By Ryan Divish/Havre Daily News Sports Editor/rdivish@havredailynews.com
After a long break, basketball action heated up the chilly Hi-Line this past weekend.
In Chester, the new year brought a return of a familiar face. All-state forward Mary DeVries made her debut this season on Friday night in a big way. DeVries, who returns after knee surgery this summer, dropped 25 points on the KG KouGars, leading the Coyotes to a 72-57 win. Chester broke open a 29-27 game in the second half, outscoring the KouGars 43-30 in the second half.
Shawnee Norick added 20 points in the win for Chester. KG was led by Tasha Dyrland's 16 points. Jodi Norman added 11 in the loss.
DeVries continued to make up for lost time on Saturday, scoring a team-high 19 points in Chester's 61-51 win over the Big Sandy Pioneers in Big Sandy.
Again, the Coyotes broke open a close game in the second half. The two teams were tied at 24 at half, but Chester outscored Big Sandy 18-14 and 19-13 in the third and fourth quarter to pull away.
Besides DeVries, Chester got 15 points from Norick, 11 from Jackie Alisch and 10 from Jillien Johnson in the win. Big Sandy as led by Kacy Herron's 19 points. Naomi Williams added 16 points and Shalayna Pearson chipped in with 13..
The loss put a slight damper on the weekend for Big Sandy. On Friday night, the Pioneers knocked off previously undefeated and conference-leading Rocky Boy 60-52.
Big Sandy jumped out to an 18-10 first-quarter lead and fought off the comeback-minded Morning Stars in the second half. Herron scored a game-high 20 points to lead the Pioneers. Pearson added 16 and Williams chipped in with 12.
Rocky Boy was led by Shaneen Raining Bird's 14 points. Tori Belcourt added 13 points in the loss. The Stars hurt themselves by shooting an icy 2-10 from the free-throw line.
The loss on Saturday soured a solid start to the weekend for Rocky Boy. On Thursday, the Morning Stars edged Class B Harlem 60-58 in Rocky Boy.
Trailing 47-36 going into the fourth quarter, Rocky Boy mounted a furious rally, outscoring the Wildcats 24-11 in the final period to nab the win.
Loni Belcourt led all scorers with 24 points for Rocky Boy, including three three-pointers. Her twin sister, Tori, added 17 points in the win. Harlem was led by Olivia Main's 22 points. Former Rocky Boy standout Marty Rae Stiffarm added 14 points against her old squad.
Things didn't get much better for Harlem as the Wildcats were crushed 60-25 in Wolf Point on Saturday.
Wolf Point jumped out to a 22-8 lead and never looked back. Harlem was plagued by offensive woes, managing just six points in the second half and none in the third quarter.
Abby Douglas scored a game-high 23 for Wolf Point, while Harlem was led by Danielle Dirden with 12 points.
Offensive woes seemed to be contagious for fellow Class B squad Chinook. After getting beat handily by Havre on Tuesday, the Beeters struggled offensively in a 34-28 loss to Glasgow on Friday night in Glasgow.
Glasgow shut Chinook out in the first quarter, taking an 8-0 lead. The Beeters managed just six points in the second quarter and trailed 18-6 at halftime. Chinook picked things up somewhat in the second half, outscoring the Scotties 22-16, but it wasn't quite enough.
Whitney Lybeck was the only Beeter player in double figures with 13 points. Glasgow got 12 points from Danielle Enebo and Tiffany Waters.
Chinook's offensive woes continued on Saturday night at home in a 50-21 loss to conference-foe Fairfield.
The Beeters, again, managed just six points in the first half, as Fairfield took a 22-6 halftime lead. Things didn't get much better in the second half as Chinook was outscored 28-15.
Alyssa Brown led Fairfield with 12 points. Lybeck had eight for Chinook.
In District 9C action, the Hays-Lodge Pole T-Birds had a big weekend, notching a pair of wins.
On Friday, the T-Birds edged Turner 52-46 in conference action in Hays. Hays-Lodge Pole rallied from a 21-20 halftime deficit, outscoring Turner 32-25 in the second half.
Suzi Kirkaldie drained a pair of three-pointers en route to a team-high 15 points for Hays. Center Colette Hawley chipped in with 14. Turner was led by Ashley Van Voast and Cheryl Cowan, who finished with 14 and 10 points, respectively.
The T-Birds didn't have quite as much trouble with the Frazer Bear Cubs on Saturday night. Hays cruised past the nonconference foe 62-31 in Hays.
After jumping out to a 21-7 first-quarter lead, the T-Birds never looked back. Hawley had a huge game with 28 points, while Kirkaldie added 16 in the win.
Turner rebounded from Friday's loss to pick up a big 53-41 win over KG in Turner. The Tornadoes grabbed a 24-16 halftime lead and extended it in the second half by holding the KouGars to eight second-half points.
Van Voast scored a game-high 20 points in the win. Kelsey Klindworth added nine for Turner. KG got 11 points from Dyrland and 10 from Norman in the loss.
The Blue Sky/J-I Eagles also picked up a pair of wins on the weekend. On Friday night, the Eagles scored a 58-54 road win over the Box Elder Bears.
Blue Sky/J-I led 45-32 going into the fourth quarter and held off a frenzied Box Elder rally in the fourth quarter to secure the win.
Hannah Pimley scored 17 points and Kile Patrick added 13 in the win. Box Elder was led by Rebecca Eagleman's 18 points.
On Saturday night, Blue Sky/J-I had little trouble with a 68-37 nonconference win over District 10C Valier. The Eagles jumped out to a 32-13 lead and were never really challenged after that.
Pimley had 16 points to lead the Eagles. Kaila Warren added 13 points and Patrick chipped in with 10.
The tough losses continued for Box Elder on Saturday night in a 63-45 loss in Sunburst. Box Elder fell behind early and could never crawl out of the hole in the loss.
Rachel Kleinert scored 25 points and Kendra Hovland and Rachel Schulze added 12 apiece.
Eagleman was Box Elder's only player in double figures with 15 points.
Thursday
Rocky Boy 60, HARLEM 58
Harlem 14 16 17 11 - 58
Rocky Boy 10 12 14 24 - 60
Harlem - Olivia Main 22, Marty Rae Stiffarm 14, Melinda Cochran 2, Danielle Dirden 4, Kylee Stiffarm 2, Brooke Filesteel 3, Amy Stiffarm 3, Star Carrywater 6, Leandra Thomas 2. Totals: 20 14-24 58.
Rocky Boy - Brittany St. Pierre 1, Chelsey St. Pierre 5, Shaneen Raining Bird 6, Deena Sunchild 2, Celeste Belcourt 1, Loni Belcourt 24, Tori Belcourt 17, Frances Eagleman 4. Totals: 17 23-25 60.
Three-point goals - Main 3, A. Stiffarm, L. Belcourt 3. Total Fouls - Harlem 23, Rocky Boy 16. Fouled out - none.
Friday
Glasgow 34, Chinook 28
Chinook 0 6 10 12 - 28
Glasgow 8 10 10 6 - 34
Chinook - Dawn Kellam 4, Monica Thackeray 3, Whitney Lybeck 13, Crystal Roseberry 4, Georgia Barber 2, Brittany Williams 2. Totals: 11 5-5 28.
Glasgow - Millie McIntyre 2, Kim Swanson 2, Kelli Hughes 2, Danielle Enebo 12, Kelsey Archambeault 3, Tiffany Waters 12. Totals: 15 4-7 34.
Three-point goals - Thackeray. Total Fouls - Chinook 14, Glasgow 10. Fouled out - none
Hays-Lodge Pole 52, Turner 46
Turner 7 14 11 14 - 46
Hays-Lodge Pole 10 10 16 16 - 52
Turner - Celeste Hedegaard 2, Cheryl Cowan 10, Kelsey Klindworth 7, Ashley VanVoast 14, Chelsi Jones 10, Krista Chambers 3. Totals: 11 22-40 46.
Hays-Lodge Pole - Kelsey Stiffarm 3, Jean White Cow 5, Suzi Kirkaldie 15, Jennifer Messerly 3, Sheena Shambo 8, Twai Werk 4, Colette Hawley 14. Totals: 19 6-4 52.
Three-point goals - Klindworth, Jones, Stiffarm, White Cow, Kirkaldie 2, Messerly, S. Shambo 2, T. Werk 2, Hawley 2. Total Fouls - Turner 13, H-LP 21. Fouled out - Cowan, Shambo, Werk.
Chester 72, KG 57
Chester 16 13 20 23 - 72
KG 12 15 16 14 - 57
Chester - Amanda Violett 2, Brittney Kolstad 4, Shawnee Norick 20, Jillien Johnson 4, Mary DeVries 25, Chelsea Stokes 3, Brianne Wolfe 9, Keyla Briese 5. Totals: 29 13-23 72.
KG - Whitney Hanson 2, Britta Umbach 8, Jodi Norman 11, Shea Haugen 3, Kate Vosen 15, Tasha Dyrland 16, Kendra Donoven 2. Totals: 25 4-6 57.
Three-point goals - Stokes, Umbach, Haugen, Vosen. Total Fouls - Chester 11, KG 18. Fouled out - none.
Blue Sky/J-I 58, Box Elder 54
Blue Sky/J-I 19 10 16 13 - 58
Box Elder 7 13 12 22 - 54
Blue Sky/J-I - Kaila Warren 6, Maia Aageson 2, Robyn Schnitzmeier 2, Kile Patrick 13, Courtney Wendland 1, Hannah Pimley 17, Megan Warren 9, Jourdon Han 7. Totals: 22 6-17 58.
Box Elder - Tasha Parisian 9, Gerri Eagleman 4, Sharlene Yellowtail 4, Rebecca Eagleman 18, Ashley Parisian 6, Loni LaMere 2. Totals: 20 8-16 54.
Three-point goals - K. Warren, M. Warren, Yellowtail, R. Eagleman 2. Total Fouls - Blue Sky/J-I 18, Box Elder 18. Fouled out - Eagleman.
Big Sandy 60, Rocky Boy 52
Rocky Boy 10 9 21 12 - 52
Big Sandy 18 13 19 10 - 60
Rocky Boy - Brittany St. Pierre 2, Chelsey St. Pierre 2, Shaneen Raining Bird 14, Loni Belcourt 8, Tori Belcourt 13, Frances Eagleman 1, Erin Broncho 2. Totals: 23 2-10.
Big Sandy - Naomi Williams 12, Sarah Yirsa 2, Kacy Herron 20, Sandy Zeiger 5, Shalayna Pearson 16, Jessica Amsbaugh 5. Totals: 26 6-17 60.
Three-point goals - Raining Bird 2, L. Belcourt, T. Belcourt, Pearson, Amsbaugh.. Total Fouls - Rocky Boy 12, Big Sandy 10. Fouled out - none. Technical Fouls - Rocky Boy bench.
Saturday
Wolf Point 60, Harlem 25
Harlem 8 11 0 6 - 25
Wolf Point 22 11 16 11 - 60
Harlem - Olivia Main 1, Star Carrywater 2, Amy Stiffarm 2, Danielle Dirden 12, Brooke Filesteel 6, Marty Rae Stiffarm 2. Totals: 9 5-8 25.
Wolf Point - Julie Ann Carmell 2, Jaclyn Sansaver 4, Whitney Sansaver 2, Tawnie Braaten 14, Cassie Casterline 1, Becca Zilkoski 10, Murial Stratner 2, Danni Zoanni 2, Abby Douglas 23. Totals: 21 14-22 60.
Three-point goals - Dirden 2, Douglas 3, Zilkoski. Total Fouls - Harlem 17, Wolf Point 11. Fouled out - none.
Fairfield 50, Chinook 21
Fairfield 4 18 15 13 - 50
Chinook 1 5 8 7 - 21
Fairfield - Da'lyn Bauman 8, Kari Uribe 6, Danielle Baeth 7, Kelsey Baeth 2, Chelsee Killorn 8, Alyssa Brown 12, Ashlie McInerney 3, Ashley Huffman 4. Totals: 19 11-18 50.
Chinook - Dawn Kellam 1, Monica Thackeray 4, Whitney Lybeck 8, Crystal Roseberry 2, Kassie Dugan 2, Georgia Barber 2, Brittany Williams 2. Totals: 7 6-18 50.
Three-point goals - D. Baeth, Thackeray. Total Fouls - Fairfield 19, Chinook 13. Fouled out - none.
Turner 53, KG 41
KG 8 8 4 4 - 41
Turner 10 14 17 12 - 53
KG - Whitney Hanson 9, Britta Umbach 6, Jodi Norman 10, Tara Donoven 2, Kate Vosen 3, Tasha Dyrland 11. Totals: 17 4-14 41.
Turner - Celeste Hedegaard 7, Cheryl Cowan 7, Kelsey Klindworth 9, Ashley Van Voast 20, Cassie Cornell 4, Krista Chambers 6. Totals: 18 16-24 53.
Three-point goals - Hanson, Vosen, Dyrland, VanVoast. Total Fouls - KG 20, Turner 16. Fouled out - Van Voast.
Chester 61, Big Sandy 51
Chester 14 10 18 19 - 61
Big Sandy 12 12 14 13 - 51
Chester - Amanda Violett 6, Shawnee Norick 15, Jillien Johnson 10, Mary DeVries 19, Brianne Wolfe 5, Keyla Briese 6, Jackie Alisch 11. Totals: 27 7-12 61.
Big Sandy - Naomi Williams 16, Sarah Yirsa 1, Kacy Herron 19, Sandy Zeiger 2, Shalayna Pearson 13. Totals: 22 1-3 51.
Three-point goals - Herron, Pearson. Total Fouls - Chester 9, Big Sandy 9. Fouled out - none.
Sunburst 63, Box Elder 45
Box Elder 7 14 14 10 - 45
Sunburst 15 20 10 18 - 63
Box Elder - Tasha Parisian 5, Gerri Eagleman 9, Sharlene Yellowtail 7, Rebecca Eagleman 15, Ashley Parisian 6, Loni LaMere 3. Totals: 22 8-16 45.
Sunburst - Rachel Kleinert 25, Cassie Myers 3, Callie Johannsen 5, Kendra Hovland 12, Rachel Schulze 12, Darcy Johannsen 6. Totals: 28 11-22 63.
Three-point goals - T. Parisian, G. Eagleman, Yellowtail, R. Eagleman 3, Lamere, Kleinert 3, C. Johannsen. Total Fouls - Box Elder 20, Sunburst 17. Fouled out - none. Technicals - R. Eagleman.
Blue Sky/J-I 68, Valier 37
Valier 5 9 12 11 - 37
Blue Sky/J-I 10 2 17 19 - 68
Valier - Ahern 2, Snyder 13, Boumers 1, E. Breding 4, Tatsey 11, A. Breding 6. Totals: 14 6-20 37.
Blue Sky/J-I - Kaila Warren 13, Maia Aageson 9, Robyn Schnitzmeier 9, Kile Patrick 10, Courtney Wendland 2, Hannah Pimley 16, Megan Warren 8, Jourdon Han 1. Totals: 27 8-12 68.
Three-point goals - E. Breding, Tatsey 2, K. Warren, Aageson 3, M. Warren 2. Total Fouls - Valier 14, Blue Sky/J-I 16. Fouled out - A. Breding.
Hays-Lodge Pole 62, Frazer 31
Frazer 7 8 9 7 - 31
Hays-Lodge Pole 21 11 20 10 - 62
Frazer - Tessa Beston 15, Ayla Jones 5, Megan Blount 7, Chelsie Lindsay 4. Totals: 13 1-4 31.
Hays-Lodge Pole - Tristan Healy 2, Jean White Cow 8, Mandi Fox 2, Suzi Kirkaldie 16, Sheena Shambo 4, Colette Hawley 28, Lacey Carrywater 2. Totals: 29 4-8 62.
Three-point goals - Beston 2, Jones, Blount. Total Fouls - Frazer 8, Hays 11. Fouled out - none.
