SHELBY — Tanner Parsons and Wyatt Brusven had a hand in 10 total touchdowns as No. 3 Shelby trounced Darby 56-14 in the opening round of the 8-Man football playoffs on Saturday.
Brusven opened the game with a 40-yard touchdown run down the right side, then added a similar scoring run five minutes later to give the Coyotes a 14-0 lead. Darby’s defense earned a stop on the next Shelby drive, with Dylan Parks intercepting Damon Irvin’s pass attempt for Brusven. Parks hauled in a 70-yard touchdown pass from Nelson Smith moments later, with a two-point conversion bringing the Tigers to within 14-8. Shelby led by double digits the rest of the way.
Parsons took a handoff down the right sideline for a 45-yard score to give the Coyotes a 20-8 lead after the first quarter. He and Brusven traded touchdowns to open the second quarter, then the Coyotes scored on consecutive interception returns for touchdowns. Ryan VanTine rumbled 24 yards on the first defensive touchdown, then Parsons returned the second 15 yards for another score, putting Shelby up 49-8.
Brusven threw a touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter, floating a 7-yard pass to Tyler Larson to cap the Coyotes’ scoring. Smith’s second touchdown pass of the game brought the final score to 56-14.
Shelby (8-0) hosts Circle, the No. 3 seed from the 8-Man East, in next week’s quarterfinals. The Wildcats, which defeated Hobson-Moore-Judith Gap 52-12 on the road Saturday, advanced to the semifinals last season, falling to eventual state champion Drummond-Philipsburg.
Drummond-Philipsburg started its title-defense with a 50-14 win over Choteau on Saturday. Kade Cutler ran for two touchdowns and passed for another for the Titans, who also got three TD runs from Colby Manley and an interception returned for a touchdown from Jaxon Lee. To view photos from Saturday’s game between Drummond-Philipsburg and Choteau, please click here.
8-Man football scores
(Click the links for video highlights)
Arlee 36, Centerville 32
Circle 52, Hobson-Moore-Judith Gap 12
Culbertson 32, Ennis 14
Drummond-Philipsburg 50, Choteau 14
Fairview 70, Chinook 6
Great Falls Central 57, Alberton-Superior 14
Scobey 74, Joliet 50
Shelby 56, Darby 14
