Pirates face first big test Friday in Frenchtown

The Polson Pirates jumped out to 2-0 on the season after a 35-17 win over Corvallis, but will face their first stiff competition this Friday when they travel to Frenchtown.

Andy Nelson picked up three touchdowns for the Pirates, getting his first one with 10:37 left in the first quarter before picking up another rushing TD with four minutes left. He picked up his third one late in the second quarter as the Pirates looked to open up a nice cushion.

Nelson had 21 carries for 98 yards, while Bryce Picard had eight carries for 88 yards, for an average of 11 yards per carry. Pat Dellwo had 21 yards on five carries, while quarterback Craig Bagnell had six completions on 15 attempts for 86 yards.

Bagnell took over the QB position last week after Colton Woods injured his thumb, and head coach Scott Wilson said there's no point in messing with what works, especially since Woods is still an offensive threat as a receiver.

"If we can keep Craig going, we'll keep Colton out as a receiver. It just gives us another weapon out there," Wilson said.

Picard caught a TD pass in the second half, and Woods solidified the win with a TD catch in the fourth quarter and was 5-for-5 in extra point attempts.

Overall, Wilson was pleased with the game, especially since the team only gave up one turnover in the sloppy weather.

"There was a lot of positive things, including the fact that we took care of the ball on a very soggy night," he said. "We also made great progress on some things from week one."

However, Browning and Corvallis were less of a threat than Frenchtown will be this Friday, in what Wilson said would be a solid test of how the team can perform.

"They are a solid team. That will be a good test for us. Frenchtown is one of the best on this side of the state," Wilson said. "It will give us a good idea of what we will need to do heading into our first conference game next week (against Libby)."

Wilson said the Frenchtown game will be a good opportunity to build confidence for conference play the remainder of the season.

"That's the part of the season that really matters," he said referring to the conference games. "We have to build confidence heading into the conference schedule."