It just gets tougher from here on out and it’s supposed to be that way.

With an upset win over No. 3 La Center last weekend, the sixth-seeded Montesano Bulldogs (9-3 overall) won their fifth-straight game and punched a ticket to the 1A State Football semifinals at 4 p.m. on Saturday at McKenzie Stadium on the campus of Evergreen High School in Vancouver.

Their opponent is none other than undefeated Seton Catholic (11-0), the second-ranked team in the tournament that features a host of headaches for opposing teams.

To put it succinctly, the Cougars are loaded.

Seton Catholic possesses talent across the field led by a trio of high-caliber weapons capable of breaking big plays at any given moment.

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano junior running back/defensive back Zach Timmons, seen here in a file photo, and his Bulldogs teammates will take on Seton Catholic in a 1A State semifinal matchup on Saturday in Vancouver.

The Cougars offense is helmed by junior quarterback Kolten Gesser, who has completed 70% of his passes this season for over 1,700 yards and 34 touchdowns entering the postseason.

Gesser’s top two targets are senior running back Jacob Williams – a strong runner with over 1,200 rushing yards this season – and do-it-all receiver Joe Callarame, the 1A Trico MVP who has blazing-fast speed and can play in the backfield, on the edge and even lineup behind the center.

“All three of those guys are difference-makers,” Montesano head coach Terry Jensen said, adding they aren’t the only featured players the Monte defense will have to focus on. “They are real solid at the rest of the receiver positions. … They have four guys they can throw to. … They have so many weapons and are big up front.”

Jensen added there isn’t much drop off when taking a closer look at the Cougars’ defense.

“All people talk about is their offense, but they’ve only given up 94 points in 10 games. That’s a pretty solid defense,” said Jensen, noting the Cougars have seven 1A Trico League First Teamers on defense. “They are athletic and have a lot of all-league-type guys on there.”

The bulk of the points allowed by Seton Catholic this season came in two games, last week’s 42-41 win over No. 7 Life Christian Academy and a 29-21 victory over La Center in a battle of unbeaten teams on Nov. 1.

The Cougars reached the semis after trailing Life Christian Academy late in the second half and needed a touchdown run by Williams in the final minute to escape with the victory, a win that was as much Life Christian’s late-game implosion as it was a clutch Seton Catholic comeback.

Montesano’s road to the semis has been led by a defense that has allowed just 23 points in three postseason games, five points less than Seton Catholic allowed to Life Christian Academy in the second half.

While the Bulldogs allowed a big play for La Center’s lone touchdown in the quarterfinal win, Monte figured it out and had the typically confident Wildcats perplexed in the second half, appearing as if nothing they did was working against Monte’s “Maroon Storm.”

The Bulldogs are also as healthy as they have been over the past month as nagging injuries to players such as linemen Kyle Caton and Shaun Straka and more severe injuries to running back/defensive back Terek Gunter and receiver/linebacker Toren Crites have fully healed.

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano junior Toren Crites (12) scores a touchdown during a victory over La Center on Nov. 23. The Bulldogs will face Seton Catholic in a 1A State semifinal matchup on Saturday at Evergreen High School in Vancouver.

That bodes well for the Bulldogs, which will need all hands on deck facing another Trico League team that, at least on paper, appears to be bigger, stronger and faster than their previous opponent.

“They pose a lot of problems,” Jensen said of the Cougars. “We have got to be disciplined on defense, limit the explosive plays and tackle well. We can’t give up big plays in the run game and have to limit their yards after catch.”

That could be tough as the Cougars are adept at finding ways to get Callarame and Williams the ball. With Williams it’s usually zone-run scheme handoffs while the Cougs use a mixed bag of screens, direct snaps, pitches and passes to Callarame, who will play for Army at West Point next season.

Last week, Monte’s offense left points on the field, with three trips to the red zone ending without points on the scoreboard.

But a good defense can hide those inefficiencies – including three turnovers and six offensive penalties – as Monte’s offense capitalized just enough late in the game to earn the win.

Monte moved the ball well between the 20s last week but will have to do a better job of capitalizing on drives deep into enemy territory if they plan on playing past the semifinal round.

“We’ve got to be disciplined, we’ve got to get movement and we’ve got to get double-teams,” Jensen said of his offense. “We can’t just sit there and run the ball 25 times in a row. We’re going to have to mix it up and try to keep them off-balance and attack when we can. … They are talented enough that you’re not going to get many 20-play drives on them. You’ll want to hit some big, explosive plays to move the ball and create some momentum for you.”

The last time the teams met was in a 2022 1A crossover game that saw Monte cruise to a 47-7 win, with many of the current crop of Cougars starting as freshman and sophomores in that game.

“They’re not the same team anymore,” Jensen said. “We’ll have to play well. We all know that. We respect them. They are a good football team and they’ve earned everything they’ve got. … They’ve got a lot of four-year starters that are really good.”

Senior leadership didn’t seem to matter much to Monte last week against La Center, which had far more seniors (19) than the current Seton Catholic roster (13).

But with all due respect to the Wildcats, Seton Catholic’s top players – particularly Callarame and Williams – are on a different level.

However, Monte’s defense may very well be the best the Cougars have faced to this point of the season, where a linebacking group led by 1A Evergreen Defensive MVP Marcus Hale and a defensive backfield spearheaded by ball hawk Zach Timmons has clamped down its postseason opposition.

It’s the old paradox of the unstoppable force meets the immovable object.

If Monte’s defense performs at the level it has over the past several weeks and the offense can find a way to close out a few more red-zone drives, another Montesano upset and a berth in the state-title game could be in the works.