The Corvallis Blue Devils had to match up against their fiercest rivals this week, Hamilton and Stevensville. Although both games were tough and physical, the Blue Devils came away with two wins and maintain their spot at the top of the Southwestern A conference.

Although Corvallis doesn’t have a true big man in the middle, Joel Connolly, a 5’11” senior has been given that role. According to Corvallis coach Dave Bradshaw, Connolly has accepted his role as the big guy and gets his job done. Aiding Connolly is junior Stuart Landis who stands six feet tall and is not afraid to get physical with the bigger players in the middle.

“Joel and Stuart have done a good job on kids like Tyler Pigman,” said Bradshaw.

Connolly not only held Pigman to four points in the 58-41 Corvallis victory but also scored 10 points himself. Corvallis led throughout the game but Coach Bradshaw didn’t rest until the final buzzer.

Rodee Anderson floats above the teams as he shoots one of his long shots during Corvallis’ game against Stevensville. Anderson finished with 19 points for the Blue Devils. Jean Schurman photo.

“Hamilton has a good team,” he said. “I would watch out for them.”

Riley Bradshaw had 22 points to lead the Blue Devils. Hamilton was led by Brad Palin’s 13 points. Beau Maus added 10 points for the Broncs.

Corvallis 58, Hamilton 41

Corvallis - Jan Zdralele 2, Logan Connors 3, Rodee Anderson 7, Trevor Brown 3, Colby Henderson 11, Riley Bradshaw 22, Joel Connolly 10.

Hamilton - Brad Palin 13, Eli Rogers 2, Jeremy Powell 2, Dace Moerkerke 4, Beau Maus 10, Graham Silcher 6, Tyler Pigman 4.

On paper, the Blue Devils and the Yellowjackets match up quite well. They are about the same size, are quick and both teams have players that can shoot the lights out. But for Corvallis, when teams are concentrating on trying to limit Riley Bradshaw’s shooting, Rodee Anderson will step up and pick up the slack.

After trailing by three points at the end of the first quarter, the Blue Devils came back to top Stevensville, 64-48. Riley Bradshaw had 30 points and Anderson added 19.

“No excuses here,” said coach Keith Chambers of his Stevensville team. “We know Red (Riley Bradshaw) is going to get his points. We had our opportunities but when it gets away from you, what do you do?”

Chambers mixed his players up, trying to find a combination that could slow down Corvallis but couldn’t quite come up with the right mix. He said his team made some poor decisions but went on to say Corvallis played well as a team.

Coach Bradshaw said the two teams are very much alike. “Stevensville is known for their defense but we’re getting to be known for our defense too.”

In fact, it was Corvallis’ defense that held off the ‘Jackets early in the third quarter when a basket by Josh Schultz pulled Stevensville within five points. The Blue Devils tightened up their defensive play and stepped up the rebounding. Connolly scored off an offensive rebound and the Blue Devils took off again. Coach Bradshaw credited Anderson and junior Colby Henderson for keeping Josh Schultz from scoring over 20 points.

“They worked so hard,” said Chambers of his team. “Now we go back to practice.”

Stevensville was led by Josh Schultz’ 19 points. Tyler Gavlak added 11 points.

Corvallis 64, Stevensville 48

Stevensville - Josh Schultz 19, Tyler Gavlak 11, Zach Gavlak 6, Austin Kelling 6, Brendan Jones 2, Austin Lords 4.

Corvallis - Logan Connors 1, Colby Henderson 8, Rodee Anderson 19, Riley Bradshaw 30, Joel Conley 2, Trevor Brown 4.

Stevensville upended Frenchtown, 70 – 41, on Thursday. After a slow first quarter, the Yellowjackets cruised to a Southwest A win. Josh Schultz had 26 points and the Gavlak brothers – Tyler and Zach – scored 15 and 11 points respectively.

Stevensville 70, Frenchtown 45

Frenchtown - Daniel Lebsock 7, Jackson Mahlum 9, Austin Blank 14, Dustin Tucker 1, Brydon Peacock 4, Ryan Anderson 10.

Stevensville - Jared Schultz 6, Caleb Vance 2, Josh Schultz 26, Tyler Gavlak 15, Zach Gavlak 11, Brendan Jones 7, Josh Haynes 1, Austin Lords 2.

Hamilton gave the Dillon Beavers a scare on Friday. The Broncs came out and controlled the first quarter. They took a seven-point lead into the second period and were tied with the Beavers at the half. Dillon went on to win, 60-51, but the Broncs were in the game the entire time. Palin dropped in 21 points for the Broncs and Beau Maus added nine.

Dillon 60, Hamilton 51

Dillon - Austin Williams 5, Ben Folsom 5, Wes Knox 13, Tyson Reese 8, Evan Williams 4, J.T. Linder 9, Monte Folsom 16.

Hamilton - Zach Stoeger 6, Brad Palin 21, Cody Lewis 6, Jeremy Powell 1, Dace Moerkerke 1, Beau Maus 9, Graham Silcher 5, Tyler Pigman 2.

Florence won both of their games this past week. The Falcons took on valley rival Darby on Friday night. The Falcons came out on fire and scored 30 points in the first quarter. They went on to win, 67-45. Florence was led by Adam Greger’s 22 points. Quinn Smith added 14 for the Falcons. Devin Thomas had 15 points for the Tigers. Sherman Smith added 14.

Florence 67, Darby 45

Darby - Dante Fernandez 6, Jeremy Campbell 4, Dylan Leider 2, Sherman Smith 14, Devin Thomas 15, Sterling Kim 2, Luke Meuchel 2.

Florence - Ross Mangun 11, Chantz Hotsinpiller 4, Adam Huot 4, Adam Greger 22, Quinn Smith 14, Dylan Reynolds 2, Riley Phillips 2, Michael Finlay 4, Aaron Ward 4.

Florence topped Valley Christian on Saturday, 60-36. The Falcons outscored the Eagles by 23 points in the first half and then cruised to the 6B win. It was Greger and Smith again leading the scoring. Greger had 23 points and Smith had 15 points as the Falcons continued their undefeated conference run and improved to 5-0 in conference play and 8-2 overall.

Florence 60, Valley Christian 36

Florence - Ross Mangun 7, Ryne Baerlocher 7, Adam Huot 4, Adam Greger 23, Quinn Smith 15, Aaron Ward 2, Riley Phillips 2.

Valley Christian - Matthew Bohlken 20, Lincoln Palmer 4, Coty Becker 2, Alex Love 1, Lane Norberg 9.

Victor added two more to the win column over the weekend with non-conference wins over Two Eagle River and St. Regis. The Pirates relied on a 24-point fourth quarter to claim the come-from-behind 61- 60 win. Dalton Buker had 22 points and Kyle Ball added 15 in the win.

Victor 61, Two Eagle 60

Victor - Dennis Mitcham 9, Randy Lewis 6, Kyle Ball 15, Dalton Buker 22, Kirk Manely 4, Corey Deering 5.

Two Eagle River - TJ Cutfinger 9, Skyler Rossbach 5, Marcus Brown 16, Artie Mendoza 9, Clayton Malatare 16, Trevor Butterfly 5.

Victor traveled to St. Regis on Saturday and scored exactly the same amount of points, 61, but held the Tigers to only 28 points.

Victor 61, St. Regis 28

Victor - Dennis Mitcham 8, Randy Lewis 3, Corey Deering 8, Matt Kittle 1, Kyle Ball 16, Dalton Baker 9, Kurt Manely 5, Tanner Sacks 5, Randy Miller 2, Nate Bishop 4.

St. Regis - Thomas Spencer 10, Shadrick Rich 2, Spur Hill 2, Brit Ramsey 4, Jarrod Tippens Jr. 9, Steven Mellen 1.

Stevensville wins again

After a slow beginning, the Lady Yellowjackets came away with a Southwest A conference win over Corvallis, 56-26. Stevensville trailed by one point at the end of the first quarter but came back when Alycia Sims got hot and scored 12 points in the second. She went on to score 24 in the game.

“We weren’t moving,” said Stevensville coach Brandon Day. “We were stagnant and they were handling our offense pretty good.”

Stevensville picked up their pressure that created several fast breaks and their offense was off and running. The tandem of Blaire Brookshire and Sims was almost unstoppable underneath where Corvallis gave up several inches in height to the two. Day said they had a great game offensively and Baylee Bergman picked up on defense.

The Blue Devils leading scorer, Jen Mosbrucker, sprained her ankle the night before and didn’t play. This gave Coach Jeff Olson a chance to try a few different combinations on the floor. He was pleased with how Anne Jessop stepped up and ran the offense for the Blue Devils. She finished with seven points. Korie Conder led all Corvallis scoring with 10 points.

Blaire Brookshire of Stevensville looks for an opening as Corvallis’ Korie Conder plays tough defense. The Lady Yellowjackets won, 56-26. Jean Schurman photo.

Stevensville 56, Corvallis 26

Stevensville - Bailey Vercruyssen 5, Baylee Bergman 7, McKenzie Sebastian 5, Alycia Sims 24, Britney Chilcott 6, Blaire Brookshire 9.

Corvallis - Sadi Henderson 2, Anne Jessop 7, Samantha Stoker 3, Katrina Powell 2, Marissa Powell 2, Korie Conder 10.

The Lady Broncs ran into a tough Dillon team on Saturday. Dillon won, 47-20. Kaurie Albert had eight points in the game.

Dillon 47, Hamilton 20

Dillon - Kate Ferris 1, Alex Brammer 18, Amanda Reed 7, Charlee Hahnkamp 2, Carly King 3, Faith Keck 5, Susan Tangmo 11.

Hamilton - Rebecka Hood 2, Presley Chadwick 1, Kaurie Albert 8, Kara Wetzsteon 4, Casey Shifflett 2, Mary Conwell 3.

Florence defeated Darby, 45-30, in District 6B action. Although the game was close to begin with, the Lady Falcons pulled away for the win. Rosie O’Brien had 15 points and Brittany Heinz had 11 point for Florence. Latisha Smith had 11 points for Darby.

Florence 45, Darby 30

Florence - Courtney Byrne 4, Brittany Heinz 11, Rosie O'Brien 15, Kayla Johnson 3, Jill Harris 4, Carli O'Brien 2, Kyndall Hoff 2, Cass Skeers 4.

Darby - Haley Rennaker 2, Julie Abrahamsen 6, Sarah Jakober 5, Latisha Smith 11, Brianna Massey 6.

The Lady Falcons lost to Valley Christian, 47-39, on Saturday night. Heinz and O’Brien each had 12 points for Florence.

Valley Christian - Hollyn Wittmier 7, Tessa Pearson 11, Heidi Cross 6, Charisa Ireland 10, Dezaree Dargan 6, Kaylee Velin 7.

Florence - Courtney Byrne 9, Brittany Heinz 12, Grace Zeiler 4, Rosie O'Brien 12, Jill Harris 2.

Victor split their games over the weekend. They lost to Hot Springs, 55-49. A strong fourth quarter by the Savage Heat was the downfall for the Lady Pirates. Liz Taylor had 18 points for the Lady Pirates.

Hot Springs 55, Victor 49

Victor - Shai Scheffer 6, Haley Tillotson 3, Ryanne Tracy 7, Rachel Borowiec 3, Skye Mitcham 10, Kaylene Munson 2, Liz Taylor 18.

Hot Springs - Meghan Massingale 11, Hannah Retalick 10, Erin Schmidbauer 5, Alex Green 15, Laurel Schmidbauer 2, Alyssa Foster 11.

Victor cruised to a 62-45 win over St. Regis on Saturday. Taylor finished with 23 points and Haley Tillotsen had 12 points.

Victor 62, St. Regis 45

Victor - Haley Tillotsen 12, Ryanne Tracey 6, Rachel Boroweic 5, Skye Mitchum 3, Liz Taylor 23, Shai Scheffer 9, Desi Charleton 4.

St. Regis - Gabby Moeller 9, Julianna Spencer 11, Arianna Jones 19, Leandra Baldwin 4, Shelby Berg 2.

Strong showing for valley wrestlers

The Rocky Mountain Classic in Missoula and the Choteau Classic up north had the local wrestlers on the road this weekend. Hamilton and Corvallis were in Missoula while Florence and Darby went to Choteau. Florence finished in fifth place and Darby brought home one championship. Corvallis had a strong showing at the Classic that featured teams from Spokane, Washington, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and several Class AA schools.

Christian Hammersmith brought home the 135-pound championship from Choteau. He topped another Bitterrooter, Cody Lund of Florence, 10-6 for the win. Tanner Evers of Darby lost on a technical fall to Townsend’s Val Rauser for the 130-pound championship. Dalton Roundy also finished second with a loss to Wedal of Choteau. Roundy is from Darby. KC Sutton of Florence lost at 215 to Brock Caivi of Cut Bank in the championship.

Three Falcons made it to the third place matches. Kody Davidson defeated Kris Whitish of Cascade/Sims with a pin at 2:49. Tanner Lund lost to Christian Smith of Cascade/Sims in a 9-7 decision. Zac Newbary won by default over John Schlosser of Conrad.

In the battles for fifth place, a Darby wrestler and a Florence wrestler each won. Caleb Caicedo defeated Landen Shettel of Malta, 7-5, at 125 pounds. Tanner Cobbs of Florence defeated Matt Welch of Shelby win a pin at 3:44.

With 27 teams competing at the Rocky Mountain Classic, making it to the championship is a long, tough road. Corvallis had two wrestlers in the championship. Levi Gingerich lost a 10-3 decision to Tyler Clark of University High of Spokane at 112 pounds. Travis Davis wrestled Jeremy Goldin of Mead, Washington, and lost a major decision at 135 pounds. Devan Williams defeated Lewistown’s Jim Malone at 140 pounds to take third. He won that match with a major decision. Riley Nagel of Corvallis finished fifth with a 11-4 decision over Flathead’s Jermiah Gaiser. Blue Devil Quincy Jessop won a 2-0 decision over Erik Dewing of Hellgate to take seventh place at 152.

Hamilton had two wrestlers in the top eight places. At 171 pounds, Troy Capp lost a major decision to Cole McArthur of Ronan. Forest Fortney pinned Darby Mier of Big Sky at 189 pounds in just 29 seconds.

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