Beeters prevail

CHINOOK - Win or lose, Saturday was going to be a day the Hi-Line could be very proud of. After all, It's not often that two of your area teams are playing for football state championships at the same time.

But that's exactly what happened as the Chinook Sugarbeeters captured the 2015 Class C 8-Man state championship with a 44-20 win over Arlee at Hoon Field in Chinook. Meanwhile, three hours away in Stanford, the Box Elder Bears finished what was a tremendous and proud season with a runner-up finish to Denton-Geyser-Stanford in the Class C Six-Man state championship game.

Yes, it was a glorious day for Hi-Line football, and in Chinook, the Sugarbeeters' win over Arlee was the culmination of a year-long mission, one that started with a loss to Wibaux in the 2014 championship game.

"It's hard to describe; it's pretty surreal," said Chinook head coach Scott Friede. "To get back here two years in a row, and to finish it the way we did, I'm just so proud of these kids. I'm so happy for them, and our coaching staff and for everybody in this community. It's very special."

Chinook started slow against the Warriors, and twice, they trailed in the first half. But, leading 22-12 at halftime, the Beeters never looked back, as the Beeters delivered the school's second state championship in five years. Chinook also captured the 2010 state title, also at historic Hoon Field.

"I think this is something every football player dreams of," said senior Tate Niederegger. "This is what you get into this game for."

The win over the Warriors, in front of a capacity Chinook crowd at Hoon, capped a perfect season for the Beeters, in which they won every game, and all but one was by more than two touchdowns. Chinook also captured the Northern C title for the second straight year.

Meanwhile, things didn't go as well for the Bears in their 60-34 loss at DGS. But, it was still a very special season in Box Elder, one in which the Bears tied for the North Division title, lost only two games, both to DGS, and went farther than any Box Elder team ever had before.

"I think the best part of it was the journey," Box Elder senior quarterback Brandon The Boy said. "That is the thing that I will remember the most. We put in a lot of hard work and it took us somewhere and I hope people notice that because if you work hard it will take you somewhere."