The Sentinel High School football team is off to a good start to their season again this year, continuing the momentum with a dominant 46-7 win over Flathead High School. Sentinel’s defense put on a show. They managed to hold Flathead to 7 points and snagged 5 interceptions on the night.
The game started with the Flathead Braves kicking off to the Spartans. The Spartans put together a solid drive that was capped off with a rushing touchdown by Quarterback Riley Allen. The Spartans set the tone early with this opening drive. Every play was positive, and it took only 4 minutes for them to get in the end-zone. After an unsuccessful 2-point conversion, Sentinel kicked off to Flathead.
It was important for the Spartans to score early to set the tone for the rest of the game. The scoring drive was consistent and the Spartans were able to capitalize on holes in the Flathead defense to drive down the field. The Spartans also established their run game well, with success running the ball by multiple Spartans.
The Spartan defense also started hot, holding the Braves to a quick 3-and-out. But this is when the Spartan offense started to struggle. Uncharacteristically, the Spartans were unable to put a drive together, and they also went 3-and-out. But instead of punting on the 4th down, the coaches decided to run a play on 4th and attempt a run to get the first down. They were already in Braves territory, so this was a relatively safe decision. But they didn’t get the first, so the ball was turned over on downs.
This was one of the first times of the season that the Spartans Varsity team had a turnover on downs in favor of the other team. The Spartans have been known to have potent offenses that know how to get the ball moving on offense, so some fans were confused at first when it looked like the Flathead defense was containing their team.
After an interception by Jaxon Allery at the Flathead 41-yard-line, the Spartans again were having trouble moving the ball. After Sentinel was forced to punt, the Spartans’ defense bailed them out of the mini-scoring drought they were in. Jaxon Allery Snagged his second interception of the night and returned it for a touchdown.
After this, the Spartan’s offense was still slow in comparison to the rest of their season, but they still played an impressive game and won by 39 points. Of course, the varsity team is not satisfied with this victory, and they will want to improve upon their offensive capabilities and execution. The defense, on the other hand, was stellar.
The next week, at Washington Grizzly Stadium, the Spartans faced off against the Big Sky Eagles. This was the Sentinel homecoming game, so there was a very active student section and high attendance. The expectations for the Spartans varsity team were very high, as they were playing the notoriously mediocre Big Sky Eagles team. Many thought the game was going to be an utter blowout, and that the Eagles didn’t stand a chance against the consistent and solid Sentinel varsity team, but this was not the case.
The game started with Big Sky kicking off to Sentinel, and the expectations were high for the Riley Allen-led Spartan offense. Again though, we saw the offense struggling with productivity, and they had to punt on their first drive. This was already a small win for the Eagles, being able to stop the Spartans on their first drive. The 2-3 Eagles have allowed an average of 21.8 points per game, and their defense continued their solid efforts on the first drive.
Offensively, the Eagles started strong also. The Eagles were able to drive down the field and punch in the rushing touchdown to cap off their first possession. This left many fans shocked, as the Spartan defense is notorious to be stout and unforgiving. This year, they have allowed only 13.4 points per game against some of the toughest opponents in the state of Montana. This number is astounding and is among the best in the state. For the Eagles who have a losing record to take their opening drive for a touchdown is a statement made early in the game. Drew Martins kicked the Point After Touchdown (PAT) for the Eagles, and they went up 7-0.
The Spartans got the ball back but again were unable to do anything with it. The unexpectedly impressive Big Sky defense was holding up amazingly early in the game, but most fans were still suspecting that this was soon to end. Those who thought this would be correct. After an interception by Sam Matosich, the Spartans finally got the offense going and Jace Koshatka scored a 5-yard rushing touchdown.
After this, the score was tied at 7-7 right before the end of the 1st quarter. Early in the 2nd quarter, the Spartans capitalized on a turnover on downs and scored a 2-yard rushing touchdown. They again were able to put together a solid drive and seemed to be in a groove.
But Big Sky kept the game tight throughout 3 quarters of the game. The game was tied 3 times before the Spartans were finally able to pull away. Both offenses were productive. The teams were going back and forth scoring touchdowns until the Spartan defense made a stand and forced a turnover on downs. When the Eagles stopped scoring, Sentinel did not. The Eagles’ defense eventually gave in, allowing two touchdowns without any scores of their own.
The Spartans finished with 35 points, and the Eagles had 21. The Eagles were able to do more than what most thought they could against Sentinel, but they still came short of the win. The Spartans left something to be desired defensively, especially because of the expectations surrounding the defense.
The Spartan football team is always looking to improve and be more productive on offense and stout on defense. The games after homecoming for Sentinel are against Butte, Hellgate, Helena, and Glacier. With a tough upcoming schedule (bar the Knights), the Spartans varsity football team will be tested for their resilience.
