Cats blow out Browning

The Columbia Falls football team got back on the winning track last week, dropping Browning 38-0 on Sept. 16.

Daniel Jones had a great night on defense and offense. He recovered a fumble and rumbled in for a touchdown in the first half. In the second half, he returned an interception for a touchdown and had a 40-yard touchdown run.

Quarterback Austin Barth ran in 11 yards for a score, and Kyle Johnson hauled down a 23-yard pass from Barth for another score. Brendan Windauer also had an 18-yard touchdown catch.

Jones had 12 rushes for 110 yards. Barth was 5-for-16 for 59 yards passing. Alex Presnell also had a two-point conversion catch. The Cats did not attempt any point-after touchdown attempts.

"We had a great defensive outing," coach Bill Coleman said. "I don't know that Browning had 100 yards total offense. Three defensive scores, that's tremendous."

Johnson had a long day. He golfed in Libby that morning, then rode with his parents across the Divide to Browning. He made it to the field just as the team was warming up, Coleman said.

Conference play starts this week. The Cats, 2-1, will face Polson at home. The Pirates lead the conference at 3-0 and are coming off a 44-0 drubbing of Anaconda.

Last year, the Cats beat Polson away to secure the conference title. The Pirates are led by senior quarterback Vince DiGiallonardo, who averages nearly 17 points a game. The Cats' defense will have to slow him down if they hope to win.

"I don't know that you can stop him," Coleman said. "You have to contain him. Don't let him get out of the pocket. That's where he kills you."

Coleman said the Cats have to get better on offense. They've been playing poorly up front and missing assignments.

Barth's numbers are poor, in part, because he's getting knocked down constantly, even on one-step drops, Coleman noted.

Columbia Falls 6 8 6 18 - 38

Browning 0 0 0 0 - 0

CF - Jones 16-yard fumble return

CF - Windauer, 18-yard pass from Barth

CF - Barth, 11 yard run

CF - Jones, 40-yard run

CF - Jones, 25-yard int return

CF - Johnson, 23-yard pass from Barth