Whitefish Boys Soccer scheduled for Class A championship rematch against Billings Central Rams

The Whitefish Bulldogs boys soccer team returns to the Class A title game this weekend when they travel to Billings and look to defeat the Billings Central Rams in the championship game for the second year in a row.

Last year’s title game, a 1-0 win for Whitefish, set a perfect record for the 2023 Bulldogs and brought the school’s boys soccer program to 10 state championships.

This year it’s Billings Central trying to maintain a perfect record in the title game, with the Rams sitting at 14-0, including a 2-1 win over Whitefish in the second week of their season.

Billings Central defeated Columbia Falls 1-0 in a semifinal last weekend. The Rams have only conceded eight goals this season and have scored a total of 60 goals.

Whitefish first-year head coach Eric Sawtelle says his team expects a challenging game from the Central Rams, but he expects his players to give it everything they have. Sawtelle tells his team to not just focus on their fundamentals and tactics, but to enjoy the moment and be fully present both mentally and physically.

“They are a well-coached, talented team that will play quite physically,” Sawtelle said of the Rams. “We know that if we show up and play to our ability, we will be an extremely challenging opponent.”

The Whitefish boys are 11-2-1 this season, with their last loss coming around mid-September when they fell to local rivals, the Columbia Falls Wildcats. Since then, they have combined to outscore their opponents 43-8 in eight games. This season, Whitefish has outscored opponents 67-22. Last weekend’s playoff semifinal against Stevensville, a 4-3 win, marked the first time Whitefish gave up more than one goal since their loss to Columbia Falls.

Two of those goals in Stevensville came from David Beames, the all-time record holder for boys soccer in Montana, who scored his 36 goals.^e and 37^e goals for the year, according to the Bitterroot Star.

The match included approximately 10 minutes of extra time. Whitefish entered the final minutes of the match up 3-2, with both goals to that point coming from junior midfielder Kyler Jonson. Henry Barbieri, a junior forward for the Bulldogs, tied the game on a through ball from senior captain Griffin Gunlikson. Barbieri split two defenders and managed to beat the goalkeeper to make the match 3-3.

The winning goal came from the foot of junior center back Rowan Perkins. Sawtelle estimated the “incredible” shot came from about 40 yards off target.

“It was just one of those moments where he got the ball with space and let it go. It was a rocket from about 40 meters into the top corner. The journey was incredible. It continued to rise slowly during the time it was in the air.”

The Bulldogs have conceded goals from 12 different players over the course of the season, and Sawtelle said he sees them as having a solid defensive foundation and has seen his team continue to grow, adapt and evolve over the course of the season. The team is led by senior captains Preston McPherson (forward), Logan Bingham (midfielder), Griffin Gunlikson (midfielder) and Justis Arterbury (defender).

“Our identity is our collective energy, creativity and drive,” said Sawtelle. “We have a special group of guys who work tirelessly for each other and can impose a creative playing style.”

The Whitefish boys soccer team travels Friday and plans to reach Billings in time for practice. The Class A boys soccer championship game is scheduled for noon Saturday at Amend Park in Billings.

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