The girls basketball teams from the local Class A schools had mixed results but looked strong in their season openers. Hamilton and Stevensville each won their games on the first day but fell on Saturday. Corvallis lost a close game on Friday to a tough Frenchtown team but came back and rolled over Polson on Saturday.
Friday
The Lady Broncs of Hamilton trailed by one point at the end of three quarters but then Mallory McGill went to town and scored 11 points to power her team over Browning.
Hamilton 49, Browning 46
Hamilton – Tessa DellaSilva 4, Tristy Searle 2, Kara Nye 10, Mallory McGill 11, Reilly Rostad 9, Kailan Rocheleau 2, Rachael Ringer 7, Lauren Ryter 4.
Browning – Wings 4, Croff 10, Goss 2, Mad Plume 7, Hall 5, Jordon 7, Reed 2, Jordon 9.
The Lady ‘Jackets scored 20 points in the final frame to notch their first win of the season. Sophomores Megan Pendergast and Angel Richards scored 15 and 13 points respectively to pace the Stevensville team.
Stevensville 55, Whitefish 36
Stevensville – Megan Pendergast 15, Angel Richards 13, Evynne Alexander 8, Makayla Davids 6, Hannah Fry 5, Haley Kampka 4, Kayla Schmiedeke 4.
Whitefish – Catina 12, Brown 11, Schulz 6, Vasquez 4, Nagler 2, Bender 1.
Corvallis, who only has seven players on the varsity team, had a strong start but couldn’t hold off the Lady Broncs in the third quarter. That proved to be the difference as the Blue Devils fell, 52-47, to Frenchtown.
Frenchtown 52, Corvallis 47
Corvallis – Emme Warnken 15, Lainie Albright 10, Corinne Sanderson 8, Genesis Keith 8, Penny Jessop 4, Steffani Stoker 2.
Frenchtown – Williams 13, Hinrichs 13, Willett 11, Hochhalter 9, Bagwell 3, Statelen 2, Delaney 1.
The Stevensville Lady Yellowjackets stayed with the Browning team for most of the game but were unable to pull ahead. Browning won, 54-43. Hannah Fry, a sophomore, and Makayla Davids, the only senior on the team, each tallied 11 points in the game.
Browning 54, Stevensville 43
Stevensville – Hannah Fry 11, Makayla Davids 11, Megan Pendergast 8, Angel Richards 8, Evynne Alexander 5.
Browning – Croff 13, R. Jordan 10, Crowspreadshiswings 6, Yellow Kidney 5, Mad Plume 5, Hall 4, T. Jordan 4, Reed 4, Goss 3.
Hamilton took on Columbia Falls who finished second in the state last season. The WildKats are an experienced team with quite a bit of height and speed. Columbia Falls won, 60-46
Columbia Falls 60, Hamilton 46
Hamilton – Tessa DellaSilva 6, Tristy Searle 6, Kara Nye 6, Mallory McGill 11, Reilly Rostad 7, Rachael Ringer 2, Lauren Ryter 8.
Columbia Falls – Douglas 8, Finberg 9, Kehr 12, R. Kehr 3, Burlage 24, Cowan 2, Hovde 2.
Corvallis set the pace in the first quarter in their game against Polson with 22 points and went on to win, 75-46. Strong outside play by Calla Haldorson and Corinne Sanderson netted a combined 47 points for the duo. Penny Jessop and Genesis Keith were strong defensively and controlled the boards.
Corvallis 75, Polson 46
Corvallis – Steffani Stoker 3, Penny Jessop 4, Calla Haldorson 23, Emme Warnken 8, Corinne Sanderson 24, Lainie Albright 11, Genesis Keith 2.
Polson – Lefthand 10, Smith 16, Motichka 4, Fisher 12, Gravelle 2, Perez 2.