They didn’t bring home the most trophies or have the most dominating teams, but if the Montana High School Association held a Class A state competition in 2017-18, you could bet the Polson Pirates would be in contention.
A year full of strong performances makes Polson the Class A live-cordillera-network.pantheonsite.io all-sports champion.
We totaled up results from each MHSA-sanctioned sport during the school year, giving out 10 points for a state championship, seven points for second place, six points for third and so on, down to one point for an eighth -place finish. Polson ended up more than six points ahead of Corvallis and Hardin, who tied for second.
The Pirates picked up just a single state championship in 2017-18 (a girls tennis title on the final day of competition) and only finished second in boys golf and girls cross country. But Polson ended up in the top eight in 12 out of a possible 18 sports, consistently adding points to its total throughout the year. The Pirates scored 20 points on the final Saturday, scoring points in boys and girls tennis, boys and girls track and field, and softball.
Corvallis and Hardin tied for second with an unusual point total, because the two found themselves involved in an unusual tie. The Blue Devils and Bulldogs finished in a three-way tie for the boys tennis title with Whitefish. When there is a tie, we evenly distribute points between each team. First, second and third would usually combine for 23 points, so in this case each school was rewarded 7.67 points, giving Corvallis and Hardin a final total of 47.17 points.
Both second-place schools did their scoring in big chunks. Hardin won championships in girls cross country and boys basketball, as well as boys tennis. Corvallis earned the boys tennis win as well as boys cross country and boys track and field titles. In fact, the Blue Devils scored 24.67 points on the final spring Saturday, with good showings in boys and girls tennis and track and field.
Our first Class A all-sports champion finished in fourth place in the second year of our standings. Belgrade ended with 43 points, after the Panthers softball and boys soccer teams each repeated as state champions. Whitefish finished just .33 points behind Belgrade and just 1.67 points ahead of Hamilton for fifth place.
2017-18 Class A Montanasports.com all-sports final standings
1. Polson – 53.5
T2. Corvallis – 47.17
T2. Hardin – 47.17
4. Belgrade – 43
5. Whitefish – 42.67
6. Hamilton – 41
7. Billings Central – 39.5
8. Lewistown – 33.5
9. Laurel – 32.5
10. Columbia Falls – 32
11. Sidney – 31.5
12. Frenchtown – 30.5
13. Havre – 29
14. Miles City – 24.5
15. Dillon – 24
16. Livingston – 11
17. Libby – 10
T18. Butte Central – 9.5
T18. Browning – 9.5
20. Glendive – 8.5
21. Stevensville – 6
