Hi-Line Girls Basketball Roundup

When the last weekend of January arrives, it means that girls basketball teams can start to see the finish line. And along the Hi-Line, that also means things start to get really intense and really entertaining.

And the last weekend in January certainly provided all of that, especially in the District 9C.

The action started Thursday night as the Fort Benton Longhorns picked up a critical conference win over North Star, 39-34 in Rudyard. The Longhorns trailed at the start of the fourth quarter, but they closed the game on an 11-2 run.

Leah Gannon paced Fort Benton with 14 points, while the Knights got 14 from Sheridan O’Neil in the close loss.

Thursday night also saw Box Elder dismantle Denton-Geyser-Stanford, 59-19 to stay unbeaten.

There were more big games Friday night, starting in Chinook where the Sugarbeeters welcomed in arch rival Chester/J-I. And once again, the Beeters and Hawks waged a great battle, one Chinook won 42-33. The game was tight until Chinook’s defense clamped down on the Hawks in the fourth period, forcing C/J-I to go the final eight minutes without a single point.

Abby Ellison and Kelsey Mathon each scored 10 points for Chinook in the win, while Khloe Kammerzell scored nine for the Hawks.

Friday night was also a big night for the struggling Hays-Lodge Pole Thunderbirds, as they earned their first 9C win of the season. In Big Sandy, HLP edged the Pioneers 49-38 behind 19 points from Rayleigh Kirkaldie. Maddie Reichelt and Jaylynn Cline each scored 12 for the Pioneers, while Jenna Leader added 11.

In yet another huge 9C showdown, Box Elder all but locked up the 9C regular season title when the Bears blew by Chinook 75-54 Saturday night. The talented Bears scored 43 points in the first half, and the Beeters could never catch up.

Five Bears reached double figures, with Tyrah Gopher and Minnie The Boy each scoring 14 points. Brooke Nicholson notched 16 for Chinook, while Abigail Ellison chipped in with 13.

Saturday night was also a monumental night for Turner, as the Tornadoes scored a 49-42 win over C/J-I in Chester. The Hawks led 32-30 going to the fourth stanza, but Turner exploded for 19 points and an impressive 9C road win.

Ella Billmayer scored 21 points and Rylee Conlan added 11 for the Tornadoes. Kristina Dahinden scored 13 and Kendahl Knapton added 10 in the loss for C/J-I.

Out of conference, both Fort Benton and Big Sandy suffered tight losses Saturday night.

In Fort Benton, the Longhorns dropped a 43-40 decision to Class B Conrad, despite a valiant comeback attempt in the fourth quarter. Maddie Thompson led the Longhorns with 14 points.

Meanwhile, Big Sandy suffered a 39-24 setback at the hands of DGS in Stanford. The game was close for much of the way, but the Bearkats finished the game on a 15-6 run. Jenna Leader paced the Pioneers with 11 points.

In Class B action over the weekend Harlem and Rocky Boy met in a great game Thursday night, but both teams found success Saturday.

Rocky Boy won an important 1B game over Shelby, 45-40 in Shelby, as the Morning Stars started strong, then held the Coyotes off late. Rosie Parker scored 18 points for the Morning Stars, while Jaylynn Mitchell added 14.

Harlem also triumphed over Cut Bank Saturday night, 63-55 in Harlem. The Wildcats trailed 27-23 at halftime, but they used a 21-10 run in the third quarter to overtake the visiting Wolves. Skylee Dirden topped Harlem with 16 points, while Autumn Little Plume added 15 in the non-conference win.

Thursday

Fort Benton 39, North Star 34

Fort Benton 8 14 6 11 - 39

North Star 12 11 9 2 - 34

Fort Benton: K. Bird 7, A. Evans 9, L. Gannon 14, M. Thompson 3, B. Willson 6.

North Star: Katelyn Hanson 7, Graysen Spicher 4, Paij Peterson 5, Katelin Harvey 2, Sheridan O'Neil 14, Sheridan Spicher 2.

Friday

Chinook 42, Chester/J-I 33

C/J-I 10 13 10 0 - 33

Chinook 11 10 8 13 - 42

Chester/J-I: K. Knapton 6, K. Harmon 13, K. Dahinden 1, K. Kammerzell 4, Khloe Kammerzell 9.

Chinook: Abigail Ellison 10, Brooke Nicholson 8, Sierra Swank 5, Kelsey Mathon 10, Taylor Neibauer 1, Brooke Elliott 8.

Hays-Lodge Pole 49, Big Sandy 38

HLP 13 11 9 16 - 49

Big Sandy 7 2 16 13 - 38

HLP: Shambo 8, Scoors 2, Snell 4, Plain Feather 1, L. Kirkaldie 3, R. Kirkaldie 19, Derker 8.

Big Sandy: Leader 11, Finke 1, Cline 12, Reichelt 12, Terry 2.

Saturday

Rocky Boy 45, Shelby 40

Rocky Boy 15 9 15 6 - 45

Shelby 4 18 4 14 - 40

Rocky Boy - Sean Henry 4, Erin Buffalo 2, Jurnee LaForge 7, Rosie Parker 18, Jaylynn Mitchell 14.

Shelby - Sierra Asper 8, Kim Parsell 2, Abby Akestad 8, Ashton Daniels 3, Sara Sanchez 2, Skylar Martin 13, Brookw Akestad 4.

3-pointers: Martin 2, A. Akestad 1, Parker 1. Fouls: Rocky Boy 16, Shelby 16. Fouled out: None.

Conrad 43, Fort Benton 40

Conrad 10 9 13 11 - 43

Fort Benton 9 5 13 13 - 40

Conrad - Augusta Van Dyke 7, Brooke Mycke 2, Andrea Russell 6, Payton Nielson 4, Emily Harwood 8, Deb Van Dyke 10, Janea Johns 6.

Fort Benton - Hannah Pimperton 3, Alia Evans 8, Leah Gannon 8, Madison Thompson 14, Bailey Willson 7.

3-pointers: A. Van Dyke 1, Evans 2, Thompson 1, Willson 1.

Box Elder 75, Chinook 54

Chinook 8 16 17 13 - 54

Box Elder 20 23 18 12 - 75

Chinook - Kortney Hanson 2, Abby Ellison 13, Brooke Nicholson 16, Sierra Swank 3, Kelsey Mathon 2, Taylor Neibauer 2, Erin Pula 3, Brooke Elliot 1.

Box Elder - Jaynee Parisian 6, Nikayla Anderson 4, Minnie The Boy 10, Jude The Boy 14, Lillian Gopher 11, Alyssa LaMere 10, Tia Russell 6, Tyrah Gopher 14.

3-pointers: Ellison 1, Nicholson 2, J. The Boy 2, L. Gopher 1.

Harlem 63, Cut Bank 32

Cut Bank 7 20 10 18 - 55

Harlem 7 16 21 11 - 63

Cut Bank: Marissa VandenBos 13, Brynne Finstad 2, Dakota Dosch 13, Jaycee Frydenlund 6, Sarah Tines 5, Brylee Cross Guns 19, Madison Seifert 4.

Harlem: Mari Ereaux 5, Autumn Little Plume 15, Val Talks Different 5, Skylee Dirden 16, Anita Bentley 6, Brooke LeValdo 8, Jazzmyn Benson 4, Emma Humphreys 4.

Turner 49, Chester/J-I 42

Turner 9 9 12 19 - 49

Chester/J-I 12 11 9 10 - 42

Turner: Raegan Conlan 3, E. Billmayer 21, S. Billmayer 4, Rylee Conlan 11, M. Watkins 3, Ronney Watkins, C. Anderson.

Chester/J-I: Kendahl Knapton 10, Korrin Harmon 4, Kristina Dahinden 13, Katey Kammerzell 5, Peyton Hawles 8.

DGS 39, Big Sandy 24

Big Sandy 7 4 7 6 - 24

DGS 7 11 6 15 - 39

Big Sandy: Jessica Roth 2, Andrea Rutledge 2, Jenna Leader 11, Calley DeMontiney 2, Maddy Reichelt 7.

DGS: Julia Grubb 5, Cassidy Randel 16, Kyra Randel 14, Rachel Burns 5.