Hi-Line Girls: North Star wins early 9C games; Box Elder cruises

As 2021 comes to an end, Hi-Line girls high school basketball teams are hoping to end the year on a strong note. This past week, many of them competed to establish themselves in the standings.

On Tuesday night, the Fort Benton Longhorns defeated Big Sandy, 61-33, at home. The defending state champions jumped out to an early 15-2 lead in the first quarter. The Longhorns continued to keep that defensive pressure up as Big Sandy only scored six points in the second quarter.

“I think early in the season this time of year, not too many teams have seen a 2-3 zone that’s going to look like ours,” Fort Benton head coach Eddie Fultz said about the early defensive pressure by the Longhorns. “I think that definitely had them a little bit stifled there early on.”

Fort Benton went into halftime with a 35-8 lead. The Pioneers did battle in the second half to make the score more respectable but it was not enough to change the final result. Emerson Giese led the Longhorns with 22 points while Lainey Terry scored 14 points for Big Sandy.

The Longhorns continued their strong play Friday with a 57-27 win over Turner at home. The Longhorns started the game hot with a 24-8 in the first quarter and cruised to victory over the rest of the game. Ashlee Wang led the Longhorns with 22 points while Cassidy Grabofsky led Turner with 14 points in the loss.

The Big Sandy Pioneers returned home Friday night only to suffer a 52-36 loss to Chinook. Early on, it looked like the Pioneers would compete as they led, 11-9, in the first quarter. But the Sugarbeeters dominated the second quarter to take control of the game on their way to victory. Hallie Neibauer led Chinook with 27 points while Terry led Big Sandy with 13 points.

The Harlem Wildcats also played Friday in a 61-36 loss to Malta at home. Malta jumped on the Wildcats early for a 35-11 lead at halftime. The Wildcats played hard in the second half but they could not make it a game. Chloe Messerly led Harlem with 13 points.

At home, the North Star Knights ground out a 53-49 win over Hays-Lodgepole. The Thunderbirds had the advantage in the first half as they led 31-27 at halftime. But the Knights’ defense limited HLP to only seven points in the third quarter to come back to take the lead. The Knights then survived a tough fourth quarter to win the game.

The Knights shot 51.2 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from the 3-point line. Rainee Watson led the Knights with 22 points on 66.7 percent shooting from the field. Laynie Sattoriva shot at a 50 percent clip to score 18 points for the Knights. Alliya Pretty Paint led the Thunderbirds with 14 points in the game.

The Box Elder Bears got their weekend started with a 89-62 win over the CJI Hawks. The Bears got their offense going early as they took a 25-16 lead in the first quarter. They then dominated the second quarter to take a 53-29 lead at halftime before coasting to victory. In the loss, the Hawks shot 38.2 percent from the field and Tatum Hull led the Hawks with 19 points.

The CJI Hawks were able to bounce back for a 61-47 win on the road at Turner Saturday. The Hawks took an early advantage with a 21-15 lead in the first quarter. Over the rest of the game, the Hawks kept the Tornadoes at bay to win the game. Haddie Woods led the Hawks with 26 points as she shot 50 percent from the field.

Several other Hi-Line schools competed on Saturday. At home, Rocky Boy defeated Shelby, 40-39. Thanks to its defense, Rocky Boy led 11-2 in the first quarter. Shelby came back to push Rocky Boy to the brinks, but Rocky Boy clung onto victory. Abria Small Boy led Rocky Boy with nine points in the win.

After their loss Friday, the Harlem Wildcats bounced back Saturday with a 80-40 win over Poplar. The Wildcats wasted little time as they took a 28-12lead in the first quarter. The Wildcats then built themselves a 40-18 lead at halftime that they used to coast to victory. Taya Trottier had a strong performance for Harlem as she scored 38 points.

The North Star Knights won again Saturday with a 46-40 win over Fort Benton at home. The Longhorns took an early advantage with a 14-13 lead at the end of the first quarter but the Knights responded to take a 26-20 lead at halftime. The Longhorns continued to battle as they trailed 32-28 at the end of the third. But they could not fight their way back as North Star won the game. Sattoriva had another strong game with 37 points on 55.6 percent shooting from the field. Wang again led the Longhorns with 16 points.

After their loss on Friday, the Hays-Lodgepole Thunderbirds bounced back on Saturday with a 51-37 win on the road at Big Sandy. After a 10-10 tie to start the game, the Thunderbirds took a 22-18 at halftime. They then pulled away in the second half to win the game.

On Monday night, Big Sandy beat DGS 52-39 as Lainey Terry, Eva Wagoner and Eva Yaedon each scored 10 points. Turner also edged Dodson 42-39 behind 14 points from Dakota Krass.

Tuesday

Fort Benton 61, Big Sandy 33

BS - 2 6 13 12 - 33

FB - 15 20 14 12 - 61

BS - Lainey Terry 14, Eva Yeadon 10, Jaihven Baumman 5, Angie Sant 2, Eva Wagoner 2.

FB - Emerson Giese 22, Ashlee Wang 13, Casha Corder 10, Hailee Wang 7, Addison Reichelt 4, Samantha Vielleux 3, Kylynn Nack 2.

Friday

Malta 61, Harlem 36

MAL - 14 21 13 13 - 61

HAR - 5 6 14 11 - 36

MAL - Allison Kunze 17, Justine Lamb 14, Aubri Werk 8, Maddie Williamson 7, Addy Anderson 6, Kylee Nelson 5, Kennedy Koss 2, Elly Anderson 1.

HAR - Chloe Messerly 13, Taya Trottier 11, Vaise Little 5, Ella Billmeyer 3, Cece Helgesen 2, Gracie Sanchez 2.

North Star 53, Hays-Lodgepole 49

HLP - 15 16 7 11 - 49

NS - 12 15 14 12 - 53

HLP - Alliya Pretty Paint 14, Nashone Shambo 12, Jaedyn Chandler 10, Judemia Gray 7, Shailee Shambo 3, Tahtianna Gray 3.

NS - Rainee Watson 22, Laynie Sattoriva 18, Kaytlyn Domire 8, Laramie Peterson 2, Mackenzee Sargent 2.

Fort Benton 57, Turner 27

TUR - 8 5 4 10 - 27

FB - 24 14 8 11 - 57

TUR - Cassidy Grabofsky 14, Dakota Krass 9, Bridget Reed 2, Katie Kimmel 2.

FB - Ashlee Wang 22, Hailee Wang 9, Casha Corder 8, Cloe Kalanick 7, Samantha Vielleux 6, Addison Reichelt 5.

Chinook 52, Big Sandy 36

CHI - 9 16 19 8 - 52

BS - 11 5 13 7 - 36

CHI - Hallie Neibauer 27, Alexus Seymour 10, Allison Powell 7, Bree Swanson 5, Torin Cecrle 2, Mya Berreth 1.

BS - Lainey Terry 13, Jaihven Baumann 10, Eva Yeadon 5, Jenny Sant 4, Eva Wagoner 4.

Box Elder 89, Chester-Joplin-Inverness 62

CJI - 16 13 18 15 - 62

BE - 25 28 22 14 - 89

CJI - Tatum Hull 19, Haddie Woods 15, Jayla Ramberg 10, Aria Miller 7, Sydney Hawks 6, Averie Mattson 5.

Saturday

Rocky Boy 40, Shelby 39

SHE - 2 14 10 13 - 39

RB - 11 4 14 11 - 40

SHE - Jori Clary 13, Addison Richman 8, Vivi McDermott 7, Taylor Schilling 5, Adele Lamb 4, Reese Lee 2.

RB - Abria Small Boy 9, Jour'dai Coffee 8, Ella Moore 8, Neferti Standing Rock 6, Jayci Demontieny 5, Kendra Gopher 3.

Harlem 80, Poplar 40

POP - 12 6 10 12 - 40

HAR - 28 18 27 7 - 80

POP - Teagan Escarega 8, Morgan Nordwick 7, Kassee Erickson 6, Emmara Martell 5, Rikki Belton 4, Jazmyn Carrywater 3, Mattie Fallsdown 3, Grace Lyn Medicine 2, Bailey Dupree 2.

HAR - Taya Trottier 38, Chloe Messerly 14, Vaise Little 9, Ella Billmeyer 8, Raelynne Briere 5, Cece Helgesen 3, Ma'Lea Moore 2, Aaraya Maurt 1.

North Star 46, Fort Benton 40

FB - 14 6 8 12 - 40

NS - 13 13 6 14 - 46

FB - Ashlee Wang 16, Chloe Kalanick 12, Hailee Wang 6, Samantha Vielleux 4, Casha Corder 2.

NS - Laynie Sattoriva 37, Rainee Watson 5, Kaytlyn Domire 4.

CJI 61, Turner 47

CJI - 21 12 13 15 - 61

TUR - 15 8 11 13 - 47

CJI - Haddie Woods 26, Tatum Hull 20, Averie Mattson 7, Aria Miller 4, Jayla Ramberg 4.

TUR -Dakota Krass 13, Cassidy Grabofsky 11, Bridget Reed 10, Hannah Richman 5, Meridian King-Snider 4, Katie Kimmel 4.