Second-Half Surge Not Enough As Montana Western Falls To Montana Tech 38-27 Thursday Evening

UMW Sports Press Release

BUTTE, Mont. – The Montana Western football team (0-1) was clipped by rival Montana Tech (1-0) 38-27 Thursday in Butte. Despite holding the hosts to just seven points in the second half, the Bulldogs could not overcome the 21-point hole they found themselves in after the first quarter.

"Tech deserves all the credit for a great win, they outplayed us in every way," UMW head coach Ryan Nourse said. "They desired to win and most of our team merely wanted it to happen. Big games are normally won by the team that makes the fewest mistakes and makes big plays in special teams, and that was Tech today, not the Bulldogs. We have a long way to go to see if we can make this a great team, and we will regroup tomorrow and start working on improving and growing."

Michael Palandri paced the Bulldog offense, throwing for 285 yards and three touchdowns while also taking one to the house himself. Eli Nourse racked up 188 total yards and caught the first touchdown from Palandri to put UMW on the board.

Seth Shook (85 yards) and Landon Charlton (24 yards) also tallied receiving touchdowns for Western.

Connor Dunlea led UMW's defensive efforts, recording 11 total tackles, including four solo take downs. Tyler Schoen (nine) and Jace Fitzgerald (eight) ranked second and third in tackles, respectively. Fitzgerald led the game in solo tackles with seven, three more than any other player.

On special teams, Maclain Burckley was three-for-three on point-after attempts. He registered six punts for 247 yards (41.2 avg.).

UMW held the statistical advantage in first downs (20-18), total offense (390-387), and passing yards (285), but the Orediggers came out on top in rushing yards (214-105).

The biggest difference-maker in the contest was on special teams, with Montana Tech reaching 200 total return yards compared to just 26 from the Bulldogs.

Levi Torgerson put in a strong shift for Tech, recording 203 return yards and two return touchdowns. He opened the game with a 100-yard kickoff return to put the Orediggers up early, and followed that up with a 91-yard punt return later in the game. He also tallied one passing touchdown in the game.

Jarrett Wilson also earned a passing TD for the hosts, going 7-9 for 77 yards. Wykece Johnson rushed for 167 yards, including a 74-yard touchdown run, while Nick Michelotti and Parker Johnston each caught a touchdown pass as well.

LOOKING AHEAD 

Montana Western welcomes MSU-Northern Sept. 6 for its 2025 home opener. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. MT.