Wildcats end regular season at 7-1

The Columbia Falls football team will head into the state Class A playoffs on a roll. The Wildcats beat Polson 43-6 away on Oct. 24 to cap off their regular season at 7-1 overall and 3-1 in conference. Their lone loss was to Whitefish.

The Cats had 370 yards offense against the Pirates. Sophomore quarterback Dakota Bridwell was 20 of 32 passing for 206 yards. The Cats posted 164 yards rushing, including two rushing touchdowns from Connor Bowman.

Senior Ty Morgan also appears to have set a new Class A receiving mark, surpassing the 1,000-yard mark two seasons in a row. The Cats forced five Polson turnovers, which included four interceptions, two by Trevor Houston.

The boys will face Hamilton in the first round of the playoffs at home Saturday at 2 p.m. The Cats beat the Broncs (6-3) 14-9 earlier this season. The Broncs will look to run the ball, while Columbia Falls will utilize it’s balanced air and ground attack.

“We’re playing really well right now,” coach Jaxson Schweikert said.

Last year, the team limped into the playoffs with a host of injuries and still made the semifinals. They’re much healthier this season, and Bridwell is coming into form. He’s only thrown four interceptions all season long and growing at the quarterback position.

“He just keeps getting better every week,” Schweikert said.

The Cats’ defense is also playing well — they gave up just 91 yards to Polson and allowed just three completed passes. One went big, however — the opening pass of the game went 81-yards for a touchdown for the Pirate’s only score.

The Cats will look to clean up a few mistakes that they made against the Hamilton in their earlier game. The Cats had a turnover on the Broncs’ one-yard line, and two touchdowns were called back.

“Most games come down to four or five plays,” Schweikert noted.

If the Cats get past Hamilton, the rest of the Cats’ playoff games would be on the road. They’d face Billings Central, the No. 1 team from the East, in the semis in Billings.

C Falls 7 14 16 6 — 43

Polson 6 0 0 0 — 6

P — Matthew Rensvold 81 pass from Wyatt DuCharme (kick failed)

CF — Ty Morgan 7 pass from Dakota Bridwell (Trevor Hoerner kick)

CF — Ike Schweikert 1 run (T. Hoerner kick)

CF — Sean Hoerner 11 pass from Bridwell (T. Hoerner kick)

CF — Polson safety

CF — Connor Bowman 14 run (kick blocked)

CF — Schweikert 3 run (Morgan run)

CF — Bowman 4 run (kick failed)