The 8-Man favorites held serve Friday night — mostly in dominant fashion.
Fort Benton, Belt and Drummond-Philipsburg, the Nos. 2-, 3- and 4-ranked teams, easily added wins, while No. 5 Circle had to rally past Fairview in an Eastern Division rivalry game. The Wildcats trailed 26-20 before pulling away for a 42-32 win.
Undefeated Seeley-Swan also maintained its hold on the 8-Man West, notching a 40-16 win over Darby.
Key Week 7 matchup: No. 3 Belt 76, Choteau 30
Dawson Cook caught three first-half touchdowns from Slater Lords as the Huskies rolled to their sixth win of the season. Cook had TDs of 34, 35 and 27 yards — his second two coming in the second quarter when Belt outscored Choteau 32-0.
The Bulldogs held tough with the third-ranked Huskies in the early going. Following Cook's first touchdown, Choteau quarterback Cole Wood threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Dax Yeager that drew the Bulldogs within 16-12. But Wood, who rushed for Choteau's first score, took a big hit on the play as he was throwing and left with an injury.
Choteau scored on the two-point conversion try to make it a 16-14 game, but Belt's Blake Waldner returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown and the Huskies controlled the rest of the game.
Waldner added a 16-yard scoring run early in the second. After Woods' two TDs, Tucker LaPlaunt put the finishing touches on the first half by returning an interception 29 yards for a touchdown. LaPlaunt also added a rushing touchdown in the first quarter.
Belt is now 6-1 in the 8-Man North, while Choteau drops to 5-2.
Other scores:
No. 2 Fort Benton 68, Cascade 6
No. 4 Drummond-Philipsburg 44, Sheridan 0
No. 5 Circle 42, Fairview 32
Charlo 24, Victor 16
Chinook 68, Box Elder 20
Ennis 72, Park City 6
Forsyth 68, Westby-Grenora 30
Harlem 22, Centerville 8
Lame Deer 68, Manhattan Christian 60
Lone Peak 68, Harlowton-Ryegate 0
Plentywood 56, Poplar 26 (Thursday)
Seeley-Swan 40, Darby 16
St. Ignatius 68, Troy 28
St. Regis 62, Arlee 26
Superior 48, Plains 8
