Undefeated Polson rolls over Libby during final home game
<p>The Libby seniors, from left, Danny Leggins, Lane Luscher, Will Reichel, Barak Lapka, Kraig Nelson, Marcel Getz, Bryce Gustin, Tyler Aycox and Patrick Valentine take their senior walk in Logger Stadium, an emotional, slow walk remembering the times they’ve suited up for Libby.</p>
<p>The Loggers Patrick Valentine returns a kickoff Friday to the Libby 20-yard line in the first quarter.</p>
Libby is weary, let them rest.
After rolling to three consecutive non-conference wins, the Loggers have dropped its fifth in a row.
They have lost small (45-29 against Whitefish and 27-21 against Havre), they have lost big (33-0 against Stevensville and 59-37 against Frenchtown), but they hadn’t seen a team quite like the Polson Pirates.
Polson, ranked No. 3 in Class-A behind Billings Central and Dillon, only let up when they were five touchdowns ahead and bested Libby 44-0.
Libby’s defense found something they could clamp down on, but Polson was versatile enough to exploit the other weaknesses on defense.
“The one thing was Libby shut down our run game early and forced us to pass,” said Polson head coach Scott Wilson. “We can pass, but we have been successful on the ground.”
Polson passed for 129 yards and two touchdowns and were able to open the ground game up for 306 yards and another four scores.
Libby quarterback Jared Winslow, who had been averaging 185 yards in the air and 49 on the ground, wasn’t helped very much by his offense.
He was sacked seven times and his receivers found it difficult to corral passes.
Wide receiver Will Reichel, who caught four passes for 21 yards, just thought it wasn’t Libby’s night for an upset.
“We couldn’t see out there. The lights got in our eyes, the ball was wet,” Reichel said. “They were able to stop our run pretty good. Next week we need to catch the ball and play some good defense.”
The Loggers had a net rushing gain of minus-5 yards, and didn’t find any success until very late, when DJ Maefau rushed three times for 44 yards.
“We dropped balls early and missed chances to score,” said Libby head coach Neil Fuller. “We’re not a good enough team to overcome that. When you can’t run the ball they can start teeing off on you up front.”
Wide receiver Bryce Gustin hurt his knee in the fourth quarter, adding to Libby’s personnel woes.
The Western News talked with Dr. Jay Maloney after the game, and he was cautiously optimistic.
“It’s at least a strain,” said Maloney, who performed a sideline examination..
“There is a little pain when he moved it, but it’s not sloppy. There doesn’t appear to be any internal bleeding, which is good. We’ll have a better idea in the morning,” Maloney said.
Libby will try to snap its losing streak 7 p.m. Friday at Columbia Falls.