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Wednesday, February 18, 2009


Sports at a Glance

All stories by Jean Schurman


Hamilton’s Anderson wins championship, Corvallis takes 4th

‘Heck of a comeback’ for Corvallis

‘Jackets, Broncs split at Hamilton

Districts begin this week




Hamilton’s Anderson wins championship, Corvallis takes 4th

Wrestlers from across Montana converged on Billings for the Montana State All Class championships. Hamilton and Corvallis competed at the Class A level, and Florence and Darby competed against other Class B and C schools.

Corvallis finished in fourth place with 132 points. Havre won the Class A team championship with 294.5 points. Belgrade finished second with 179 and Ronan was third with 134 points. Hamilton finished in 11th place with 84 points and one team championship.

Brady Anderson picked up Hamilton’s only championship, winning the 189 division with an 11-4 decision over Philip Pricket of Belgrade. Anderson began his quest for the championship as the No. 1 seed in the tournament at 189 pounds. His first opponent was Layne Johnson of Miles City. It took Anderson just 23 seconds to pin Johnson and advance to the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, Anderson defeated Skyler Carrol of Livingston with a pin at the 1:43 mark of the match. Next up were the semi finals where Anderson defeated Beau Melby of Sidney in a 5-1 decision and advanced to the championship round and the championship.

Wes Sherman of Hamilton finished second in the heavyweight division. Sherman defeated Hardin’s Tyler Malensek with a pin in 42 seconds in the opening round. He then met a familiar foe in the semi finals, Anaconda’s Mike Lucier. Sherman got the pin at 1:27 and advanced to the championship round where he met Michael Schmittgen of Havre. The Harvre grappler pinned Sherman at 3:28 for the championship and Sherman finished in second place.

Troy Capp of Hamilton finished in sixth at 160 pounds. He defeated Jeff Maursteller of Laurel in the first round but was defeated by Havre’s Ethan Hinebauch in the quarter finals. Capp defeated Sidney’s Mac Collins before losing to Jimmy Harding of Miles City in the match for fifth place.

Bronc Paul Donaldson finished in fifth place at 215 pounds. He defeated Trevor Conrad of Glendive with a 13-8 decision but Havre’s Paul Jensen pinned Donaldson and sent him to the wrestlebacks. Donaldson defeated Austin Reyhler of Belgrade and Paul Jensen of Havre to finish his tournament action.

Freshman Travis Davis of Corvallis was the highest placing Blue Devil. He finished second at 119 pounds. Davis was the No. 1 seed going into the competition. He defeated Adam Richardson of Columbia Falls with a pin in 1:59. Davis’ success continued in the quarterfinals with a major decision of 16-2 over Randy Self of Belgrade. Davis then won a 10-4 decision over Brett Normandy of Havre. In the championship round, Davis ran into Kylan Zumph of Miles City who won the bout with an 8-1 decision.

Corvallis had three wrestlers take third – Kenny Thomas, Stephen Jessop and Jeffrey Markette. Thomas, at 112 pounds, pinned Polson’s Nick Howell in his first match. Luke Robinson of Glendive was Thomas’ next victim, who won with another pin. But Frenchtown’s Tyler Stedman ended Thomas’ quest for a title. Thomas defeated Spencer Drescher of Anaconda for third place.

Stephen Jessop defeated Ryan Guenther of Belgrade for third place at 125 pounds with a 3-1 decision. He topped Travis Pete of Columbia Falls in the first round and then went on to defeat Dillon Seely of Havre in the quarterfinals. Ronan’s Cameron Neiss pinned Jessop in the semis.

Jeffrey Markette wrestled in the heavyweight division. He pinned Chase Olson of Glendive in the first round. Markette lost to Michael Schnittgen in the quarterfinals but then came back to top Clint Robinson and Mike Lucier of Anaconda. Markette defeated Kaden Thomas of Polson with a pin to take third place.

Riley Nagel finished in fourth place at 130 pounds. Nagel defeated Kristian Honadel of Havre in a first round 10-5 decision. But Sidney’s Lane Houchin stopped Nagel in the quarterfinals with a pin at 2:24. Nagel then defeated Glendive’s Alex Palmer and Havre’s Kelby Dorn to advance to the match for third. He again met up with Houchin who took third with a 14-1 decision over the Blue Devil Nagel.

Nathan DuBose finished fourth in the 145-pound weight class. DuBose lost the first round to Butte Central’s Kevin Cox in a close 3-2 decision. DuBose then had to make his way through the consolation round. He defeated Tim Kuehn of Laurel, Kameron Prybil and Gordon Gifford - both of Havre, and Tanner Benedict of Whitefish before meeting Cole Schram of Belgrade who defeated DuBose for third with a 12-3 decision.

James DuBose finished fifth at 119 pounds. He lost the first round to Starkel from Ronan and then worked his way through the consolation round. He defeated Laith Wilson of Livingston and Dalton Ueland of Anaconda before losing to Brett Normandy of Havre.

Florence finished 11th in the Class B championship and Darby was 18th. Craig Ashworth was third at 189. Tanner Lund and Corbin Newbary took fifth at 105 and 119 respectively. Kacee Sutton finished sixth at 215.

Darby’s Dalton Roundy took fifth at 130 pounds and Kyle Maki was fifth at 160 pounds.



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‘Heck of a comeback’ for Corvallis

The gym was packed in Corvallis Thursday night for a meeting of the Blue Devils and the Yellowjackets. Each team’s faithful were vocal, energized and ready for the game. And so were the two teams. Stevensville had handed Corvallis a defeat early in the season. The Blue Devils were determined to not have a repeat of that game. It took 30 minutes but the Devils prevailed, claiming a 62-58 victory.

Corvallis began the game with a different look. Sophomore starter Rodee Anderson was on the bench, nursing a sore foot. Although Corvallis put points on the scoreboard first, the ‘Jackets’ young guns and old warriors quickly took the lead when Josh Schultz hit a short jumper over Dalton Sybrant. Anderson came in off the bench to tie the game at 10 all but Schultz once again hit and gave the lead back to Stevensville. Between red-hot shooting and free throws, the Yellowjackets increased the lead to 13 points in the second quarter and left the court with a 10-point lead at the half.


Corvallis' Rodee Anderson shoots over Stevensville's Jeremy Rusnell. Anderson, playing with a sore foot, helped his team come back from a 15-point margin to defeat Stevensville, 62-58. Jean Schurman photo.

The third quarter was shaping up to be more of the same with Stevensville increasing the lead to 14 when Boone Chambers drained a trey from waaay out. But Corvallis was not going to go down without a fight. Drew Zeiler dropped one in and then a free throw to decrease the gap. But the ‘Jackets kept their offense rolling and had the margin at 17 points at the mid point of the third quarter.

It was Anderson again who gave the Blue Devils some momentum. He came off the bench to drain a long three pointer and then drilled another at the buzzer to bring the margin down to seven points.

“It was a big test for them to try and comeback,” said Corvallis coach Dave Bradshaw. “That’s the kind of thing as a coach you wonder, where are their hearts. It was a heck of a comeback in a very physical game.”

Riley Bradshaw made a spin move to the basket for two points and then it was Sybrant for an inside shot and the Blue Devils were down by five. The two teams battled with bodies on the floor and clashing in the air. Although there were three freshmen on the floor for Stevensville and one for Corvallis, they all had nerves of steel and never gave an inch. Corvallis took the lead with 27 seconds left in the game when Anderson hit both free throws.

“We hadn’t lost ot anybody but Sentinel in here,” said Bradshaw of his hometown boys. “That was our goal to keep it that way.”

He went on to say he thought his team hadn’t given Stevensville enough respect at the earlier game. “Stevi really has stepped up. Everybody says they are young. Well, they are but those kids played well. (Ethan) Pateman played hard and Chambers is a good ball player. We really respected them tonight.”

Corvallis 62, Stevensville 58

Stevensville – Boone Chambers 17, Austin Kelling 3, Josh Schultz 9, Tyler Gavlak 6, Ethan Pateman 14, Jeremy Rusnell 7, Caleb Vance 2.

Corvallis – Drew Zeiler 17, Matt Smith 2, Riley Bradshaw 13, Dalton Sybrant 17, Rodee Anderson 12, Jordan Waldo 1.



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‘Jackets, Broncs split at Hamilton

What a difference 24 hours makes. The Stevensville Yellowjackets came back from a disappointing loss in Corvallis to take a 71-46 victory over Hamilton. Stevensville came out strong and quickly built an eight-point lead in the first quarter. But, it looked like it might be déjà vu’ all over again as Hamilton climbed back into the game behind the shooting of Mac Walters who canned two buckets for five points to pull to within two points at the buzzer.

But the seniors for Stevensville stepped up and scored four baskets to give the ‘Jackets some breathing room. Hamilton continued to make runs at Stevensville but were held back.

“I was really proud of the boys tonight,” said coach Keith Chambers. “To come back from an emotional loss last night and to play the way we did tonight, I was really pleased.”


With Stevensville players - Brekka Johnson, Maddie Jones and Alexa Omlid - triple-teaming her, Hamilton's Annie Schultz looks for an open Lady Bronc. Hamilton defeated Stevensville, 52-47. Jean Schurman photo.

The emotion was only on the Stevensville side. It was senior night for Hamilton which is always an emotional time. Coach Toby Stack said that it’s always tough to lose on senior/parent night. “That one burns for a while. It’s tough to go out that way for the boys in white but our team is proud of them.”

Stack started his seniors but brought the younger players in to give the team a boost midway through the first half. “We made a little run there, I thought we were competitive at the half.”

But Stevensville was not to be denied. Boone Chambers drilled a trey to begin the third quarter and then passed to a younger teammate, Josh Schultz, for the next one. The ‘Jackets kept the pressure on and had a 19 point lead at the end of three quarters.

“It’s a pretty simple game if you just do the little things correctly,” said coach Chambers. “It’s good to know that after an emotional loss, you can came back and get a win. If you’re going to be ready for tournament, you have to be ready for anything.”

Stevensville went on to win, 71-46.

Stevensville 71, Hamilton 46

Stevensville – Boone chambers 15, Austin Kelling 7, Jeremy Rusnell 11, josh Schultz 17, Tyler Gavlak 6, Ethan Pateman 12, Caleb Vance 3.

Hamilton – Jake Jessop 9, Kyle Crowley 3, Devin Leonardi 5, Mac Walters 14, Phil Silcher 3, Jeff Embree 1, Tyler Pigman 11.

Hamilton lost to Dillon, in Dillon, on Saturday, 61-52. Jessop and 15 points and Pigman finished with 10 points.

The Hamilton Lady Broncs had their hands full against Stevensville in the early game of the double-header. The two teams battled back and forth early in the first quarter and Hamilton only lead by four points at the buzzer. McKenzie Sebastian came off the bench to score a basket and a free throw to pull the Lady ‘Jackets within one point. Then the Stevi team went to town, playing tough defense and making their shots count. Everyone in the gym held their breath as Hamilton’s Ashley Albert went down hard on her chin and had to leave the game. By the time the half had ended, Stevensville was up, by 13 points. Annie Schultz’s lone trey was the only score for Hamilton in the quarter.

“The first half, we played well,” said Stevensville coach Cody Omlid. But the second half was not as kind to the ‘Lady Yellowjackets. Hamilton kept chipping away at the lead and a three pointer by Schultz, who finished with 18 points, and another basket by Ashley Hayes, pulled the Lady Broncs to within five at the end of the third quarter.

“It’s probably something we needed,” said Hamilton coach Mark Albert of his team’s play in the first half. “Our defense was horrendous. We were trying to something, not too funky but it was enough to throw everybody off. We wanted to cover Blaire (Brookshire).”

But the momentum shifted in the fourth quarter and when Ashley Albert returned to play sporting a bandage on her chin, the Lady Broncs were ready. A banked shot by Ashley Albert and then a swat of a Stevensville shot turned the game around.

“Banked in three pointers, two of them,” mused Omlid. “You know luck is on their side .”

Hamilton went on to win, 52-47.

Hamilton 52, Stevensville 47

Stevensville – Brekka Johnson 9, Lindsey Thorstad 4, Alexa Omlid 11, Maddie Jones 5, Blaire Brookshire 13, McKenzie Sebastian 5.

Hamilton – Ashley Hayes 2, Ali Mildenberger 2, Cierra Smith 4, Ashley Albert 14, Averyl LaSalle 3, Annie Schultz 18, Kaurie Albert 9.

Hamilton lost to Dillon, 46-35, on Saturday. Cierra Smith finished her prep regular season with a game high 11 points.



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Districts begin this week


The regular season ended for Darby, Florence and Victor. All three teams will compete at their District Tournaments this week.

Florence and Darby will play at Hamilton where both the boys and girls 6B tournaments will be held. The Florence boys will play Darby at 8 pm, Wednesday, Feb. 18. The winner of that game will play Seeley Swan on Thursday at 8 p.m. The Florence girls finished in second place and have a first round bye. They will meet the winter of the Seeley-Swan/Darby game at 6:30 on Thursday night. The Darby/Seeley-Swan game on Wednesday is at 6:30 p.m.

Victor will play at Loyola in Missoula. The Lady Pirates will play Arlee at 2:30 on Wednesday afternoon. The Pirates will play Philipsburg at 6 p.m. that same night.

Florence defeated Valley Christian, 78-49, on Thursday. Four Lady Falcons netted double figures with Odessa Conley leading the way with 18 points. Jo Johnston and Katie Niemeir added 12 points and Lindsey Bauck finished with 11 points. The Florence boys defeated Valley Christian 65-48. Reid Baerlocher finished with 22 points and Lorensen 16.

On Friday, it was an inter valley game with Darby for the Lady Falcons. Florence won, 56-16. Conley had 17 points, Johnston 12 and Brittany Heinz added 10.

The Florence boys’ team defeated Darby, 62-56, in a close game. Florence led by two points at the end of three quarters before the Falcons took the win. Brandon Lorensen had 16 points, as did Chris Benson for the Falcons. Darby’s John Pyles had 18 points. Teammate Tyler Bergren added 16, Aaron Larson 12 and Kyle Rider 10.

Victor defeated Darby, 77-46, on Thursday night. Alex Bishop and Gatlin Lamb each had 15 points and Clay Sacks dropped in 21 points. Darby was led by Bergren’s 15 points.

Darby topped Victor in overtime, 48-45, in the girls’ game. Mariah Cress had a break-though game for the Lady Tigers with 22 points. Liz Taylor of Victor had 23 points.

Victor defeated St. Regis, 59-31, on Friday. Lamb finished with 20 points. On the girls’ side, Victor won, topping St. Regis, 63-54. Liz Taylor had 28 points, Teal Patton 15 points, and Emalee Smith 11.



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