BIG SANDY — Westby-Grenora, the defending 6-Man state champion, got a scare on Friday, but the Thunder dominated the second half to notch an impressive 57-28 win at Big Sandy.
The Pioneers built a 20-18 halftime lead behind Parker Proulx, who threw two touchdown passes on offense and caught an interception on defense. The second half was all Thunder, though, as the Westby-Grenora defense allowed just one Big Sandy touchdown while scoring its own defensive TD when D’Marco Land recovered a fumble in the end zone.
Sophomore quarterback Darian Holecek passed for four touchdowns in the second half and ran for a fifth as Westby-Grenora improved to 3-0 on the season. Holeck finished the game completing 25 of 31 passes for 316 yards and five touchdowns — two to Andrew Field and one each to Keegan Nelson, Ridge Sargent and Eric Field. Holecek added 79 rushing yards and another TD on 17 carries, and Sargent also added a rushing touchdown.
“Our sophomore quarterback (Holecek) played really, really well, made great decisions,” said Westby-Grenora coach Troy Walters. “He either ran the ball or passed the ball and made great decisions, he played extremely well. And that’s not to say the other kids didn’t play well — we all played well. (Big Sandy) just didn’t have an answer for (Holecek).”
Proulx finished with 81 yards passing and two touchdowns — both to Brock Proulx. Kade Strutz added 112 rushing yards and a 14-yard TD to help lead the Pioneers, who suffered their first loss of the season.
Westby-Grenora totaled 411 yards on offense compared to just 226 for Big Sandy.
6-Man football scores
Geraldine-Highwood 64, Power-Dutton-Brady 25
Hot Springs 50, West Yellowstone 18
Richey-Lambert 50, Center-Stanton (N.D.) 21
Savage 39, Froid-Medicine Lake 24
Valley Christian 75, Gardiner 52
Westby-Grenora 57, Big Sandy 28
White Sulphur Springs 32, Noxon 27
