CASCADE -- Last week Fort Benton showed off its ability in the passing game. Fast forward seven days, and the Longhorns proved they can be just as dangerous, if not more, on the ground, displaying a solid rushing attack in a 43-0 8-Man football blowout win over Cascade on Friday.
Fort Benton set the tone on the first drive of the game, as Hayden Diekhans took an option around the left side, tossed a slight stiff arm and scampered 15 yards for a touchdown to give the Horns a quick 6-0 advantage. Moments later, Diekhans was intercepting a Cascade pass attempt and the rout was officially on.
"I feel like we were pretty amped up, had a good week of practice. You have a good week of practice, you're going to perform pretty well," Diekhans said.
The interception put the Longhorns back in good field position, on which they capitalized. Jace Thompson took a handoff to the left side, cut back into the middle, then juked back outside and shed a tackler at the 10-yard line before crossing the goal line for a 13-0 lead.
Fort Benton's defense held its own again in Week 2, scoring on a safety credited to Hayden Axtman, and giving the offense the ball back, where Axtman joined the rushing fray, plunging straight up the middle for a 10-yard score.
Thompson finished with 10 carries for 106 yards and two scores, while Axtman toted the ball for 45 yards and a touchdown. Colter Ball also added a rushing touchdown, while William Ullery threw for 42 yards and a score in the win. Ullery's touchdown pass went to Thompson on a 17-yard pass-and-catch.
Fort Benton tallied 295 yards of offense, with 254 of those coming on the ground. The Longhorns averaged 7.3 yards per carry, while the defense held the Badgers to 103 total offensive yards. The Longhorns have yet to give up a point on defense through two weeks.
"We play as a team. We know our responsibilities. We trust each other. We got outside backers, we got a middle backer cleaning up the middle. Safeties got pass. We're good," Diekhans said.
The Longhorns improved to 2-0, while Cascade dropped its first game of the season. Fort Benton is scheduled to host Rocky Boy in its home opener next Friday, while Cascade travels to Choteau looking to get back on track.
8-Man football scores
(Scroll through the above videos for game highlights)
Belt 66, Choteau 14
Charlo 50, Arlee 12
Drummond-Philipsburg 58, St. Ignatius 8
Fairview 48, Culbertson 0
Fort Benton 43, Cascade 0
Park City 37, Ennis 26
Plains 44, Troy 0
Scobey 44, Circle 22 (Thurs.)
Seeley-Swan 60, Victor 14
Shelby 26, Chinook 22
Simms 66, Hays-Lodgepole 0
Thompson Falls 42, Alberton-Superior 0
Twin Bridges 38, Sheridan 28
Westby-Grenora 58, Plentywood 14 (Thurs.)
