Class A Basketball: Lady Pirates triumph in overtime
Whitefish forced overtime, but Polson ended the game outscoring the Lady Bulldogs 10-6 in the final stanza for a 45-41 Northwest A victory on Tuesday, Jan. 9, at home.
In a back-and-forth game, the Lady Pirates jumped out to a 9-3 lead in the first quarter and went into halftime with the score 16-10. Whitefish shaved off two points from Polson's lead in the third quarter and outscored Polson 11-7 in the fourth to push the game into overtime.
The Lady Pirates' offense was balanced, with Samantha Rensvold leading the team with 16 points. Natalie Adams was the second Polson player in double digits with 12 points. Not far behind was McKenna Hanson with nine points, and Julia Barnard chipped in seven.
The win was the Lady Pirates' first conference victory of the season and improved their overall record to 4-5. Whitefish fell to 4-5 on the year and 0-1 in conference play.
Polson's defense, giving up 51 points a game, allowed fewer points than their average. Last season, the Lady Pirates defeated Whitefish 44-32 in their first matchup on the road and then 51-34 at home.
At Polson
POLSON 45, WHITEFISH 41
Whitefish - 3 - 7 - 14 - 11 - 6 - 41
Polson - 9 - 7 - 12 - 7 - 10 - 45
POLSON SCORING - Samantha Rensvold 16, Natalie Adams 12, McKenna Hanson 9, Julia Barnard 7, Aleysia Black 1
Whitefish wins over Polson
Polson ran into a surging Whitefish boys basketball team, and the Pirates fell 64-60 in Northwest A conference play on Tuesday, Jan. 9.
The Pirates' offense has picked up in conference play, as Polson was coming off a 61-point outburst against Browning on Jan. 5. Both the Bulldogs and the Pirates were finding buckets, and Polson led 31-30 at halftime.
The Bulldogs went on a 19-12 run in the third quarter, and Polson couldn't quite close the gap in the fourth quarter.
Anthony Lichtenberg's 22 points led Polson, while Cason Graham added 17 points, and Ezra Fasthorse had eight points.
Polson fell to 1-8 on the year, while Whitefish kept pace with Browning with overall records at 5-2 and are winners of three straight games. The Pirates have dropped four in a row.
At Polson
WHITEFISH 64, POLSON 60
Whitefish - 19 - 11 - 19 - 15 - 64
Polson -16 - 15 - 12 - 17 - 60
POLSON SCORING - Anthony Lichtenberg 22, Cason Graham 17, Ezra Fasthorse 8, Maddox Bird 6, Brenden Griffin 3, Brock Henriksen 2
Pirate Ezra Fasthorse piled in eight points during a close matchup with Whitefish last Tuesday. (Bob Gunderson photo)