New · Updated October 4
Who leads, who is still alive, and which matches will determine the 2026 Montana Class A boys’ and girls’ brackets.
How the bracket works
The official MHSA bracket takes the top three teams from the Eastern, Northern and Southern divisions. The Southern No. 2 hosts Southern No. 3 in the October 12–13 play-in. The winner advances to visit Eastern No. 2 in the first round.
Division champions and selected No. 2 seeds receive first-round home matches. After the opening round, the higher seed hosts; when equal seeds meet, the printed bracket determines the host.
Open official MHSA bracketBoys · October 4 snapshot
Billings Central has secured the Eastern championship. Polson has secured the Southern championship. Whitefish leads Bigfork by one point in the North, while Columbia Falls and Libby are still contesting the final qualifying place.
8–0 · 24 points
Central’s 3–0 win at Laurel made the Rams unreachable. Park, Lone Peak and Lockwood remain in the race for the final two playoff positions.
Bracket effect: Central is projected into the 1 East home quarterfinal against 3 North.
Whitefish 16 · Bigfork 15 · Columbia Falls 10 · Libby 6
Whitefish and Bigfork have clinched playoff berths. Bigfork has played seven division matches because it has already completed both meetings with Columbia Falls, Libby and Thompson Falls; Whitefish has played six. Columbia Falls holds the final qualifying place, four points ahead of Libby.
Title scenario: Whitefish clinches 1 North with a win or draw against Bigfork. Bigfork must win that match and then needs Libby to take points from Whitefish on October 10.
Bracket effect: 1 North hosts 3 East. The Northern No. 2 visits 1 South, while No. 3 visits 1 East.
6–0–1 · 19 points
Polson is beyond the reach of Hamilton and Corvallis. Those two currently hold the other qualifying positions. Stevensville retains a narrow path pending confirmation of its October 3 result.
Bracket effect: Polson is projected to host 2 North. Southern Nos. 2 and 3 must meet again in the play-in.
Girls · October 4 snapshot
Hamilton has clinched the Southern championship. Billings Central leads the Eastern Division, while Whitefish controls the Northern race.
Central 19 · Park 17 · Laurel 16 · Lone Peak 15
Only three qualify. The title and the elimination line remain unsettled because the top four still play one another during the final week.
Bracket effect: 1 East hosts 3 North. The Eastern No. 2 hosts the Southern play-in winner; No. 3 travels to 1 North.
Whitefish 16 · Columbia Falls 13
Whitefish and Columbia Falls have secured the first two playoff positions. Bigfork and Libby are tied on nine points for the last berth, with Libby holding an extra match.
Bracket effect: The champion hosts 3 East. Northern No. 2 travels to 1 South; No. 3 travels to 1 East.
8–0 · 24 points
Hamilton’s 4–0 win at Polson closed the title race. Polson has the inside track on second. Stevensville, Loyola and Frenchtown remain in the fight for the remaining play-in positions.
Bracket effect: Hamilton is projected to host 2 North. Southern Nos. 2 and 3 enter the play-in for the right to visit 2 East.
Results pending
These matches remain outside the verified calculations until an independent or authoritative final is available:
Sources & methodology
Standings use three points for a win and one for a draw, count same-division matches only, and exclude unresolved scores. Firsthand reports, MaxPreps, MHSA, Montana sports reporting and HTOsports are reconciled under the site’s published source hierarchy.
