Flag Football: Pack, back to back to back to back

HAMILTON — Dating back to midway through the 2023 season, Glacier quarterback Karley Allen has played with three tight cornrows on the right side of her head.

Three for each Glacier flag football title, maybe. Or maybe not. 

“I had then for our Crosstown game last year and it was probably one of the best games I had,” the senior said Thursday, after she led the Wolfpack over Missoula Hellgate 28-0 for a fourth flag football championship. “So I just stuck with it.” 

That’s what the Wolfpack (12-1) did in 2025, pulling out some narrow wins, shaking off a loss to Flathead and playing their best football at the end. They beat Flathead 28-20 in the semifinals Thursday morning at Hamilton High School, then dictated play in the afternoon against Hellgate, a first-year program.  

Having won the first three state championships played in Montana, Glacier added a fourth in the first year Class AA had its own bracket. Hellgate beat Missoula Sentinel 13-0 in Thursday’s other semifinal, its third win over its crosstown rival in four meetings. 

That set the stage for a lopsided final: Glacier scored on three of its first-half possessions for a 21-0 lead. 

It started with Allen looking off the safeties and firing a pass up the left seam to wide-open sophomore Addison Kauffman, who made a juggling catch midway through a 43-yard scoring play.  

In the second quarter Allen was looking for another completion but then pulled the ball down and, 53 twisting yards later, had a highlight-reel touchdown run. 

“That’s the tape that’s getting her a scholarship, wherever she’s going to go play next year,” Glacier coach Mark Kessler said of the senior. “Amazing. That’s Karly Allen. We’ve had four years of it. I’m going to miss it.” 

For two seasons Allen played receiver while standout Kai Johnson played QB, but she also started working in behind center as a sophomore.

Thursday morning Allen completed 19 of 20 passes against Flathead. In the afternoon she was 10 of 16 for 141 yards. 

She added another 9-yard TD strike to Kauffman 21 seconds before halftime; she hit fellow senior Taylor Lee for a score in the fourth quarter. 

Allen also picked off two Hellgate passes. And there was that run. 

“I just saw an opening up the middle,” she said. 

“I was obviously wide open,” said senior Ryan Galle, smiling. “But Karley was ready to take that and I was excited to chase her down the field and cheer with her.” 

Galle had four catches for 56 yards plus caught three PAT passes from Allen. She played little as a junior and then shined in 2025.  

Allen has been a force all along. 

“She’s a good role model,” Galle said. “Everybody looks up to her, even the seniors. She’s kind of a leader. If Karley has energy, we all have energy.” 

Hellgate ended up 9-5, with three losses coming to Glacier. Knights quarterback Texas Gilder, daughter of Hellgate coach Tyler Gilder, was 11 of 20 passing for 101 yards. 

Kauffman had three catches for 58 yards for the Pack. 

Hellgate    0    0    0    0    -    0 

Glacier    7    14    0    7    -    28

G — Addison Kauffman 43 pass from Karley Allen (Rylee Galle pass from Allen) 

G — Allen 53 run (Galle pass from Allen) 

G — Kauffman 9 pass from Allen (Galle pass from Allen) 

G — Taylor Lee 11 pass from Allen (Kauffman run) 

Glacier 28, Flathead 20

Allen threw for 190 yards and two touchdowns and ran for two scores in this one; her second TD run, covering 5 yards, made it 28-6 in the fourth quarter. 

Flathead (7-5) then scored two quick touchdowns, the last – a 2-yard pass that Violet Chase pulled down in traffic – came with 1:13 left. Glacier then ran out the clock on its third win over Flathead in four meetings, all of them interesting. 

Exhibit D came one play after Julia Kay found Lexi Herion for a 15-yard TD, cutting the gap to 28-12: The 6-foot-1 Herion blitzed on Glacier’s next snap, batted Allen’s pass and it hit the hands of two Glacier players before falling incomplete. 

“I thought it was going to happen,” first-year Flathead coach Jess Hensley said. “If that would have stuck, then we would have all the momentum.” 

Asit was the Bravettes rolled up 118 yards of offense in the last eight minutes of play. They had 127 total.  

“Whenever we play Glacier we’ve got this chip, right?” asked Hensley, whose club gave up a safety in the first half. “The nerves are there and it’s hard to tone them down. They just want it so bad, it takes us a while to settle in. If flag football was 15 minutes a quarter, i feel like we’d be 10-0. It takes us too long to settle in.” 

Kay was 9 of 22 for 103 yards and three TDs. Allen added 84 rushing yards to her passing total. Olivia Banzett had nine catches for 47 yards for the Pack; Galle had two for 50 yards, Kauffman two for 34 and Remi Osler two for 35 – including a 33-yard TD. 

A couple Flathead fans came up to Hensley to confirm she’d be back as coach. Absolutely, she said. 

“I think in our six or seven weeks, we built a chemistry that was impressive and we were competitve in every game,” Hsnsley said. “Lots to build on for next year. Rome wasn’t built in a day.” 

Flathead    0    6    0    14    -    20 

Glacier    13    2    7    6    -    28

G — Remi Osler 33 pass from Allen (PAT pass successful)  

G — Allen 8 run (Allen run) 

F — Lily Parris 4 pass from Julia Kay (pass failed) 

G — Safety, Flathead quarterback sacked in end zone 

G — Addison Kaufmann 16 pass from Allen (Banzett run) 

G — Allen 5 run (pass failed)  

F — Lexi Herion 15 pass from Kay (pass failed) 

F — Violet Chase 20 pass from Kay (Herion pass from Kay) 

Hellgate 13, Sentinel 0

Texas Gilder ran 23 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter and hit Lucia Savoia with a 12-yard scoring pass with 3:30 left in the game for the Knights. 

Gilder was 13 of 16 passing for 86 yards in the defensive battle; she ran for 29 yards, but lost yardage in the second half of this defensive battle.  

Sentinel quarterback Bayley Stanley was 13 of 23 passing for 91 yards and had one pass picked off.