Both Butte High and Butte Central had their chances Friday night, but neither could quite finish the job on the road.
The Bulldogs fell 14-6 to Missoula Sentinel at Washington-Grizzly Stadium, while the Maroons came up just short in a 25-20 battle with Corvallis.
Bulldogs Can’t Find Enough Offense in Missoula
Butte High’s defense gave the Bulldogs every opportunity to stay in the game Friday night.
The Dogs held Sentinel to just 14 points and kept the Spartans scoreless through the middle two quarters, but Butte couldn’t turn enough of its opportunities into points.
Quarterback Raeder Grey continued to make plays with both his arm and legs. Grey threw for 136 yards and added 78 more on the ground.
Miner Lee also finished with 78 rushing yards, while Ryan Bache was Butte’s biggest threat through the air. Bache caught four passes for 96 yards, including a late touchdown from Grey that got the Bulldogs on the board.
Finn Wortham turned in a big night defensively with 11 tackles. Hudson Steele added nine tackles and Evan McEwan finished with six.
Despite the 1-4 record, Butte has shown plenty of fight throughout a difficult stretch of its schedule. The Dogs will get another chance to turn things around next week when they head back on the road to take on Helena High.
Maroons Come Up Five Points Short
Butte Central found itself in another battle Friday night in Corvallis.
The Maroons got touchdown connections from Noah Sutton to Jaxon Hiatt and GG Fantini, while Henly Mansanti added a rushing touchdown.
Central still had life late.
Sutton found Fantini for a 32-yard score with just over a minute remaining, bringing the Maroons within five at 25-20.
The Maroons needed the football one more time, but Corvallis was able to pick up the first down it needed and run out the remaining clock.
It was another competitive showing for a Central squad that has continued to battle deep into games this season.
The Maroons will look to get back in the win column next week when they travel to Stevensville.
