3-peat for Lady Vikings

By Trent Makela / Leader Staff

It was terrible, horrific, and oh so hard to look away as the Lady Vikings won their third-straight District 14-C title Saturday night in Ronan. Charlo avenged both of their regular season losses by holding the Savage Heat to just two points for more than half of the 32-minute game.

The Lady Vikings (18-2) treated a full house at the Ronan Event Center to a different type of contest as the volume rose with each minute they held Hot Springs (18-2) to a lone deuce. Such reactions are usually reserved for offensive hot streaks, but boatsful of steals, blocks and turnovers fueled this run.

"We've been playing physical on both ends for most of the year. When you're ahead it's easier to hold your demeanor. When you're down you can get challenged to stay calm," Thompson said. "Right now I think the girls are playing really good defensively."

The Lady Vikings will move on to the Butte Mac Center this weekend for the Western C Divisional Tournament, beginning with their matchup against Sheridan at 1:30 p.m. today (Thursday, Feb. 21).

Charlo 51, Hot Springs 31

The Lady Vikings led 31-2 in the third quarter before surrendering the Savage Heat's second field goal as they coasted to the resounding win.

"We did a better job of getting it in the bucket, both inside and outside," Thompson said.

"Defensively we did a good job of not giving up the easy shots. We gave them a bunch of free throw shots the first two times around."

The 20-point victory actually exceeded the combined 19-point margin in Hot Springs' two wins against Charlo this season.

"We were well prepared for what we thought we were going to see," Charlo coach Bret Thompson said. "It's a lot easier to run a gameplan when the ball's going in."

Charlo eventually relaxed their relentless defensive effort midway through the second half and Hot Springs boiled for 24 fourth-quarter points to pull within 20.

Hot Springs 2 0 5 24 - 31

Charlo 14 15 9 13 - 51

HOT SPRINGS - Jordon Fisher 2 2-10 6, Richelle Flagen 0 0-0 0, Matea DePoe 5 0-0 13, Randi Arnold 0 0-0 0, MacKenzie Wood 3 0-0 7, Whitney Wood 2 0-0 5, Devon White 0 0-0 0, Carrie Fisher 0 0-0 0. Totals 12 2-10 31.

CHARLO - Stephanie Maughan 1 4-6 7, Stephanie Murphy 9 4-6 22, Staci Stape 1 1-3 3, Samijo Kain 2 3-4 9, Shianne Montgomery 2 0-0 4, Jaris Kelley 2 0-0 4, Turquoise Deveraux 0 2-2 2, Brittany Shavr 0 0-0 0, Justin Morigeau 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 14-21 51.

Charlo 33, Noxon 13

No Noxon player scored more than five points and the theme of ruthless defense began for the Lady Vikings, holding the Red Devil to two points in the second half.

Shianne Montgomery scored seven of her 11 points in the first quarter, helping the Vikings jump out to a 15-6 lead.

"I think we did a whole lot better defensively this time," Thompson said. "We also had a tougher time offensively, especially as far as guard play. They did a good job. They got to our scorers and we had a hard time getting them the ball for easy shots."

Charlo 15 8 8 2 - 33

Noxon 6 5 2 0 - 13

CHARLO - Stephanie Murphy 7 0-0 14, Staci Stipe 1 2-2 4, Samijo Kain 0 0-0 0, Jaris Kelley 2 0-2 4, Shianne Montgomery 5 1-1 11, Stephanie Maughan 0 0-0 0, Rochelle Toussaint 0 0-0 0, Turquoise Deveraux 0 0-0 0, Justine Morigeau 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 3-5 33.

NOXON - Bethany Brown 0 0-0 0, Lindsey Franz 0 0-0 0, Kimmy Moore 1 1-4 3, Angela Herbig 1 2-2 4, Sarah Larkin 2 1-2 5, Karlynn Therrian 0 0-0 0, Shelby Swant 0 0-0 0, Chandler Wilkinson 0 0-0 0, M.K. Webb 0 0-0 0, Stephanie Larkin 0 1-4 1, Sarah Marich 0 0-0 0. Totals 4 5-12 13.