Strong defensive play not enough to stop Hamilton

The Bulldogs concluded their season Friday with a tough 33-20 loss to Hamilton despite two defensive touchdowns.

Hamilton got points on the board early, scoring three touchdowns in the first quarter to jump out to a 20-0 lead. The Bulldogs’ defense got back on track in the second quarter, as Travis Catina returned an interception 95 yards for a touchdown to get Whitefish on the board.

Tyler Cote added a touchdown run, his seventh of the year, and Derek Kastella returned a Hamilton fumble 67 yards for a touchdown.

Head coach Chad Ross said he was proud of the way his defense came up big after a rough first quarter, scoring two touchdowns and stopping Hamilton on three big fourth downs.

“You don’t want to go out that way, but the kids showed a lot of heart and character,” he said.

The Bulldogs finish the season with a 3-6 overall record, going 1-2 in Northwest A conference play for third place. Seniors on the team include Brady Staves, Haley Nicholson, Tyler Cote, Zander Wold, Spencer Moore, Derek Kastella, Patrick McGeady, Travis Catina, Nathan Rizzolo, Malachi Derkes, Aiden Eisenbarth, Dylan Ford and Sawyer Silliker.

While it was a down season for the Bulldogs, Ross said he was happy to see the team’s seniors show leadership when things weren’t going their way.

“They could’ve quit a couple times this season, but they kept showing up every Monday and putting everything they had into it and playing with character and integrity. And those are life lessons that you can’t replicate. Football is a great opportunity to apply those lessons to life,” he said.

Whitefish 0 7 7 6 — 20

Hamilton 20 0 7 6 — 33

H — Bridger Bauder 19 run (Bauder kick)

H — Jaylen Taggart 6 pass from Carson Rostad (Bauder kick)

H — Ty Chouinard 53 pass from Rostad (kick failed)

W — Interception return (Carver Gilman kick)

H — Rostad 12 run (Bauder kick)

W — Tyler Cote 3 run (Gilman kick)

H — Manny Rivera 1 run (kick failed)

W — Derek Kastella fumble return (kick failed)