by Scott Sacry
The boys and girls basketball teams from Corvallis, Hamilton, and Stevensville traveled to Frenchtown on Friday and Saturday, December 9th and 10th, for the Western A Tip-Off Tournament. Each team played one game each day. The teams were a bit rusty, as it was their first games of the year, but overall they had a successful start to the season.
Hamilton
The Hamilton Boys took 4th at state last year and have a plethora of talent on this year’s squad. Head coach Travis Blome hopes to make another run at state this year. They won both of their games at Frenchtown. On Friday, they played Ronan and won, 67-59. Asher Magness led the way with 17 points, Eli Taylor had 10, and Liam O’Connell added 9. On Saturday they defeated Browning in a back and forth contest, 53-48. Eli Taylor led the way with 13 points, followed by Asher Magness and Cole Dickemore with 11 points each.
The Hamilton girls also made it to state last year and first year head coach Boone Nelson hopes to get them back this year. On Friday, they played Ronan and rolled to a 72-45 victory. They dominated in the second half, outscoring Ronan 37-15 in the final two quarters. Hamilton’s Layne Kearns, who recently signed to play basketball at Seattle Pacific University, led the way with 24 points. Taryn Searle added 17 points and Emilee Searle had 8. On Saturday, they faced a tough Browning squad who also went to state last year. Hamilton started slowly and was down 18-30 at the half and was unable to make up the difference, losing 51-61. Kearns led the way with 24 points in the loss.
Stevi
The Stevensville girls are looking to have a strong season under head coach Bill Fullbright this year. On Friday, they faced a powerful Bigfork squad and lost, 12-58. Shilo Lampi had 4 points and Cambree Praast added 3. This was a devastating loss to be sure, but Bigfork looks to be one of the strongest teams in the state, defeating Butte Central by 68 points on Saturday. The Stevensville girls bounced back on Saturday and defeated Libby, 62-36. The ‘Jackets had a great team effort with 12 girls scoring on offense. Claire Hutchison led with 14 points, followed by Holly St. Germain with 9 and Dawsyn Brewer with 5.
The Stevensville boys are coming off a disappointing season last year and head coach Clayton Curley hopes to improve this season. On Friday, they lost to Bigfork, 13-49. Kellan Beller had 6 points and Brogan Gard added 4. On Saturday, they lost a close, low scoring game to Libby, 30-33. Gracen Trevino led with 10 points, while Kellan Beller added 8 and Tad Tackes added 6.
Corvallis
The Corvallis boys have a deep, athletic team and are led by seniors Aaron Powell, Tyler Weis, and Leif Jessop. They hope for a strong season under head coach Cameron Criddle. On Friday, they defeated Columbia Falls, 66-57. Then on Saturday, they lost to Polson, 56-63. In the Polson game Leif Jessop led the way with 12 points, followed by Aaron Powell with 10.
The Corvallis girls are led by head coach Andy Knapp. They are a young team this year – Tylin Sorensen is the only senior on the roster. On Friday they lost to a strong Columbia Falls team, 24-61. Freshman Ava Loran led with 12 points and Tylin Sorensen added 5. On Saturday, they lost to Polson, 34-46. Megan Jessop led with 14 points, followed by Ava Loren with 8 and Olivia Lewis with 6.