by Scott Sacry
The story of the Class A State girls tournament in Bozeman on March 9th-11th was the dominance of the teams from Eastern Montana. The Eastern A teams took all four places, and no team from the West beat a team from the East. The Hamilton girls lost, 49-71, in their first round game against Billings Central on Thursday, March 9th. This sent them to a loser out game against Browning on Friday where they played a great game and won, 68-47. Finally, they played Laurel in the consolation semifinal and lost, 58-62. This ended a successful season for the Lady Broncs where they took 2nd in divisionals and won a game at the state tournament. They will miss seniors Taryn Searle, Layne Kearns, and Alexes Brenneman, but the future looks bright for Hamilton as they have a strong group of girls coming back next year.
Hamilton 49, Billings Central 71
In the first round Hamilton lost to Billings Central, 49-71. The Lady Broncs started quickly behind a solid defensive effort and were up 21-13 early in the game. Central couldn’t stop Layne Kearns going to the basket and she had 12 points in the 1st quarter. But from that point on, Central controlled the game. Over the next two quarters, Hamilton’s shooting went cold and they were outscored 17-37. They got on track in the 4th, but it was too late as Central rolled to the victory. Kearns led with 17 points, Taryn Searle had 13, Taylor McCarthy had 9, and Alexes Brenneman had 6.
Hamilton 68, Browning 47
Hamilton’s 68-47 victory over Browning. Photo by Scott Sacry.
In Friday’s loser out game, Hamilton soundly defeated a talented Browning squad. Seniors Taryn Searle and Layne Kearns weren’t going to let their season end and put the team on their shoulders and willed them to victory. The first half was even with Hamilton leading 34-29. Hamilton ramped up the defensive pressure after halftime, holding a high-powered Browning offense to only 4 points in the third quarter and outscoring Browning 34-18 in the 2nd half. Taryn Searle got hot from beyond the arc and hit 5 three-pointers and scored 20 points. Layne Kearns had a monster game with 30 points, 13 rebounds, 3 steals, and went 12-15 from the free throw line. Emilee Searle and Taylor McCarthy each added 5 points.
Hamilton 58, Laurel 62
On Saturday morning, Hamilton played Laurel. The teams were literally even in the first half – it was tied 14-14 after one quarter and 27-27 at halftime. But to start the 3rd quarter Hamilton got flustered by Laurel’s full court press and Laurel went on a 14-2 run and led 37-49 at the start of the 4th. It looked like Laurel was going to run away with the victory, but Hamilton fought back and went on a 11-2 run to start the 4th. Their full court press agitated Laurel, and with 4:30 left in the game they closed the gap to 48-51. But they would get no closer. Down the stretch the ball didn’t bounce Hamilton’s way and, although they fought hard, they lost in the end. Layne Kearns continued her excellent play and had 17 points, 16 rebounds, and 4 steals. Taryn Searle had 11 points, 4 assists and 2 steals, and Taylor McCarthy and Ashlynn McKern each added 10 points.