Bonded: Fort Benton-Geraldine wins 9C title

Three months ago, the Fort Benton Longhorns were just that — the Fort Benton Longhorns. While just 22 miles down the road in Geraldine, there was uncertainty as to whether there would even be high school girls basketball this season.

Fast forward to Friday night in the Havre High gymnasium, and outstanding girls basketball players from both Fort Benton and Geraldine were hoisting the 2015 District 9C championship trophy in front of fans from two towns and two schools — all who had come together to create one special basketball team and one special 9C tournament run.

The Fort Benton-Geraldine girls captured their first-ever 9C championship by beating the up-start Box Elder Bears 48-45 in the 9C title game. The win capped an amazing three-day run for the Longhorns, and an even more incredible season to date.

“It’s cool, this is phenomenal,” said Fort Benton senior Katie Witt “I’ve never felt this amazing. We did a lot of extra stuff this year to help us come together. We really learned about each other. We did a lot of extra stuff to help us grow close over the last few months and it worked. We really came together.

“It’s huge,” added FB-G head coach Cassie Scheffelmaier. “To win this tournament, it shows the true character of these girls. None of them were too sure how this co-op would work, when it all happened a week before the season started. But they accepted it, they grew together. They really bonded this season, and this was the end result. It’s really special.”

The 9C tourney was special for both the Longhorns and the Bears, because quite frankly, few experts thought they would be the two teams duking it out for the 9C title Friday night. But there they were, playing for all the marbles, and it was the Longhorns, who had the edge in the end.

But in a back-and-forth first quarter, the Bears took a slim, 11-10 lead behind two buckets from Alicia Wolf Chief. But everything changed in the second period. Cassidy McCarthy and Coya Nack combined to score 10 points in the quarter, and when senior Madison Schumacher scored inside with :20 left in the half, the Longhorns went into the break with a 22-16 lead.

And going inside proved to be a big edge for FB-G. The Longhorns started the second half on a 8-2 run, and they continued to go in to sisters Coya and Makae Nack, which eventually opened things up for the Longhorn shooters, and when Bird nailed a 3-pointer at the third-quarter horn, FB-G was ahead 36-27.

“We have taken advantage of our size all year,” Scheffelmaier said. “And it hasn’t failed us yet. We went inside a lot, especially in the second half, and it opened up things up from the outside, and it worked well for us tonight.”

Meanwhile, Box Elder, which never gave up and made things interesting down the stretch, may have ran out of gas a little, especially after its emotional win over Chinook in Thursday night’s semifinals.

“I think last night (Thursday) took a lot out of us,” said veteran Box Elder head coach Joel Rosette. “We really wanted that game. I thought tonight, our effort wasn’t quite as good. We struggled offensively because our movement wasn’t as good as it was the first two games.

“But I’m proud of the girls because they didn’t quit,” he added. “We gave it a great try at the end. We just ran out of time.”

The Bears did rally following a 9-0 FB-G run that made the score 45-30 with five minutes left. From that point, Box Elder outscored the Longhorns 15-3 as Alyssa LaMere and Wolf Chief had multiple steals and scores, and Tyrah Gopher had four points inside down the stretch. It was indeed a great comeback, that ended with a Wolf Chief trey — but it wasn’t quite enough to win the 9C title.

“Box Elder played great,” Scheffelmaier said. “We have gotten leads on them in every game this year, and they have come back on us every time. So I’m proud of our girls for keeping their composure tonight, because Box Elder did a great job of coming back again.”

Composure did help the Longhorns (17-4) become 9C champions, as did a balanced offensive attack that saw McCarthy score a game-high 21 points, while Coya Nack scored nine and Bird added seven. But what also helped the Longhorns reach the top of the 9C mountain in their first try was chemistry. In a short amount of time, two teams became one, and the result was a very special night in Havre, and a trip to this week’s Northern C Divisional in Great Falls.

“We did find out that this could work,” Geraldine’s Coya Nack said. “We worked really well together all year. It has been different, but awesome at the same time. And coming into this tournament, we felt like we had nothing to lose. So we went for it.”

“I’m really proud of these girls,” added Scheffelmaier. “What they went through this year wasn’t easy. But they worked hard. They stayed with it, and now, they’re playing the best basketball they’ve ever played.”

Box Elder (12-9) is too. In the championship game, the Bears’ first since their 2012 9C title, they got 10 points each from Leilani Gardipee, Wolf Chief and Gopher. And now, despite the tough ending to the 9C tourney, the Bears are headed to Great Falls and the Northern C for the first time in three years.

“I don’t think a lot of people thought we would quite get here this week,” Rosette said. “But the girls got better and better as the year has went on. So it’s really exciting to be going there. I know the girls are excited to be going to divisionals again.”

Both the Longhorns and Bears will begin Northern C play Wednesday morning at the Four Seasons Arena in Great Falls. FB-G will be the 9C’s top seed and will play Winnett-Grass Range, while the No. 2 seeded Bears will take on Simms-Augusta. The 2015 Northern C girls tournament runs Wednesday through Friday, with the top two teams advancing to the Class C state tournament March 5-7 in Missoula.

Fort Benton-Geraldine 48, Box Elder 45 (1st)

FB-G 10 12 14 12 – 48

Box Elder 11 5 11 18 – 45

FB-G – Kaitlyn Bird 2-3 1-2 7, Katie Witt 2-6 0-0 5, Hannah Pimperton 0-2 0-0 0, Madison Schumacher 1-3 0-0 2, Coya Nack 4-9 1-3 9, Makae Nack 2-7 0-0 4, Cassidy McCarthy 8-16 3-11 21. Totals: 19-46 5-16 48.

Box Elder – Jaynee Parisian 1-2 0-0 3, Leilani Gardipee 4-11 1-3 10, Tia Russell 2-7 1-3 5, Alicia Wolf Chief 4-14 0-2 10, Misty Baker 1-2 1-2 3, Alyssa LaMere 2-4 0-2 4, Tyrah Gopher 4-7 2-2 10. Totals: 18-47 5-14 45.

Halftime: FB-G 22-16. 3-pointers: Parisian 1, Wolf Chief 2, Bird 2, Witt 1, McCarthy 2. Fouls: Box Elder 12, FB-G 15. Fouled out: C. Nack.