BONNERS FERRY — In their regular season finale and the Intermountain League title on the line, the Bonners Ferry Badgers needed a spark. 

Despite an opening drive touchdown, the rival Timberlake Tigers had just scored to give themselves a narrow 7-6 advantage in the second quarter. Luckily for Bonners Ferry, they didn’t need to wait to find their spark. 

On the kickoff, Badgers’ junior wide receiver Colson Baisden caught the ball, took it inside the hashmarks before bursting like a flash of lightning through a gap. Baisden found a fifth gear to escape the last Tiger defender before waltzing into the end zone and being mobbed by his teammates. 

“That was really a momentum swinger,” Bonners Ferry head coach Danny Swift said.  

From there, the Badgers looked like themselves again and rolled to a 26-15 win over the Tigers to claim their second straight Intermountain League championship. Swift said it’s the first time since 1980 that Bonners Ferry has held their league title in consecutive seasons. 

“It’s a group of young men that have bought into what we believe in, and they believe in what we’re doing,” Swift said. “They’re playing together, and it’s pretty darn special.” 

While Baisden lit the spark for Bonners Ferry, senior quarterback Alex Stolley added plenty of fuel to the fire. The Badgers quarterback totaled 150 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground, in addition to 50 passing yards and a touchdown to junior running back Tyson Dickson. 

Bonners Ferry got back to dominating up front and utilizing their running game to move their offense. Swift shouted out his linemen on both sides of the ball for their relentless work and his senior for getting a win on senior night. 

“Really appreciate all our seniors and everything they’ve given to our program,” Swift said. “Amazing community support, great coaching staff, we’re blessed to get to do this. It’s pretty awesome.” 

With the win, the Badgers close their regular season with a 5-3 record and punch their ticket to the state playoffs with a league championship. Bonners Ferry will be on a bye next week as other teams close out their regular season before they learn their next opponent. 

Swift commended his team and their toughness to bounce back from an extremely tough stretch in the middle of the season, where the Badgers lost three games in a row. 

“This team’s been through more adversity than most people would realize, and that can really break you down and take you out, but they’ve rallied around their group,” Swift said. “They’re a gritty, tough and unconventional group that always plays hard. They love the game, they love on another, and they play for each other.”