Rock the Gym Night in Corvallis is a mixture of rock music, prize give-always and of course, wrestling. The music pounds as the wrestlers warm up, creating a buzz throughout the crowd. With generous donations by valley businesses, door prizes ranging from Subway sandwiches to auto detailing are handed out between matches. Grandmas and grandpas, moms and dads and younger and older siblings are all on hand to cheer on the athletes. In short, it’s a heck of a lot of fun!

Although Hamilton has some young wrestlers and not as many numbers as Corvallis does, Bronc coach Chad Williams felt his team did well overall. “Corvallis is good but our guys are tough,” he said. “Paul (Donaldson) wrestled a good match and Troy Capp had an exceptional match.”

The match between Hamilton’s Troy Capp (right) and Corvallis’ Duston Stephens was one of the highlights of the Rock the Gym night in Corvallis. Jean Schurman photo.

Although the Blue Devils dominated the night, the match between Troy Capp and Duston Stephens was close. Capp got the pin late in the match but it was their closest match this year.

The heavyweight match was also close between Hamilton’s Wes Sherman and Jeff Markette. Sherman had not lost to Markette all season but Thursday night saw that change. The match was anyone’s guess until Markette got the upper hand and made the pin. As the ref slapped the mat, it was evident Sherman had been injured. Earlier in the week, he’d aggravated a football injury and that knee had flared up.

“That heavyweight match was a big win for us but Wes getting hurt was not that fun,” said Corvallis coach Jeff Nagel.

Nagel said his team is right on track for success at the end of the season. They have a strong work ethic both on the mat and in the classroom. He conceded the Jug Beck Rocky Mountain Classic that they were competing in on Friday and Saturday was a very tough tournament but felt it would help his wrestlers in the long run.

“It will be a bump in the road,” said Nagel. “We aren’t going to place a lot of kids but they can see what kind of kids they have to beat.”

Corvallis finished 12th in the 29-team tournament that was held at Sentinel High School in Missoula. University High of Spokane won the tournament.

Here are the Blue Devils who placed at the Jug Beck Classic. Chace Malone finished sixth in at 98 pounds. At 105 pounds, Marcus Malone finished fourth. Levi Gingerich finished seventh at 112 pounds. James DuBose was eighth at 119 pounds. Riley Nagel finished sixth at 140 pounds. Markette finished eighth in the heavyweight division.

Florence competed at the Choteau Classic on Saturday. The Falcons finished eighth and Darby 10th in the tournament, which featured teams from Class B and C from across the state. Kody Davidson finished third at 112 pounds. Cody Lund defeated Dalton Roundy of Darby for third place at 135 pounds. Zach Newbary was third at 145 pounds and KC Sutton finished third at 215 pounds. Corbin Newbary was sixth at 130 pounds.

In addition to Roundy, Darby also had a fourth place finish from Christian Hammersmith and Hayden Gandy was sixth at 145.

Corvallis 72, Hamilton 15

98 – Chase Malone, C, won by forfeit; 105 – Marcus Malone, C, won by forfeit; 112, Levi Gingerich, C, won by forfeit; 119 – James DuBose, pin, Kyle Lubke, 5:16; 125 – Kenny Thomas, C, pin Landon Faulk, 1:32; 130 – Devin Williams, C, pin, Jeremy Hamilton, 1:38; 135 – Steven Jessup, C, pin, Kalob Ledford, 3:49; 140 – Riley Nagel, C, won by forfeit; 145 – Kyle Thomas, C, won by forfeit; 152 – Morgan Williams, C, pin, Parker Richards, 3:27; 160 – Troy Capp, H, pin, Dustin Stevens, 5:03; 171 – Austin Allen, C, won by forfeit; 189 – Forest Fortney, H, pin, Jacade Owings, 1:45; 215 – Paul Donaldson, H, dec. Dan Sanderson, 14-7; Hwt – Jeff Markette, C, pin Wes Sherman, 3:54.

Excitement high at cross-valley match-up

The Stevensville gym was packed on Friday night when the Yellowjackets and Blue Devils met on the hardwood. By the time the boys took the floor, every possible spot was taken and several people were turned away at the door.

First up were the girls. The Corvallis team stayed with the much taller Lady ‘Jackets for most of the first quarter and were only down by three points at the buzzer. A basket by Corvallis’ Coral Higuera pulled the Blue Devils to within one point but that was as close as they’d come in the game. Stevensville won, 55-34.

“I thought we played well early in the game,” said Corvallis coach Barry Lemon. “We played with them.”

But then Stevensville went on a run, moving the ball on the perimeter which opened up the inside where Alycia Sims at 6’3 could get the easy basket. Sims finished the night with 24 points.

Corvallis guard Kelsey Lemon brings the ball down the court with Stevensville’s Brekka Johnson playing some tough defense on her. Jean Schurman photo.

“We still have a little trouble executing our zone offense,” said Stevi coach Cody Omlid. He went on to say his team has the tendency to ‘run and gun’ but when they execute the plays, they are successful.

Stevensville 55, Corvallis 34

Corvallis – Kelsey Lemon 2, Coral Higuera 13, Megan Auch 10, Korie Conder 6, Jen Mosbrucker 3.

Stevensville – McKenzie Sebastian 3, Brekka Johnson 6, Blaire Brookshire 14, Alycia Sims 24, Alexa Omlid 4, Bailey Vercruyssen 2, Britney Chilcott 2.

The ‘Jacket gym was buzzing by the time the boys took to the court. The speedy Blue Devils built an early lead with the three guards – Drew Zeiler, Rodee Anderson, and Riley Bradshaw – each knocking down a long basket. But the young Stevensville team found their composure and chipped away at the lead. A basket by Stevi’s Caleb Vance pulled them to within three points but then Corvallis stepped up their defense and created two five second turnovers late in the second quarter. Corvallis kept the pressure up in the second half and went on to win, 66-53. Bradshaw had 25 points for Corvallis while Tyler Gavlak had 14 points for Stevensville.

Corvallis 66, Stevensville 53

Corvallis – Drew Zeiler 9, Tyler Tintzman 2, Rodee Anderson 16, Riley Bradshaw 25, Joel Connelly 6, Mahlone Jessop 6, Colby Henderson 2.

Stevensville – Austin Kelling 4, Josh Haynes 4, Josh Schultz 12, Caleb Vance 9, Tyler Gavlak 14, Price Miller 2, Brendan Jones 8.

Stevensville traveled to Frenchtown on Saturday where both the boys and girls teams were successful. The boys defeated Frenchtown, 65-49. Three Yellowjackets were in double figures. Vance finished with 16 points, Josh Schultz with 14 and Austin Kelling with 11 points.

The Frenchtown girls had knocked off defending state champion Anaconda earlier this month and so the Stevensville team felt this would be a good indicator of their strengths and weaknesses. Stevensville took an early lead and never looked back in the 62-39 victory over the Broncs. Sims finished with 22 points, Blaire Brookshire had 15 points and Alexa Omlid had 13 points.

Darby and Victor split

The Darby boys came out playing strong pressure defense and hitting key shots early in the game and had a five-point lead at the end of the first quarter. But then Victor’s Dustin Harris went to work, taking the outside shot or hitting post Matt McClintick inside. Victor, who traditionally plays more of a slow-down offensive style, picked up the tempo and created several baskets on transition.

“We let the kids loose with a faster style,” said Victor coach Jay Jagelski. “We ended up with a lot of shots and a much higher score but we have a very athletic group of guards that are confident. Plus we have a couple of strong posts.”

Although Darby had a strong first quarter, they struggled with turnovers and missing shots. The Tigers’ big guy, Devin Thomas, had a great night rebounding, which coach Scott Marsh was pleased with.

Halie Rennaker (10) and Heidi Heiland (33) surround Victor’s Brooke Hochhalter during the Darby/Victor game, which was won by Darby. Jean Schurman photo.

“He’s got a tough job this year because our district has so many big guys. Tonight was one of the better jobs he’s done rebounding.”

Victor won, 67 to 48. McClintick had 18 points for the Pirates. Thomas had 12 points for the Tigers and Travis Koch finished with 10.

Victor 67, Darby 48

Victor - Randy Lewis 6, Dustin Harris 13, Alex Bishop 10, Kyle Ball 11, Matt McClintick 18, Dennis Mitcham 3, Dalton Buker 6.

Darby - Travis Koch 10, Tyler Bergren 7, Sherman Smith 8, Devin Thomas 12, Josh McCrossin 2, Jeremy Campbell 2.

The Darby Lady Tigers had a strong night against a much smaller Lady Pirate team. Julie Abrahamsen’s 14 points led Darby. Victor’s Shay Schaffer had six points in the 65-22 game.

Darby 65, Victor 22

Victor - Shay Schaffer 6, McKenzie Melton 2, Brooke Hochhalter 4, Savanna Mitcham 4, Adrianne Cox 2, Rachel Borowic 4.

Darby - Halie Rennaker 5, Alex Bronk 2, Rachel Wetzsteon 9, Julie Abrahamsen 14, Brekken Greene 2, Sarah Jakober 10, Heidi Heiland 6, Mindy Ruby 11, Brianna Massey 4, Keonna Cartaglia 2.

Florence defeated Darby on Friday night, 74-27. Five Falcons tallied double figures. Reid Baerlocher, Brandon Lorensen and Alex Mitchell each had 13 points while Quinn Smith and Adam Gregor added 12 points apiece. Sherman Smith had 11 points for Darby.

The Lady Falcons defeated Darby, 52-31. Odessa Conley had 14 points for Florence while Abrahamsen had eight points for Darby.

Victor defeated St. Regis, 47-18. Freshman Kyle Ball and senior Matt McClintick each had 10 points for Victor. The Lady Pirates lost.

Hamilton fell to Dillon, 36-30. Kaurie Albert and Annie Schultz each had nine points for the Lady Broncs. The Broncs also lost to Dillon, 58-45. Beau Maus had 10 points to lead the Broncs.

‘Cheer for the Cure’ scheduled

On Tuesday, January 26, Stevensville will host the Hamilton Broncs in a double header. The girls’ teams will take to the floor at 5:45. The boys’ game will follow that. The Stevensville Pep Club is sponsoring ‘Cheer for the Cure’ to raise money for breast cancer awareness. They are asking that all fans, both Hamilton and Stevensville, wear pink in support of this cause. In addition, there will be awards for most ‘pinked out’ students. The teams will be wearing hot pink shoelaces and hopefully all of the coaches will be in pink as well. The Stevensville pep club will be wearing pink tie-dye shirts.

There will also be an auction and several raffles. Baked goods and a blanket will be auctioned. Raffle items include gift certificates from local businesses.

Tammy Johnson, pep club coordinator, said the idea came from a couple of cheerleaders, Melissa Diforti and Rochelle Kutter.

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