Billings Central made quick work of East Helena in the Class A semifinals Friday night while Frenchtown staved off Whitefish.
It sets up a state championship game next week between the Rams and Broncs,
Defending champ Central won its 23rd straight game with a 42-7 home victory over the upstart Vigilantes. Frenchtown, meanwhile, held on to defeat Whitefish 23-20. The Rams moved to 11-0 and Frenchtown is now 10-1.
The championship game — a rematch of a 35-7 Rams win over the Broncs on Sept. 12 in Billings — will be played next Friday night in Frenchtown. The schools last faced each other for the Class A title in 2009, a game the Broncs won 28-6.
Billings Central 42, East Helena 7
A 56-yard run by Montana Grizzlies commit William Snell on Central's first possession led to a 1-yard touchdown rush by Layne Alexander as the Rams took the early advantage.
After forcing a punt, Snell got loose again on the next play and this time wouldn't be caught — his 71-yard touchdown run put Central ahead 14-0 halfway through the first quarter.
Snell, though, coughed up a fumble on the Rams' next possession, and East Helena turned that into its only points, a 1-yard run by Bearek Shuman to cut Central's lead in half.
But Alexander answered with a 56-yard TD sprint and his second scoring run of the day.
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Later in the second quarter, Central quarterback Howie Martin delivered a 50-yard touchdown strike to Kael Aldrich. That was after Snell intercepted a pass near the goal line.
Toward the end of the first half, Martin connected with Snell on an 11-yard touchdown pass as the Rams went ahead 35-7. In the third quarter, Martin scored on a 1-yard run to initiate a running clock.
Defensively, Colter Euell had three of Central's four interceptions.
With the win, the Rams look to capture their second consecutive Class A championship and their third in the past four seasons. East Helena, appearing in the semis for the first time in school history, finished its season with a 9-3 record.
Frenchtown 23, Whitefish 20
Brett Kleinsmith's 25-yard field goal with 3:51 remaining gave Frenchtown a 10-point lead and ended up being the difference as the Broncs made it back to the championship game.
Frenchtown scored first on an 11-yard touchdown pass from Dawson Rodini to Cooper Michaud to take a 7-0 lead. It was set up by a Cole Johnson interception.
Kleinsmith then tacked on a 31-yard field goal to extend the lead toward the end of the opening quarter.
Luke Dalen, who helped spur a second-half rally, scored on a 9-yard run in the second quarter to give Whitefish its first points, though the point-after kick was no good. Dalen tore off a 71-yard run on the play prior.
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At halftime, Frenchtown held a 17-6 lead. The Broncs' other first-half points came on a 30-yard trick-play pass from Konnor Klimpel to Bailey Corette.
In the third quarter, Frenchtown put together a long drive that was capped by Kleinsmith's second field goal of the night, this one from 36 yards.
Dalen then had a hand in Whitefish's next two touchdowns — a 47-yard pass to Cole Moses on a fourth-and-7 play and a 10-yard keeper that cut the score to 23-20 in the fourth. But the Bulldogs' onside kick attempt failed after that and Frenchtown was able to bleed the clock.
Frenchtown, once a Class B power, is making its fourth trip to the championship game in its Class A era. Whitefish, which was trying to get back to the title game for the first time since winning it all in 2015, ended its season with an 8-3 record.
