MISSOULA — But for a couple rebounds and a couple free throws, the Glacier Wolfpack would have already punched their ticket to next week’s State AA girls’ basketball tournament in Bozeman.

Instead they’ll have to survive a Saturday loser-out – the free throw lane was unkind in a 44-41 loss to top-seeded Helena Capital Friday at the Missoula Sentinel gym.

Capital, 19-1, moved to Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. championship against Missoula Sentinel. The Spartans beat Missoula Hellgate for the first time this season, 42-28, in the late semifinal.

The Wolfpack (10-10) will go crosstown to play Butte at 10:30 a.m. at the Missoula Hellgate gym. The winner goes to the consolation game – and to state, since the top four teams here qualify.

In the early games Flathead saw its season end with a 64-34 loss to Butte. In the other loser-out game, Helena High ousted Missoula Big Sky 61-26.

Helena Capital 44,

Glacier 41

Poised for the upset, the Wolfpack saw it slip away at the line: Capital scored its last 13 points on free throws.

Glacier surrendered a 34-31 lead – forged when Kaylee Fritz snared Aubrie Rademacher’s miss and scored with 4:17 left – thanks to five straight Bruin singles.

After Kenzie Williams tied the game at 38-all with a corner free with 30 seconds left, Capital’s 6-foot-1 Dani Bartsch was fouled and the Pack couldn’t get the ball back.

Bartsch made one free throw, missed the second and her 6-4 sister Paige muscled in for the rebound. Dani Bartsch was fouled again, and the same sequence played out: Make, miss, Paige Bartsch offensive rebound.

This time Jaymee Sheridan was fouled and she made both to put Capital ahead 42-38 with 12.7 seconds left.

That did it, though Rademacher threw in a 3-pointer with 3.5 seconds remaining. It was a bitter loss. Capital, which swamped the Wolfpack 61-39 and 60-31 during the regular season, shot 21 fourth-quarter free throws to Glacier’s three.

“We absolutely competed,” Glacier coach Amanda Cram said. “And what’s tough about competing to that level is when it doesn’t reflect it at the end of the game.”

Glacier was content to play a half-court zone defense against the taller Bruins. Capital hit one 3-pointer, though it was timely: Mashayla O’Malley’s three answered one by Williams that had put the Wolfpack up 30-28 early in the fourth.

“We certainly wanted to take care of the guards and also challenge them to shoot the ball,” Cram said. “The biggest thing defensively is we didn’t press, which has been our bread and butter. We wanted to make them earn it, give them nothing easy.”

Fritz had nine rebounds to lead Glacier’s effort on the glass. Rademacher had seven boards to go with 17 points. Williams had 10 points and six rebounds.

Paige Bartsch had 18 points and 12 rebounds for Capital.

“I thought we actually rebounded out of the zone well, but it’s difficult to rebound a free throw against two huge girls that have six inches on us,” Cram said. “We did the best we could.”

Glacier 13 9 5 14 - 41

Capital 13 9 4 18 - 44

GLACIER (10-10) – Aubrie Rademacher 6 3-4 17, Kenzie Williams 2 4-6 10, Emma Anderson 1 1-2 3, Kaylee Fritz 1 3-6 5, Ellie Keller 0 4-4 4, Sidney Gulick 1 0-1 2, Aubry Grame 0 0-0 0, Allee Meyer 0 0-0 0, Sidney Gulick 1 0-1 2. Totals 11 15-23 41.

HELENA CAPITAL (19-1) – Mashayla O’Malley 1 2-5 5, Paige Bartsch 5 3-6 13, Dani Bartsch 5 8-11 18, Jaymee Sheridan 0 5-8 5, Audrey Hofer 0 1-2 1, McKinlee McGinley 0 0-0 9, Mara McGinnley 0 0-0 0, Aryanna Ridlon 2 0-0 2.

3-point goals – Glacier 4 (Williams 2, Rademacher 2), Capital 1 (O’Malley). Rebounds – Glacier 31 (Fritz 9), Capital 33 (D. Bartsch 12). Fouls – Glacier 25, Capital 16. Fouled out – Anderson, Keller. Steals – Glacier 4 (Keller 2), Capital 13 (D. Bartsch 5). Turnovers – Glacier 18, Capital 9.

Butte 64, Flathead 34

A strong start by the Bravettes gave way to a barrage of 3-pointers by the Butte Bulldogs, who hit three in the second quarter to pull away.

Brooke McGrath knocked down a pair during a 19-1 Bulldog run that made it 33-14; the surge ended with an old-fashioned three-point play by Butte’s Tyler Clary with 1:04 left in the first half.

Flathead came no closer than 15 from there.

“We started out really strong I thought we had a lot of intensity and enthusiasm,” Flathead coach Tricia Dean said. “Unfortunately after the first quarter – I’m not sure where that went, but we just didn’t have it.”

At one point Flathead led 10-4, getting eight points from Jenna Johnson. Then Butte reeled off the last nine points of the quarter, including two corneer threes from Kodie Hoagland.

“We know they’re really good three-point shooters – that’s how they win games,” Dean said. “They shoot the heck out of the ball and got a lot of those today.”

Johnson finished with 13 points for Flathead in her final game. She and Kennedy Kanter are the lone seniors. Starters Maddy Moy, Clare Converse, Molly Winters and Akilah Kbi return, as does reserve Bridget Crowley (eight points, 7 rebounds Friday).

It was also the final game for Dean, whose husband joined the football staff at Montana Tech. The cupboard won’t be bare for the next coach.

“For sure,” Dean said. “They’ll be strong in the future.”

Flathead 10 6 4 14 - 34

Butte 13 20 13 18 - 64

FLATHEAD (4-16) – Maddy Moy 1 2-3 4, Jenna Johnson 5 2-2 13, Mollie Winters 1 1-2 3, Kubi 0 0-0 0, Clare Converse 0 1-4 1, Rebecca Eacker 0 0-0 0, Kuyra Siegel 1 0-0 3, Kennedy Kanter 1 0-0 2, Bridget Crowley 3 2-3 8, Myah Attard 0 0-0 0. Totals 12 8-14 34.

BUTTE (8-12) – Brooke McGrath 3 1-2 10, Ashley Olson 2 2-7 4, Makenna Carpenter 6 2-3 17, Kodie Hoagland 2 2-4 8, Mackenzie Tutty 2 0-0 6, Madalynn Rhodes 1 0-0 2, Emmarie Richards 0 0-0 0, Trisha Ericson 1 0-0 2, Haley Herron 2 2-3 6, McCaul McCarthy 0 2-7 2, Tyler Clary 2 1-2 5, McGrath 1 0-0 2. Totals 22 10-21 64.

3-point goals – Flathead 2 (Siegel, Johnson), Butte 10 (McGrath 3, Carpenter 3, Tutty 2, Hoagland 2). Fouls – Flathead 20, Butte 22. Fouled out – Kubi. Rebounds – Flathead 29 (Crowley 7), Butte 29 (3 with 4). Steals – Flathead 12 (Moy 3, Crowley 3). Butte 22 (Hoagland 5). Turnvoers – Flathead 31, Butte 18.

Western AA Divisional

Girls

Missoula Sentinel

Thursday

Helena Capital 46, Missoula Big Sky 20

Glacier 52, Helena 49

Missoula Sentinel 64, Butte 50

Missoula Hellgate 54, Flathead 28

Friday

Helena 61, Missoula Big Sky 28

Butte 64, Flathead 34

Helena Capital 44, Glacier 41, semifinal

Missoula Sentinel 42, Missoula Hellgate 28, semifinal

Saturday

10:30 a.m. – Helena (9-11) vs. Missoula Hellgate (17-3), loser out

10:3 0 a.m. –Butte (8-12) vs. Glacier (10-10), at Missoula Hellgate, loser out

4:30 p.m. – Morning winners, consolation

7:30 p.m. – Helena Capital (19-1) vs. Missoula Sentinel (16-4), championship