The Stevensville Yellowjackets came out on fire and held off the Dillon Beavers to claim a Southwestern A conference victory on Saturday. Stevensville opened up the game with a couple of treys by Caleb Vance and Austin Kelling and built a nine-point lead by the end of the first quarter. Dillon, who had played a tough game the night before in Corvallis, struggled to find their groove in the first quarter while the fresher ‘Jacket team quickly took control of the game.

But the reprieve by the Beavers was short-lived and they quickly stormed back. A jump shot by Dillon sophomore Wes Knox pulled the Beavers to within four points at the half. The pressure continued in the third quarter with the teams matching each other basket-for-basket. By the end of the third quarter, Dillon had a one-point lead.

Dillon extended the lead in the fourth quarter but they didn’t take into account the feistiness of the young Stevi team. Josh Schultz hit a couple of free throws and then Tyler Gavlak hit a trey to pull the ‘Jackets within one point. Gavlak then hit a charity shot to tie the game.

Tyler Gavlak of Stevensville blocks Wes Knox’s shot in the last few minutes of the second half of the Dillon game. Stevensville won, 60-53. Jean Schurman photo.

“I love my kids,” said Stevensville coach Keith Chambers. “They bust their humps no matter what the situation, up by 10 (points) or down by 10. If you have that, you’re going to go places.”

After taking the lead back, the ‘Jackets continued pressuring the Beavers and went on to win, 60-53. The Yellowjackets were led by Kelling’s 21 points and Schultz’s 19 points.

“We lose as a team and we win as a team,” said Chambers.

Stevensville 60, Dillon 53

Dillon - Banning 2, Knox 6, Shephard 8, Walde 8, Rehm 6, Williams 9, Linder 5, Folsom 9.

Stevensville - Austin Kelling 21, Josh Haines 8, Josh Shultz 19, Caleb Vance 6, Tyler Gavlak 6.

The Lady Yellowjackets were also successful on Saturday against Dillon. They defeated the Beavs, 45-34. Dillon took the lead early. Stevensville played solid defense early in the game but couldn’t get open for many shots. McKenzie Sebastian sank a trey early in the second quarter. During the shot she was fouled and when she sank the free throw, the Lady ‘Jackets had the lead. They went on to score 35 points in the second and third quarters and built a solid cushion.

With 6’3” freshman Alycia Sims in the paint and Blaire Brookshire and Alexa Omlid at 5’11” each, the Lady Yellowjackets are tough on the boards and deadly from inside. Brookshire can step outside and hit the long basket as well. Brekka Johnson and Maddie Jones play tough defense and are a threat offensively, too. They also have a solid bench and although young, are playing very tough ball right now.

Stevensville 45, Dillon 34

Dillon - Ferris 2, Brammer 7, Suenram 3, Hahnkamp 2, Staudenmeyer 5, Crabtree 2, Fosse 4, Keck 9.

Stevensville - Brekka Johnson 5, Alexa Omlid 4, Maddie Jones 6, Blaire Brookshire 11, Alycia Sims 15, McKenzie Sebastian 4.

Florence sweeps Hamilton

Hamilton traveled to Florence for an inter-valley match up for both the boys and girls’ teams on Thursday. The Lady Falcons won, 33-19, and the Falcons won, 58-46.

Both the Florence and Hamilton teams were without starters in the girls’ game. Hamilton was short Misha Trotter who was short a few practices over the Christmas break. Florence has lost Taylor Shepard to a season-ending injury. Also sitting out was Brittany Heinz.

Florence held Hamilton to just two points in the second quarter while extending their lead to 10 points at the half. They played a slow and steady game with Kayla Johnson and Courtney Byrne settling into their roles on the floor. Byrne, a freshman, played the wing and according to coach Bryan Neuman, is just a “flat-out competitor.” Johnson, who stepped in under the basket for Shepard, played a solid defensive game.

Hamilton’s Jill Harmon works hard to defend Florence’s Abby Mytty. Florence topped Hamilton, 33-19. Jean Schurman photo.

Hamilton stepped up the pressure in the third quarter behind the play of Jill Harmon and Kaurie Albert. Rebecka Hood also made some good steals. But the Lady Broncs couldn’t get their offense rolling against the 2-3 zone of Florence.

“I’m not really a zone guy,” said Neuman. “But our zone was great tonight. I never had any intention of playing just five players but they got into a rhythm so they stayed in. That was our best overall 32 minutes of play this season.”

Florence was led by Odessa Conley and Abby Mytty who each had nine points. Hood’s six points led Hamilton.

Florence 33, Hamilton 19

Hamilton – Kaurie Albert 5, Jill Harmon 3, Rebecca Hood 6, Annie Schultz 5.

Florence – Abby Mytty 9, Odessa Conley 9, Courtney Byrne 4, Rosie O’Brien 4, Kayla Johnson 7.

In the boys’ game, Hamilton gave up quite a bit of height to the Falcons but made up for it in hustle. The Broncs had a one-point lead at the end of the first quarter. Florence had to adjust to the absence of Brandon Lorensen. Reid Baerlocher stepped up to the point guard position and Adam Greger had a breakout game, scoring 20 points in the 58-46 win. Greger sank back-to-back shots midway through the second quarter to give the Falcons the lead.

“I am really surprised that we struggled so much. But our kids did a nice job of making some adjustments,” said Florence coach Sam Baerlocher.

Hamilton coach Toby Stack was proud of his team’s efforts. He said the Florence team would probably be the biggest team the Broncs play all season. “Give them a lot of credit, they rebounded the ball well and kind of intimidated our boys when they were taking it to the hoop. But our boys stuck with it. We were right there probably 29 of the 32 minutes.”

Hamilton’s super sophomore, Brad Palin, made several steals and dropped in 23 points to lead the Broncs.

Florence 58, Hamilton 46

Hamilton – Brad Palin 23, Zach Stoger 3, Cody Lewis 3, Jeremy Powell 8, Beau Maus 1, Ty Exner 1, Tyler Pigman 2, Jeff Embree 4.

Florence – Adam Greger 20, Reid Baerlocher 12, Quinn Smith 3, Ross Mangun 6, Alex Mitchell 13, Chris Bensen 4.

The Corvallis Blue Devils lost a squeaker at home against Dillon on Friday night. The Blue Devils, who can normally shoot the lights out in their own gym especially, struggled to connect with the basket for much of the game. After trailing by only three points at the end of the half, the Corvallis offense went cold in the third quarter with only a basket by Riley Bradshaw making it in the scorebook.

“We certainly didn’t shoot our best,” said coach Dave Bradshaw. “But we were there, you have to look at the positive. We know we have to rebound better.”

Tyler Tintzman gave the Blue Devils a chance with less than 90 seconds left in the game when he tipped a shot and then was fouled by Dillon’s Wes Knox. One free throw was good and the Blue Devils were only down by one point. Joel Connolly pulled down a huge rebound for Corvallis and was fouled in the process. Again, one shot was good but the game was tied. A last second shot by the Devils didn’t go in and the Beavers had won, 55-52.

“It was heartbreaking,” said Bradshaw. “But on the other hand, it was also exciting. These are the games you live for. We have a lot to look forward to.”

Dillon 55, Corvallis 52.

Dillon – Banning 5, Shephard 18, Walde 5, Linder 7, Folsom 2, Rehm 18.

Corvallis – Drew Zeiler 1, Tyler Tintzman 2, Colby Henderson 1, Rodee Anderson 28, Riley Bradshaw 14, Joel Connolly 6.

The Corvallis girls lost to Dillon, 38-30, on Thursday. Megan Auch had 10 points for the Blue Devils.

In other basketball games, Hamilton defeated Anaconda, 62-51, to remain undefeated in conference play on Saturday night. The Broncs held the Copperheads to only six points in the second quarter to give themselves the edge. They were led by Brad Palin who had 18 points. Beau Maus added 13 points.

In the girl’s game, Anaconda defeated Hamilton, 51-42, in Hamilton. Hamilton had a two-point lead at the end of the first quarter before Anaconda’s Torry Hill went to work. The future Lady Griz player had 36 points in the game. Annie Schultz had 13 points to lead the Lady Broncs.

The Lady Falcons defeated Seeley-Swan, 28-27, at Seeley on Saturday. Conley had nine points and Kayla Johnson added eight for the Falcons in the non-conference win.

Darby lost to Valley Christian, 57-27. Julie Abrahamsen had eight points to lead the Lady Tigers. The boys also lost to Valley Christian, 68-40. Sherman Smith had 13 points for Darby.

Drummond defeated Victor, 49-30, in 13C action. Matt McClintick had nine points to lead the Pirates. The Lady Pirates also lost. On Saturday, Noxon defeated the Pirates, 45-33, and the Lady Pirates lost 51-14.

Corvallis takes title in Western Montana Duals

The Corvallis Blue Devils took top honors at the Western Montana Duals over the weekend. Corvallis upset Frenchtown for the title in a match where Corvallis had five pins for the Blue Devils. Freshman Chase Malone had an unexpected pin in the 98-pound division for the Devils. Also achieving pins were Riley Nagel at 140 pounds, K. Thomas at 145, Duston Stephens at 160, and A. Allen at 189.

The Blue Devils defeated St. Ignatius, Superior, and Thompson Falls on Friday. Saturday they topped Libby and Columbia Falls before taking on Frenchtown in the championship round.

Corvallis coach Dave Bradshaw picked up his 400th win of his coaching career on Tuesday against Darby. Bradshaw, a graduate of Drummond High School, began coaching girls basketball in Stanford, Montana, 28 years ago. That team finished with a record of 10 and 12. “You pride yourself on the fact that you’ve been around that long,” said Bradshaw. “We all want to win all the time but there’s so many other things that count.”

Bradshaw said he’d received several emails from players he’d coached in the past and was very touched by some of the comments. He has been coaching at Corvallis for 20 years. Jean Schurman photo.

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