier travels to Great Falls (1-6) to play the Bison on Friday. Flathead (0-7) hosts Bozeman (4-3) on Friday.
Undefeated Bigfork (6-0) remains ranked fifth in Class B. The Vikings have a huge matchup on Friday against fourth-ranked Missoula Loyola (6-0). The two teams play at Rollin Field in Missoula at 7 p.m.
Polson (6-0) moved up to third place in the Class A rankings. The Pirates travel to Libby (3-4) for a Northwestern A matchup on Friday.
Quarterback Jared Trinastich leads Columbia Falls (3-5) against Frenchtown (3-2) in conference action on Friday. Trinastich is the second-leading passer in conference, averaging 206 yards per game with five TDs.
Whitefish, led by freshman standout quarterback Luke May, will try to end a two-game skid against Belgrade. The Bulldogs (3-4) hosts Belgrade Friday. May’s first season continues to be an impressive one. The QB averages 232 yards per game and has passed for 16 TDs.
The Associated Press Top 10 Montana high school football poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records, rating points and previous rankings:
Class AA
1. Great Falls Russell (7) 6-1
2. Butte (6) 6-1
3. Billings West 5-2
4. Helena 5-2
5. Glacier 5-2
Others receiving votes: Helena Capital 12.
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Class A
1. Billings Central (13) 7-0
2. Dillon 4-1
3. Polson 6-0
4. Laurel 6-1
5. Livingston 5-1
Others receiving votes: Hardin 6, Anaconda 6.
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Class B
1. Manhattan (9) 6-0
2. Malta (4) 6-0
3. Red Lodge 6-0
4. Missoula Loyola 6-0
5. Bigfork 6-0
6. Florence 6-0
7. Fairfield 5-1
8. Forsyth 5-1
9. Roundup 5-1
10. Townsend 4-2
Others receiving votes: Choteau 6, Columbus 2, Glasgow/Hinsdale/Nashua 1.
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Class C 8-Man
1. Fairview (9) 7-0
2. Chester-Joplin-Inverness (2) 7-0
3. Broadview-Lavina 6-0
4. Ennis 6-1
5. Chinook 6-1
6. Wibaux 6-1
7. Superior 6-1
8. Drummond 6-1
9. Charlo 6-1
10. Great Falls Central 6-1
Others receiving votes: White Sulphur Springs 1.
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Class C 6-Man
1. Hot Springs (11) 6-0
2. Westby-Grenora 5-1
3. Geraldine Highwood 5-1
4. Big Sandy 5-1
5. Hysham 5-1
6. Valier 5-1
7. Custer-Melstone 4-1
8. Alberton 5-1
9. Reed Point-Rapelje 4-2
10. Bridger 4-2
Others receiving votes: Lone Peak 5, Augusta 2, Lima 2, Savage 1.
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Class AA Standings
Butte High 6 1
Great Falls Russell 6 1
Glacier 5 2
Helena Capital 5 2
Helena High 5 2
Billings West 5 2
Bozeman High 4 3
Billings Senior 3 4
Billlings Skyview 3 4
Missoula Big Sky 3 4
Missoula Sentinel 2 5
Great Falls High 1 6
Missoula Hellgate 1 6
Flathead 0 7
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Northwestern A
Polson 3 0 6 0
Frenchtown 1 1 3 2
Columbia Falls 1 1 3 5
Whitefish 1 2 3 4
Libby 0 2 3 4
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District 7B
Bigfork 3 0 6 0
Eureka 2 0 2 4
Thompson Falls 1 1 1 5
Troy 0 2 0 6
Plains 0 3 0 6
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Statistics
Northwestern A
Individual Rushing (Min 28 Carries)
D. Lebsock, Frenchtown, 175.60
S. Marcial, Whitefish, 113.43
C. Lenz, Polson, 78.00
Z. Darling, Columbia Falls, 67.67
D. Anderson, Frenchtown, 62.60
D. Kvam, Polson, 50.50
J. Winslow, Libby, 49.43
L. May, Whitefish, 33.43
S. Higareda, Libby, 28.43
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Passing Yards/Touchdowns
L. May, Whitefish, 232.14/16
J. Trinastich, Columbia Fals, 206.50/5
J. Winslow, Libby, 185.86/15
A. Weltz, Polson, 103.83/6
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Receiving
L. Harwood, Whitefish, 101.00/6
W. Davey, Polson, 64.83/4
L. Luscher, Libby, 55.29/5
D. Parker, Columbia Falls, 52.00/0
C. King, Columbia Falls, 50.33/1
S. Foley, Whitefish, 49.14/2
K. Nelson, Libby, 47.71/3
W. Holliday, Whitefish, 36.00/5
S. Marcial, Whitefish, 35.43/3Northwestern A stats compiled by Terry Werner. For a complete list of stats, visit Werner’s site.
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Class AA
Team Stats
Scoring Offense/Average
Butte High 44.0
Glacier 35.0
Helena Capital 33.9
Great Falls Russell 32.7
Helena High 32.1
Billings Senior 32.0
Billlings Skyview 28.9
Billings West 28.7
Missoula Big Sky 27.7
Bozeman High 26.7
Missoula Sentinel 23.4
Flathead 19.1
Great Falls High 12.6
Missoula Hellgate 5.4
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Total Defense
Helena High 247.4
Bozeman High 265.7
Glacier 269.3
Billings West 283.7
Missoula Hellgate 312.4
Helena Capital 327.6
Great Falls High 340.9
Missoula Big Sky 343.0
Great Falls Russell 362.6
Billlings Skyview 364.7
Butte High 405.7
Billings Senior 416.3
Missoula Sentinel 428.0
Flathead 486.9For a complete listing of Class AA stats, visit here.