Prep Sports Roundup: Pirates win on the road

CLASS A BOYS AND GIRLS BASKETBALL

Polson evens record with conference opener win against Libby

The Polson Pirates got off on the right foot Saturday after downing Western A foe Libby 67-48 to improve to 2-2 on the year.

"Libby can be a tough place to play, so getting a win, especially a conference win on the road is a good first step for this team," Polson Head Basketball Coach Jake Halgren said.

Jarrett Wilson notched 28 points and so far this season is averaging over 22 points per game for the Pirates.

"Jarrett absolutely is a difference maker for us, both on offense and defense," Halgren said. "We have a very competitive and unselfish group of players surrounding him, which is a pretty good combination to have."

Polson continued its good luck against Libby, a team they defeated twice last year, on the road 59-51 and then at home more convincingly 57-40 later in the year.

The Loggers, who finished third last year in league play, were hampered by slow starts in both halves. Polson jumped out to a 15-9 lead after the first quarter and led 34-25 at halftime. The Pirates then went on an 18-9 run in the third quarter to get command of the matchup. Owen McElwee, Trent Wilson and Cymian Kavely each added eight points to Polson’s efforts.

Libby was led by Tyler Anderson’s 21 points.

Polson will play at Columbia Falls on Thursday and then enjoy Christmas Break before hosting Whitefish on Jan. 6 and then Browning on Jan. 7.

"Columbia Falls has a core group of players that have played a lot of good basketball together," Halgren said. "I expect that game to be a good test for our team and a chance to gauge the progress we’ve made through the first third of our season."

POLSON 67, LIBBY 48

POLSON - 15 - 19 - 18 - 15 - 67

LIBBY - 9 - 16 - 9 - 14 - 48

Polson - Jarrett Wilson 28; Owen McElwee 8; Trent Wilson 8; Cymian Kavely 8; Espn Fisher 7; Tyler Wenderoth 4; Anthony Lichenberg 2; Cason Graham 2

Loggers down Chiefs

The Ronan Chiefs opened up Northwest A play on the road against Libby last Thursday. After a hot start in the first quarter that saw the Lake County team go up 14-7, the Loggers struck back with a 17-5 run to take a 24-19 lead at the break.

After extending their lead by another seven points in the third quarter, Libby cruised to the 51-36 victory. Tyler Anderson notched 16 points for the Loggers and is averaging 12 points per game. Ronan was led by Marlo Tonasket’s eight points. Through three games, Tonasket is shooting 52 percent from the field and averaging 11 points per game.

After hosting Browning before Christmas break, Ronan will host Whitefish on Jan. 3.

LIBBY 51, RONAN 36

RONAN - 14 - 5 - 8 - 9 - 36

LIBBY - 7 - 17 - 15 - 12 - 51

Ronan - Marlo Tonasket 8; Ted Coffman 5; Jesse Zepeda 4; Josiah Misa 4; Jordan Gatch 4; Elijah Tonasket 4; Kolby Finley 3; Davonne Curley 3; Sean Small 1.

Lady Pirates' defense keeps Lady Loggers off-balance

Polson shut Libby out in the second quarter and went on to notch a 40-14 Western A Conference road victory over the Lady Loggers on Saturday to improve to 2-2 on the season.

Mila Hawk notched eight points off three field goals and a 2-for-2 performance from the free throw line, while Samantha Rensvold and Nikki Kendall notched another seven. Four games in and Polson is tied for the lead as the top scoring team in the Northwest A Conference with Whitefish after scoring 142 points total.

The leading scorer on Libby’s squad was Rylee Boltz with six points.

Polson led 7-5 after one quarter in a gritty start to the game, but went on a 17-0 run to make it 24-5 at halftime. Libby would score just nine points in the second half.

Last year the Lady Pirates defeated Libby twice in conference play by scores of 69-27 on the road and 52-30 at home.

Polson will host conference foe Columbia Falls on Thursday and then after Christmas Break will play Whitefish at home.

POLSON 40, LIBBY 14

Polson - 7 - 17 - 8 - 8 - 40

Libby - 5 - 0 - 7 - 2 - 14

Polson - Mila Hawk 8, Nikki Kendall 7, Samantha Rensvold 7, Ashtyn Wagner 6, Addyson Gallatin 6, Julia Barnard 4, Grace Simonich 2

CLASS B BOYS AND GIRLS BASKETBALL

Bigfork uses big first half to defeat Mission

The Mission Bulldogs scored nine points in the first half of a 71-34 loss to 7-B foe Bigfork Saturday. The loss dropped Mission to 1-3 on the year and 1-1 in league play.

Zoran LaFrombois led the Bulldogs with 17 points while Kellen McClure added another 10 points to Mission’s efforts and Landon WalksOverIce added 7.

Bigfork jumped out to a 19-5 lead on its home court after one quarter and had a 42-9 lead at halftime. Mission picked up the offense in the second half, scoring 12 points in the third quarter and 13 in the fourth.

Nick Walker led the Vikings with 28 points.

BIGFORK 71, MISSION 34

MISSION - 5 - 4 - 12 - 12 - 34

BIGFORK - 19 - 23 - 21 - 8 - 71

Mission - Zoran LaFrombois 17, Kellen McClure 10, Landon WalksOverIce 7

Eagles hand Lady Bulldogs first loss of the season

Bigfork went on a 25-5 run in the third quarter to take full control of their 7-B matchup against Mission Saturday, en route to a 65-19 victory. The Lady Bulldogs only trailed 10-7 after one quarter, but would score five points in the second and third quarters as Bigfork pulled away.

Braeden Gunlock led the Vals with 24 points. Bigfork, who took third place in last year’s State B Girls Basketball Tournament improved to 4-0 on the year and currently has the top offense in the league with 294 points scored, and the top defense with 61 points scored.

Mission fell to 3-1 on the year and will play at Plains on Thursday and at Eureka on Friday before returning from Christmas break to host Ronan. They currently sit in third place of the 7-B league with the third-most-powerful offense, having notched 202 points already including a whopping 75 points against Troy on Dec. 13.

BIGFORK 65, MISSION 19

MISSION - 7 - 5 - 5 - 2 - 19

BIGFORK - 10 - 18 - 25 - 12 - 65

CLASS C BOYS BASKETBALL

Two Eagle River runs past Alberton

Senior Devon Arlee notched 18 points and Two Eagle River held Alberton to just two first quarter points en route to a 69-18 14-C victory on Saturday. The win improved the Eagles to 4-2 on the year and was their second straight.

Two Eagle River led 16-2 after one quarter and extended that lead to 38-9 at halftime. They followed that up with a 26-point third quarter and then held Alberton to three points in fourth quarter.

Thomas Spotted Eagle scored 10 points for the Eagles.

It was the highest point total for the Eagles so far this season, with their previous high score being 64 points against Granite in their season opener at home. It was also their best defensive performance of the year with the next lowest opponent total being 30 points scored by White Field on Dec. 9.

Two Eagle River will play at Superior on Friday, Dec. 23, and then after Christmas break will host St. Regis on Jan. 6.

TWO EAGLE RIVER 69, ALBERTON 18

TWO EAGLE - 16 - 22 - 26 - 5 - 69

ALBERTON - 2 - 7 - 6 - 3 - 18

Two Eagle River - Devon Arlee 18; Thomas Spotted Eagle 10; Javian Bruce 9; Malacye Piapot 8; Ryiley After Buffalo 8; Cai Burke 7; John Finley 5; Daniel Black Wolf 2; Jorren Cahoon 2

WRESTLING

Cote takes third for Ronan at CMR Holiday Classic

Ridge Cote placed third in the 120-pound bracket as Ronan placed 17th as a team against a field of larger AA schools and other talented wrestling programs on Saturday in Great Falls. Of the Western A wrestling programs in attendance, Ronan was the second-highest scoring team.

Ronan girls place fifth at CMR Holiday Classic

The Ronan girls wrestling team had five placers as they took fifth overall at the CMR Holiday Classic in Great Falls on Saturday. Ronan topped many AA programs and was the highest A school in the team scoring.

Brynn Courville won the 132-pound championship, downing Brynn Brower of Billings Skyview in the final.

In the 100-pound bracket, Saellah Nomee took third, while teammate Katie Dolence notched a third place finish as well in the 126-pound bracket. LouRaisa Weatherwax placed fourth in the 138-pound bracket while in the 185-pound bracket, Tirza TwoTeeth placed third as well.

Polson hosts Corvallis and Frenchtown in mixer

The Lady Pirates hosted Corvallis and Frenchtown last Friday, with several Polson wrestlers getting a chance to hit the mat. No teams were kept at the mixer and since Corvallis and Frenchtown did have high numbers, not every Lady Pirate got to wrestle.

Polson’s Maddilyn Huffine posted a pin over Corvallis Kacee French in 1:27 in a 114-pound match. She would then fall to Corvallis’ Addy Williams via pin in 4:32. Huffine also wrestled up at 120 points where Corvallis’ Taelynn Chavez would pin her in 1:44.

SWIMMING

Polson boys place third at Missoula City Meet

The Pirates placed third at the Missoula City Meet on Saturday, anchored by a second-place finish in the Boys 400-Yard Relay (3:38.22) and Teague McElwee winning the Boys 200 Yard Freestyle (1:56.89).

McElwee would also placed third in the Boys 100 Yard Butterfly (59.40).

Lachlan Sloan would place sixth in the Boys 200 Yard Intermediate (2:24.91), while Gus Hertz would also place sixth in the Boys 100 Yard Butterfly (1:00.33). Josh Reed was also sixth, notching a time of 7:06.98 in the Boys 500 Yard Freestyle.

The Polson boys swimming team also placed fourth in the Boys 200 Yard Freestyle Relay. (1:48.98) and sixth in the Boys 200 Yard Medley Relay (1:57.43).

Polson girls place sixth at Missoula meet

Anchored by several top finishes by Grace Olson, Polson notched a sixth place finish at the Missoula City Meet. Olson finished fourth in the Girls 200 Yard Intermediate (2:44.76) and fourth in the Girls 500 Yard Freestyle (6:35.74).