Warriors dominate Victor tournament, go 3-0 opening week

Aaric Bryan/Valley Journal

Arlee’s Trae Burland is fouled by Chance Frame as he attempts a shot Friday. Burland came off the bench and scored 10 points for the Warriors.

By Aaric Bryan
Valley Journal
VICTOR — The Arlee Warriors used the first week of the season to separate themselves from the rest of the competition. Though missing some key components from last year’s team that made a valiant run of making the state championship, with three easy victories in the opening week, the Warriors proved that they still have plenty of weapons and are the team to beat in District 14-C.
After opening their new gymnasium with a 68-35 over Two Eagle River Tuesday, Dec. 6, the Warriors swept the Victor tournament with a 70-51 win over rival Charlo Friday and a 61-54 win over Ennis Saturday........
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Good defense, free throw shooting leads to pair of Charlo wins

Aaric Bryan/Valley Journal

Charlo guard Kinley Pope crashes into Arlee defender Chelsea Allaire last Friday.

Ronan wrestlers gauge themselves at Mining City Duals

By Jim Blow
Valley Journal
BUTTE — The Ronan Chiefs got all the competition they hoped for at last weekend's Mining City Duals in Butte.
Ronan opened the tournament with two wins and a loss on Friday, beating Whitefish 78-6 and Conrad 48-28 but falling to Butte 53-30. On Saturday, Ronan lost to eventual second-place finisher and Class A state champion Havre 59-27, then lost two duals to Class AA teams Helena Capital (46-42) and Bozeman (48-36).
Undefeated wrestlers over the tournament include: Cameron Neiss, who went 4-0 at 135 pounds; Micky Cheff, who went 5-0 at 152; and Toby Cheff, who went 6-0 at 189.
"We were very impressed with Shelby Grant," who went 3-2 in the tournament, Ronan head coach Dustyn Azure said. "He turned a corner in the right direction this weekend. He went out and was ready to do battle with anybody who walked on the mat with him."
Azure acknowledged that it was a very competitive tournament that was also eye-opening.
"I feel our guys learned a lot about themselves and the level of competition we will be facing. Overall, as a team we wrestled well and are improving steadily," Azure said......
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Lady Bulldogs let late lead, championship slip away

Aaric Bryan/Valley Journal

Lady Bulldog Kyla Mitchell rises above Lady Panther Jenna Rausch for two points in the first half at the Tigers’ Tail tournament in St. Regis Saturday. Mitchell scored six points before fouling out in the fourth quarter.

By Aaric Bryan
Valley Journal
ST. REGIS — The Lady Bulldogs let the Tigers’ Tail championship slip through their hands.
After defeating Superior 41-26 in the opening game of the St. Regis tournament Friday, the Bulldogs looked like they were in control of the championship game, but let the Alberton Lady Panthers off the hook. The Lady Panthers went on a 20-7 run to end the game and take the championship with a 47-43 victory.
“We played better than the night before. I thought we were the better team. We just forgot to win,” Mission coach Les Rice said.
When Mission forward Adessa Durglo, who finished with six points and six rebounds, made a free throw with 5:43 to play to give Mission a 37-29 lead it seemed like a commanding lead in such a low-scoring game. But the Lady Bulldogs wouldn’t score until 1:55 and by that time they trailed 39-43. Then Lady Panther Lyndi Ishler pushed the lead to 45-39 on two free throws. Mission senior Katie McDonald hit two of her three foul shots to make it 45-41. McDonald made it a one possession game with just under a minute to play, driving in for a layup after stealing the ball. But 45-43 was as close as they could get and Ishler, who scored 11 of the Lady Panthers’ final 15 points, put the game out of reach with two free throws with two seconds left.
“We went from nine up to one behind in an awful big hurry. We turned the ball over and we missed a couple of shots,” Rice said. “They had a couple of girls who can shoot get hot in the end and they out-shot us.”
The Lady Bulldogs finished with 24 turnovers and shot 31percent from the field. McDonald led the Lady Bulldogs with 12 points. McDonald had a team-high five steals. LaGlenn Mitchell came off the bench and gave Mission seven points. Kyla Mitchell, who fouled out midway through the fourth quarter, finished with six points and seven rebounds. ......
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Pirates bring new game to the hardwood

Jim Blow/Valley Journal

Senior Tim Rausch drives to the basket against Corvallis Friday in the Polson-Ronan Tip-off Tournament. Rausch led the Pirates with 14 points, most of which came from the free throw line. But it wasn't enough to overcome the Blue Devils, who ran away with a 78-58 non-conference win.

ByJim Blow
Valley Journal
POLSON — The Polson Pirates have a new head coach, a new system and a new approach to the game of basketball this year. Last weekend's Tip-off Tournament in Polson and Ronan confirmed it's going to take a while to get all those new pieces to come together.
Polson looked out of sync in an opening 78-58 loss to Corvallis, but started to find a groove in a 62-51 win over Frenchtown on Saturday.
First-year head coach Brad Pluff has moved up from his assistant role under long-time coach Karl Tait, who retired a second time from coaching last summer. Tait was known for his slow-down, controlled offense that made a six-point lead seem like mountain for opponents to climb.
Pluff and new assistant coach J.R. Camel are bringing a more up-tempo game back to the Polson gym, which will take some time for the players to get familiar with and work into a fluid flow.
"The kids got used to a new system for five years and now they're switching," Pluff said. "But we've got some good athletes. We just need to change their mindset and keep practicing."
Corvallis proved there's still a lot of practicing to do. The Blue Devils have a similar up-tempo style and demonstrated a lot of familiarity with their system as they ran the floor and attacked the basket all afternoon Friday in Ronan. While Corvallis tweaked its offense in the first half for 28 points, Polson struggled to gel on the offensive end, scoring just 14.......

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More sports...

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It's a rough, eye-opening start for the young Chiefs

Scarlets sink Lady Pirates, fall to Vikings

Lady Pirates get after it, notch pair of wins

Maidens fall to Stevi, Corvallis in tip-off tourney

Five Warriors place in Superior, 2 take gold

Pirates finish strong at Mining City Duals

Bulldogs sputter down the stretch in Superior