Bulldogs battle for win at Ronan

RONAN — The Mission Bulldogs’ stellar season continued Thursday night at Ronan, where they battled back late to knock off their class A county rivals in a wild, back-and-forth game that was worth every penny of the price of admission.

Zoran LaFrombois led Mission (10-1) in scoring with 30 points and added nine rebounds and eight assists. The junior guard hit three 3-pointers to help push Mission to a 74-70 road win.

Fellow Bulldog Cedrick McDonald scored 26 points to go with 17 rebounds and thrilled the crowd with a putback dunk that got the Mission fans to their feet.

Marlo Tonasket notched a double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds to lead Ronan (6-5). Elijah Tonasket finished with 16 points.

The score remained tight through the first half, which featured multiple ties and lead changes along the way.

Two of Elijah Tonasket’s four 3-pointers came in the first period, which ended with senior Kellen McClure hitting a floater at the buzzer to put Mission up 20-19.

The Chiefs began to pull away with just under four minutes left in the half. Dillon Pretty On Top, who finished with six points, hit a 3-pointer to put the Chiefs up 35-28. Marlo Tonasket then hit a pair of free throws before Elijah Tonasket hit another 3-pointer to give Ronan its biggest lead of the night at 12 points.

Ross McPherson capped off the half with two points in the paint for a 42-35 halftime score. McPherson had six points to go with 10 rebounds on the night.

Ronan held the lead through the third period, but McDonald scored in the paint to trim the lead to 53-50 heading into the final period.

LaFrombois missed several long-range shots early in the game, but he heated up down the stretch. His 3-pointer with 4:38 left put the Bulldogs up by one.

Elijah Tonasket answered with his final 3-pointer of the night to take the lead back for Ronan, but LaFrombois connected again from deep to put Mission up for good at 67-64 with 2:10 remaining.

LaFrombois also made several free throws down the stretch, but the Chiefs weren’t done.

Marlo Tonasket hit a jumper from the top of the key to cut Mission’s lead to 72-70 with 1.5 seconds on the clock. Mission was able to get the ball in and McClure made a pair of free throws to seal the win.

The last time Mission defeated Ronan was during current head coach Stuart Grant's senior season.

The Bulldogs’ only loss this season was by three points at Bigfork last week. They’ll take on Florence-Carlton and Thompson Falls in the coming week.

The Chiefs will turn their attention to a home matchup against rival Polson on Friday, a night when they’ll also celebrate their inaugural class in the Ronan High School Hall of Fame.

Mission 74, Ronan 70

Mission 20 - 15 - 15 - 24 – 74

Ronan 19 - 23 - 11- 17 – 70

MISSION – Zoran LaFrombois 9 9-10 30 (9r,8a,2s), Cedrick McDonald 12 1-4 26 (17r,3a,3s), Ross McPherson 3 0-0 6 (10r,1a,1s), Kellen McClure 1 4-5 6 (8r,2a,1b), Jose O'Brien 3 (1r), Justin Brown 0 2-2 2 (3r,1a), Mike Wheeler 1 (3r,2s). Team: 26 17-23 74 (51r,15a,8s,1b)

RONAN – Marlo Tonasket 7 5-6 20 (14r,4a), Elijah Tonasket 5 2-3 16 (2r,3a,3s), Ruben Couture 3 2-4 8 (3r,1a,4s), Ted Coffman 2 2-2 7 (1r,1a,2s,1b), Jordan Gatch 3 0-1 6 (4r,1a,1s), Dillon PrettyOnTop 6, Payton Cates 2 1-1 5 (3r,3a,1s), Mason Clairmont 2 (1r). Team: 25 12-17 70 (28r,13a,11s,1b)

3FGs – Mission 5-21 (LaFrombois 3-16, McDonald 1-3, O'Brien 1-1), Ronan 8 (E.Tonasket 4, D.POT 2, M.Tonasket, T.Coffman).