EAST HELENA — Going into their first-round playoff football game Friday night, East Helena had yet to win a postseason game in program history. But now, the Vigilantes are riding high into the Class A quarterfinals.
East Helena picked up its first-ever playoff win in a 30-point home blowout over Glendive. But that doesn’t mean the Vigilantes aren’t still hungry for more.
“All the things that we’ve done before don’t really matter at this point,” said East Helena head coach Tyler Murray. “Whether we’ve won eight games, lost — like all those things have zero to do with the game on Friday. This practice that we’re about to have is the most important thing that we’re about to do.”
East Helena has increased its yearly win total in each of its five varsity seasons, and that momentum seems to still be building.
“Our culture’s been being built through those guys from the past and just guys that are continuing to get better, be better leaders,” said junior nose guard Tytan Sebestyen. “The culture’s getting better.”
And it’s because of that team culture that these Vigilantes aren’t satisfied with winning just one playoff game — even if it was the first in program history.
“So what? We won a playoff game, great,” said senior center Declan Turner. “We’re onto the next one already. That was a high for eight hours, and then we were back at it on Saturday. And then we’ve been working hard through this next game versus Columbia Falls.”
East Helena and Columbia Falls kick off at 7 p.m. Friday in Columbia Falls.
