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Frenchtown defense flexes muscle in 2nd-half rout of Butte Central

Broncs roll 43-12
Posted at 10:39 PM, Sep 03, 2020
and last updated 2020-09-04 21:29:00-04

BUTTE -- Frenchtown may have started slow on Thursday, but the Broncs finished anything but in a 43-12 Class A football rout over Butte Central at Bob Green Field on the campus of Montana Tech.

One week after dropping a heart-breaking opener by a touchdown to Dillon, Frenchtown found its stride in the second half on Thursday, scoring often on offense and defense while controlling the Maroons' offensive efforts.

Frenchtown scored a pair defensive touchdowns in the fourth quarter, turning a 16-point game into a blowout down the stretch. The Broncs returned a fumble for a score, and Carson Shepard's pick-6 ended the scoring late in the contest.

Fans in the Mining City watched a sluggish first half, as the Maroons, who forfeited last week's season-opening game against Hamilton, went into the locker room tied at 6 with the Broncs. Brandon Finley hauled in the first score of the game for Frenchtown on a pass from senior quarterback Wyatt Hayes, but BC knotted the game with a Konnor Pochervina touchdown reception in the final minute of the first half.

Hayes made key plays in the second half, starting with a short rushing touchdown, followed by a successful two-point conversion to Finley that put the Broncs up 14-6. Following a Finley interception, Hayes found Tel Arthur for his third touchdown of the game, and a two-point conversion extended the lead to 22-6 after three.

A fumble return for a score put the Broncs in complete control, and despite a Drew Badovinac touchdown pass for the Maroons that cut the deficit to 17, the damage was done.

Sully Belcourt rumbled nearly 50 yards on an end-around, then Shepard finished things off with the interception return for a touchdown that moved the Broncs to 1-1 on the young season. Frenchtown hosts Corvallis on Friday, Sept. 11.

Butte Central dropped to 0-2 and faces Dillon in Week 3.