GREAT FALLS - The Flathead Braves' dream of a state championship in 1996 came to an end Friday night with an emotional 27-26 loss to the C.M.R. Rustlers at Great Falls in the Class AA semifinal game.
The game was played in freezing temperatures on an ice-covered field - the same field where the Braves lost a regular-season heartbreaker, 27-21, on Oct. 18.
Trailing 27-13 with five minutes remaining in the game, the Braves mounted a tremendous comeback.
After stopping the Rustlers on the goal line, Brave's quarterback Bill Henderson threw a pass to receiver Toby Winters, who flipped the ball to running back Josh Herzog. Herzog then ran 89 yards for a touchdown. With the extra-point, the Braves cut the C.M.R. lead to 27-20.
"(The touchdown) got us real fired up," said Flathead head coach Bob Applegate. "The whole team was real excited."
On the kickoff that followed, the Braves opted for an onside kick, which was recovered by the Brave's Grant Kerley. The Braves then went on to score their second touchdown in a two-minute span when Henderson threw a 16-yard touchdown pass, again to Herzog, cutting the deficit to 27-26, with less than one minute left.
The Flathead coaching staff was then faced with a decision: go for the two-point conversion and the lead, or go for the extra point kick and a tie?
The last time the Braves played the Rustlers the game was tied at the end of regulation time, with C.M.R. scoring after a turnover in overtime.
Flathead decided to go for the conversion and the lead. After scrambling to avoid several Rustler defensive linemen, Henderson threw to Brave's tight end Ryan McGuire, who caught the pass but landed just out of bounds.
"We didn't want to give C.M.R. another chance to score," said Applegate of his decision to go for the two-point conversion. "All the coaches had a say in it. We came there to win."
But the Braves still had one chance. If the Braves recovered another onside kick, they would have had one more opportunity to score. The Braves watched breathlessly as the struggle for the ball began, but to no avail. The ball was recovered by C.M.R. with 55 seconds remaining. The Rustlers let time run out and the game was over.
After the failed onside kick, emotion ran high on the Braves' sideline. More than one player was reduced to tears and cries of outrage and defeat.
"It was pretty disapointing," said Henderson. "We fought all the way to the very last second. Then to have it end like that didn't feel too good."
"We really didn't think we'd lose at all," said McGuire. "After the first TD and the onside kick, we thought we had the win."
The 90-plus Flathead fans who attended the game gave the Braves a much deserved salute of cheers as time expired.
Despite the loss, the Braves had an 8-3 season and were undefeated at home. The playoff berth was Flathead's first since 1987.
"They were a great group of kids to be around," said Applegate. "They always worked hard at practice. We're all proud of them."