Seth Dunster, James Hayhurst-Benassi, Tyler Haines, Zachary Best and Dylan Wilkinson celebrate their senior night by being captains of their last regular season game.
Aubrey Matthew, a senior, cherishes her last home game as varsity setter for the Lady Blackhawks.
The games this week were not easy for the Blackhawks and Lady Blackhawks but with a senior night celebration and final games before playoffs and on the home court, the memories that were made will last a lifetime.
Football
Friday, Oct. 25, the Seeley-Swan Blackhawks faced off against the Superior Bobcats in their last regular season game. The Blackhawks were already going to playoffs, but if the Bobcats won the Friday game it would give them a spot in playoffs, too. So, the Bobcats weren't going to go easy.
The game started with Seth Dunster, a senior, getting one of his four touchdowns for the night, and putting the Blackhawks in the lead.
First quarter ended with the Bobcats leading, 14-8. But the Blackhawks quickly took the lead back with Tyler Haines, a senior, Kolten ZurMuehlen, a junior, and Dunster scoring touchdowns in the second quarter.
Blake Irwin, a junior and quarterback, threw Dylan Wilkinson, a senior, a two-point conversion. The Blackhawks finished the first half, 30-22.
"Going to playoffs is a big goal we set at the beginning of the season, but just going to playoffs isn't enough - going far in playoffs is the real goal," Wilkinson said.
In the third quarter, Superior fumbled the ball and Dunster returned it for his fourth touchdown. Wilkinson scored two more two-point conversions throughout the second half of the game. The third quarter ended 44-22.
In the fourth quarter, only the Blackhawks scored. Haines got another touchdown and ZurMuehlen got two more. James Hayhurst-Benassi, a senior, got a two-point conversion to end the game. The final score was 66-22.
The Blackhawks play again on Saturday, Nov. 2 at 1 p.m. on their home field. This is the first home playoff game that the Blackhawks have played in 30 years.
Volleyball
The Seeley-Swan Lady Blackhawks competed against the Bigfork Valkyries on Saturday, Oct. 26.
The Lady Blackhawks started the first set in the lead and points went back and forth, but they pulled through. The first set ended 25-18 for the Blackhawks.
The second set started like the first, with the Lady Blackhawks in the lead. This set was neck and neck, but with the last few points the Valkyries made a comeback. The second set ended 23-25 and the Lady Blackhawks and Valkyries were 1-1.
The Lady Blackhawks took home the third set, 25-23. Kendall Genson, a junior, dominated the court with several kills and blocks.
"This season has been my favorite. I love all the girls that I got the opportunity to play with along with my amazing coaches who have taught me so much," Genson said. "I'm so grateful I got to play on varsity with my favorite people."
The fourth set was anyone's game, but the Valkyries ended up winning 25-21.
To finish off the game, the Valkyries held the lead and finished with a victory. The fifth set ended, 9-15, and the game ended 2-3 for the Valkyries.
But the Lady Blackhawks aren't finished yet. They travel on Wednesday, Oct. 30 to Salish Kootenai College to compete in district volleyball.
Senior Night
Seeley-Swan High School has eight seniors graduating from football and volleyball this year. Six of the seniors have participated in their sport for all four years of high school. The other two joined this year, but have been great additions to their teams.
The football boys have five seniors graduating this year.
Zachary Best, Seth Dunster, Tyler Haines and James Hayhurst-Benassi have played football each year in high school. Best is the Blackhawks' nose guard and left guard. Dunster is one of the Blackhawks quarterbacks and plays safety. Haines plays running back and linebacker. Hayhurst-Benassi plays tight end and corner.
"The speed at which my high school career passed is upsetting, but it's also incredible to see how much we've developed as players and individuals," Hayhurst-Benassi said.
Dylan Wilkinson joined the Blackhawks football team this season and plays tight end and defensive end.
The volleyball girls have three seniors graduating this year.
Rilyn Richarson and Aubrey Matthew played volleyball all four years in high school. Richardson plays varsity outside hitter. Matthew plays varsity setter.
"Senior night was very emotional playing in our gym for the last time, but I couldn't have asked for a better team and crowd support to end this chapter," Matthew said.
Kylie Brewer joined the Lady Blackhawks this season, and played varsity libero on senior night.
JV Football
On Monday, Oct. 23 the Seeley-Swan junior varsity football team faced off against the Darby Tigers JV team. This is the first JV game that the Blackhawks have played since 2021.
The Blackhawks started and finished in the lead, and the JV team showed off some phenomenal skills that will benefit them throughout the rest of their high school career. Freshman Jay Garland recovered a fumble, got an interception and made some incredible plays.
The Blackhawks finished the game strong, final score 48-8. Noah Stone, a junior and quarterback said, "This is a great team, and it has been a great season. Now it is on to the playoffs."
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