Rivalries rekindled for 2017-18 school year
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HELENA – Ronan’s six-year stint in Class B will come to an end now that the executive board of the Montana High School Association rejected Ronan’s request to stay another year in Class B and approved new enrollment guidelines for each prep sports classification during its Nov. 21 meeting.
The board’s decision to place Ronan back into the Northwestern A Conference will rekindle the cross-valley rivalry with Polson.
“It will be good to have Ronan back in the conference for all sports,” Polson’s head football coach Scott Wilson said. “They have a great young staff and it will be fun to get the rivalry going once again.”
The new adjustments to the enrollment guidelines will not go into effect until the 2017-18 school year.
“I am ecstatic that the rivalry will be reborn,” Ronan’s head football coach Matt Detwiler said. “It was always the biggest game of the year for me when I was in high school.”
Revising the guidelines is a direct response to the fluctuating enrollment numbers high schools have been experiencing statewide the last few years, according to the MHSA.
There’s other changes in store for the valley as well. St. Ignatius’ football program will drop down from Class B to Class C 8-man, and Hot Springs, defending Class C 6-man football champions, will move up to 8-man competition. Both teams will join Charlo and Arlee in Western C Class C 8-man football.
So, if you like rivalries, the 2017-18 season looks prime for some epic cross-valley battles.
