HELENA — Carter Kraft accounted for five touchdowns Friday night to lead No. 5 Helena to a 33-7 victory over No. 3 Butte at Vigilante Stadium.
Kraft, the Bengals’ quarterback, threw for four TDs and ran for another as Helena kept the Bulldogs from locking up the Western AA title.
Butte, though, jumped in front early. The Bulldogs moved down the field quickly on the game’s first possession, capping the drive with a 13-yard touchdown pass from Bo Demarais to Rueso Battermann for a 7-0 advantage.
Helena answered with about 5:00 left in the opening quarter as Jaxan Lieberg took a quick pass from Carter Kraft into the end zone from 5 yards. The point-after try was missed, but the Bengals had cut the score to 7-6.
Kraft put Helena up 13-7 at halftime when he leaped into the end zone from 1 yard on a run-pass option play at the end of the second quarter. The Bengals converted a key fourth-down play earlier in that possession.
Early in the third quarter Helena extended its lead to 19-7 on a 5-yard touchdown throw from Kraft to Sam Ark. The Bengals then blocked a punt on Butte’s next possession, which set up a 5-yard TD pass from Kraft to Lieberg and a 26-7 Helena advantage.
Midway through the fourth, Dylan Mosness caught a drag route from Kraft and scored for an 18-yard TD pass to give the Bengals a 33-7 lead and put the game away.
Elsewhere in Class AA ...
No. 1 Bozeman 54, Belgrade 7
No. 2 Bozeman Gallatin 27, Billings West 6
No. 4 Kalispell Glacier 56, Missoula Big Sky 21 (Thursday)
Billings Senior 34, Great Falls CMR 15
Great Falls 40, Billings Skyview 0
Helena Capital 28, Kalispell Flathead 7
Missoula Sentinel 42, Missoula Hellgate 7
