Championship Dreaming: Chinook and Box Elder earn state title game berths

The Box Elder Bears have never been to a state championship game, not in football anyway. But now, they will be, thanks to the heroics of Brandon The Boy and Shane Ketchum.

Down by four points and less than a minute remaining in their Class C Six-Man semifinal tilt at Hot Springs Saturday, the Bears turned to their two best players when they needed them most, and with just 25 seconds left on the clock, they came through.

The Boy hit Ketchum for a 50-yard touchdown, which gave the Bears the lead and eventually the 42-40 win over Hot Springs. Box Elder will now play Denton-Geyser-Stanford for the Six-Man state title this Saturday in Stanford.

"It's a great feeling," Bears' coach Neil Rosette Jr. said. "I am just so proud of these boys. They really gutted it out at the end of the game there."

The Boy's touchdown pass was the culmination of three wild minutes of football in the fourth quarter. Hot Springs entered the fourth with a 33-24 advantage, but after a 5-yard touchdown run by Ketchum, the lead was 33-30. Then, with under three minutes to play, The Boy connected with Ketchum on a 39-yard scoring strike to give Box Elder a 36-33 edge.

"Those last two minute seemed to take forever," Rosette Jr. said. "It was a relief when it was over. But the boys knew what to do. I trusted them at the end, and even when they had six seconds, they knew what to do and went out in the victory formation."

Yet Hot Springs answered and, when Kane Lawson scored on a one-yard run with less than a minute remaining, things appeared dire for Box Elder. But the Bears responded, with quite possibly the biggest play in the history of Box Elder football.

The second fourth-quarter touchdown from The Boy to Ketchum may have given the Bears the lead, but in Six-Man football, 25 seconds might as well be a lifetime. However, The Boy intercepted Hot Springs on its final possession to wrap up the win and a state championship berth for Box Elder.

The Boy may have saved his best for last, but he was stellar all day, throwing for 302 yards and four touchdowns in the win. Ketchum was also outstanding, rushing 22 times for 92 yards and catching seven passes for 116. Ketchum finished with three total touchdowns, while Jerrod Four Colors had two touchdown receptions and Elias Duran finished with one.

The game was a back-and-forth battle throughout as the Bears led 8-6 at the end of the first quarter before falling behind 25-24 at the half. Box Elder is now 11-1 on the season and will seek its first Six-Man state championship this Saturday against DGS, which defeated Box Elder 35-34 earlier this season.

"I think we learned a lot from that first game against DGS," Rosette Jr. said. "I think the kids were really motivated to get back and have a chance to play them again, and now we have that opportunity. Everyone worked really hard, and I am just proud of everyone, all the players and the coaches."

Box Elder 8 16 0 18 – 42

Hot Springs 6 19 8 7 – 40

HS–Trevor Paro 40 run (run failed)

BE–Jerrod Four Colors 30 pass from Brandon The Boy (Bodis Duran kick)

BE–Four Colors 1 pass from The Boy (B. Duran kick)

HS–Paro 30 run (kick failed)

HS–Kane Lawson 1 run (kick failed)

HS–Lawson 10 interception return (Blaine Carr pass from Sam Hoff)

BE–Elias Duran 16 pass from The Boy (B. Duran kick)

HS–Lawson 1 run (Jock Dolson kick)

BE–Shane Ketchum 5 run (run failed)

BE–Ketchum 39 pass from The Boy (kick failed)

HS–Lawson 1 run (Jameson Morigeau run)

BE–Ketchum 50 pass from The Boy (kick blocked).

Chinook 50, Fairview 32

Since the day the Chinook Sugarbeeters lost to Wibaux in the Class C 8-Man state championship game a season ago, they have been determined to get back to the title game.

Now, after a season of work and a dominant playoff run, the Beeters are back and they will get to play the championship game on their home field. Chinook got back to the 8-Man title game by way of a 50-32 win over Fairview on the road Saturday. The Beeters defeated Fairview last season in the semifinals and this win set up a championship meeting with Arlee this Saturday.

"The kids have been on a mission all year long," Chinook head coach Scott Friede said. "To hold a team like Fairview to just 32 points, with a couple of their scores coming late, is really outstanding. Our defense has really played well all year and they did again against Fairview. The kids were excited about having the chance to play for the state championship at home, and now they will be able to have that opportunity."

In order to punch their ticket back to the championship game, the Beeters used a familiar formula: great defense, a great running game and great quarterback play. Chinook started the game with a 55-yard touchdown pass from Ian McIntosh to Kenny Pruttis. Then, after touchdown runs by Tate Niederegger and McIntosh, the Beeters led 20-6 at the end of the first quarter.

Fairview made a game out of it in the second quarter, thanks to a touchdown run by Tanner Reynolds, but a 45-yard touchdown pass from McIntosh to Kade Friede and another score by Niederegger gave Chinook a 34-14 lead. The Warriors scored again, but right before half, McIntosh found Pruttis for an 18-yard score to make it 40-20 at intermission.

In the second half, Niederegger sacked Reynolds to earn a safety for the Beeters, then McIntosh found pay dirt, this time on a 10-yard run, to give Chinook a 50-20 lead. Fairview added a pair of scores late but, by then, the outcome had been decided

McIntosh finished the game with five total touchdowns, three passing and two rushing. Niederegger added two touchdown runs in the win.

"I think that, early on, we moved the ball and our offense was very efficient," Friede said. "We scored 40 points in the first half, we had some defensive miscues early, but from that point on our defense really stiffened up and played really well."

Chinook (11-0) will now play Arlee (11-0) for the 8-Man state title this Saturday at Hoon Field. Kickoff will be at 1 p.m.

"Our kids are right back where they wanted to be in the state title game," Friede said. "And now we get another chance at it for the second time in as many years and that is something that is pretty special."

Editor's Note: For complete coverage of Chinook and Box Elder's road to the state championship, see the Havre Daily News all week long.

Chinook 20 20 10 0 – 50

Fairview 6 14 0 12 – 32

CHI–Kenny Pruttis 55 pass from Ian McIntosh (pass failed)

FV–Ben Hardy 65 pass from Tanner Reynolds (run failed)

CHI–McIntosh 2 run (pass failed)

CHI–Tate Niederegger 18 run (McIntosh run)

FV–Reynolds 6 run (Josh Hurley run)

CHI–Kade Friede 45 pass from McIntosh (run failed)

CHI–Niederegger 14 run (Niederegger run)

FV–B. Hardy 16 pass from Reynolds (pass failed)

CHI–Pruttis 18 pass from McIntosh (run failed)

CHI–Safety, Niederegger sacked Reynolds in end zone

CHI–McIntosh 3 run (Pruttis pass from McIntosh)

FV–B. Hardy 10 pass from Reynolds (pass failed)

FV–Mitchell Shaide 24 pass from Reynolds (run failed).