The Lady Falcons of Florence went into the Western B tournament as the No. 3 seed from 6B. Their first game was against Eureka, the No. 2 seed from District 7B. The game was close throughout with Eureka maintaining the lead by a couple of points. As regulation time ran out however, Florence tied up the game off a steal and a long three point shot. The two teams battled throughout the extra time period with Emma Stensrud sinking one of two free throws in the final minute of the game. Florence had a chance to add to the lead but a traveling call gave the ball to Eureka who converted that into a basket and the lead. With less than 10 seconds remaining, Stensrud took the ball out for the inbounds play. She found Kassidy Yeoman who took the ball and sprinted for a layup. The shot was good just as the buzzer sounded. Final score, Florence, 53, Eureka 52. Yeoman finished with 20 points.
Florence 53, Eureka 52.
Eureka – Reena Truman 13, Katie Schmidt 9, Karlee Frost 9, Michael Shea 8, Jadyn Pluid 7, Megan Hanson 4, Avory Escobar 2.
Florence – Kasidy Yeoman 20, Emma Stensrud 11, Trista Williams 8, Kylie Kovatch 5, Kolbi Wood 4, Kelsen Zahn 3, Josie Lewis 2.
The win over Eureka set the stage for the semi final game against Loyola, the No. 1 seed from District 6B. The two teams had already met twice this season with Loyola coming out on top both times. Although Florence only trailed Loyola by four points at the half, more disturbing was the fact that Yeoman already had three fouls. But that didn’t slow her down. She came out in the third quarter and quickly scored a field goal to bring the game within two points. Stensrud and Kolbi Wood each picked up a foul, Stensrud’s third, and Wood’s second.
Florence’s defense cut into the offense of Loyola and by the end of the third quarter, the game was tied after Stensrud hit a long trey. After hitting a long thee pointer and then a free throw, Loyola went into a stall and ran the clock down almost two minutes. But Florence was patient and didn’t foul. After a confusing call by the refs on a second free throw, Loyola had a four point lead until Yeoman hit a trey to pull within one point at 35-34. Florence was unable to make another shot and the game ended with Loyola taking the win, 35-34.
Missoula Loyola 35, Florence-Carlton 34
Florence – Kasidy Yeoman 10; Emma Stensrud 8; Kolbi Wood 6; Kylie Kovatch 5; Trista Williams 4; Kelsen Zahn 1.
Loyola – Syd Koppang 10; Sam Clevenger 9; Lani Walker 7; Natalie Clevenger 6; Kelsey Esh 2; Brooke Twite 1.
The loss sent the Lady Falcons to loser out action on Saturday morning where they met up with Anaconda. Florence came out strongly in the first quarter and held a slight lead. But Anaconda caught fire in the second and went on to win, 58-46. Stensrud finished her high school career with 16 points in the game. She is the only senior on the team.
Anaconda 58, Florence-Carlton 46
Anaconda – Isabel Saltenberger 16; Mia Sullivan Sanders 9; Kora Kelly 9; Logan Stetzner 9; Sami Johnson 6; Megan Reich 5; Alyssa Peterson 4.
Florence – Emma Stensrud 16; Kylie Kovatch 10; Trista Williams 7; Kasidy Yeoman 6; Kolbi Wood 4; Josie Lewis 3.