Ronan won its fifth-straight game and perhaps most important regular season matchup as it downed Lake County rival Polson 67-59 in another Northwestern A Conference thriller between the two local schools on Saturday, Feb. 22.

Kolby Finley came up big with 31 points in the rambunctious contest – making a career-high of 13 field goals, while crossing the 600-point milestone in a Ronan jersey. Polson’s Malakai Curley wasn’t far behind with a career-high 30 points off 10 field goals.

The Pirates took an early 22-16 lead in the first quarter, but Ronan clawed back and only trailed 33-31 at halftime.

In the third quarter, the Chiefs made their move, outscoring the Pirates by eight points and held their advantage in the fourth to improve to 9-3 in conference play and 13-5 overall.

Polson fell to 6-5 in conference play and 9-3 overall.

Ronan’s Jhett McDonald scored 13 points, while Chad Higgins added 12 points and eight rebounds.

Cason Graham had 15 points and nine rebounds for Polson.

The Chiefs are tied for second in the conference, while Polson is fourth in the league standings, heading into the regional tournament.

At Polson

RONAN 67, POLSON 59

Ronan - 16 - 15 - 19 - 17 - 67

Polson - 22 - 11 - 11 - 15 - 59

RONAN SCORING: Kolby Finley 31, Jhett McDonald 13, Chad Higgins 12, Laurance Lozeau 8, Wade Qualtier 4

POLSON SCORING: Malakai Curley 30, Cason Graham 15, Kyson Michel 5, Cody Haggard 5, Jesse Vail 4

Ronan defeats Bigfork in double overtime

Ronan outscored Bigfork 8-2 to end its double-overtime victory 51-45, on Thursday, Feb. 20 on the road.

Tayen Edmo led the Chiefs with 15 points in the win, all off three-pointers.

The game started off low-scoring, with Ronan having a 5-4 lead in the first quarter. The Chiefs went into halftime with a 19-16 lead, and extended their lead by a point in the third quarter, but Bigfork tied it up in the fourth quarter to force overtime.

Both teams scored three points apiece in the first overtime period, but Ronan was finally able to get key points in the final stanza.

Kolby Finley notched 13 points and hauled in seven rebounds, while Wade Qualtier added nine points and 10 rebounds.

Austin Savik led Bigfork with 35 points.

Bigfork fell to 3-8 in conference play and 5-12 overall.

At Bigfork

RONAN 51, BIGFORK 45 (2OT)

Ronan - 5 - 14 - 12 - 9 - 3 - 8 - 51

Bigfork - 4 - 12 - 11 - 13 - 3 - 2 - 45

RONAN SCORING: Tayen Edmo 15, Kolby Finley 13, Wade Qualtier 9, Sean Small 7, Jhett McDonald 4, Laurance Lozeau 2, Siouxpixm Qualtier 1

Bulldogs win two, lose two for divisional berth

Mission fell to Eureka 57-53 in the District 7B Tournament in St. Ignatius on Saturday, Feb. 22, but already has a spot warmed up in the Western B Divisional Tournament, thanks to earlier wins over Superior and Plains.

Lex LaFrombois led the Bulldogs with 33 while Vinny Shepard added 10 points in the consolation game. Eureka was led by Kyler Kossman’s 30 points.

Eureka improved to 9-11 on the season, while the Bulldogs fell to 8-14.

During Saturday’s earlier contest against Superior, LaFrombois made the best of crossing the 1,000-point career milestone, leading Mission to a 52-48 victory and punching the Bulldogs ticket to divisionals.

LaFrombois scored 23 points as the Bulldogs went on a 9-2 run in the second quarter for a 23-17 halftime lead and then held off Superior in the second half.

Jason Leishman added 17 points to the Bulldogs’ efforts and Shepard had 10 points.

Superior ended its season 6-14, while it was the eighth victory for the Bulldogs, who had won five of their last eight games.

On Friday, Mission had a slow start in a 72-50 loss to Thompson Falls. The Bluehawks’ offense clicked in the first half, leading them to a 44-24 score at halftime. While the Bulldogs outscored the Bluehawks 15-9 in the final quarter, it was too little, too late.

LaFrombois led the Bulldogs with 26 points while Shepard had 15 points.

Thompson Falls improved to 17-3 on the year with the victory.

Mission fended off Plains' attempts to even its District 7B Tournament first-round game and defeated the Horsemen 61-53 on Tuesday, Feb. 18.

LaFrombois scored 28 points and crossed the 500-point mark in the season. Mission and Plains were tied 11-11 after one quarter but the Bulldogs went into halftime with a 27-23 lead.

The Horsemen pulled to within one point in the third quarter, but Mission outscored them by seven points in the fourth quarter.

Shepard added 16 points to the Bulldogs’ efforts, and Leishman had 10.

Plains fell to 6-11 on the year.

At St. Ignatius

EUREKA 57, MISSION 53

MISSION SCORING: Lex LaFrombois 33, Vinny Shepard 10, Jason Leishman 8, Jacob Piedalue 2

MISSION 52, SUPERIOR 48

Superior - 15 - 2 - 14 - 17 - 48

Mission - 14 - 9 - 11 - 18 - 52

MISSION SCORING: Lex LaFrombois 23, Jason Leishman 17, Vinny Shepard 10, Macklen McDonald 2

THOMPSON FALLS 72, MISSION 50

Mission - 12 - 12 - 11 - 15 - 50

T-Falls - 24 - 20 - 19 - 9 - 72

MISSION SCORING: Lex LaFrombois 26, Vinny Shepard 15, Jason Leishman 5, Harlon Leishman 4

MISSION 61, PLAINS 53

Plains - 11 - 12 - 16 - 14 - 53

Mission - 11 - 16 - 13 - 21 - 61

MISSION SCORING: Lex LaFrombois 28, Vinny Shepard 16, Jason Leishman 10, Harlon Leishman 4, Macklen McDonald 3

Arlee defeats Anaconda in consolation finals, falls to Loyola

Arlee fended off an Anaconda comeback to win the District 6B Consolation final in Anaconda on Saturday, Feb. 22. Damian Marceau led the Warriors with 19 points in the victory, which moved Arlee’s season record to 15-7.

Arlee led 15-10 after the first quarter and 29-21 at halftime. Anaconda outscored the Warriors by six in the final stanza, but Arlee still proved to be victorious.

Anaconda fell to 11-11 on the year. Arlee, meanwhile, punched its ticket to the Western B Divisionals with a 63-40 victory over Darby in the District 6B consolation bracket on Saturday, Feb. 22.

Loyola came out on top in the District 6B semifinals on Friday, Feb. 21, scoring 52 points in the middle two quarters for a 71-40 victory.

Loyola led 42-21 at halftime and added 14 points to its advantage in the third quarter. The Rams improved to 18-1 on the season with the victory.

Arlee advanced to its game against Loyola with a 46-38 victory over Deer Lodge on Thursday, Feb. 20.

Eagles take fifth at Districts 

Two Eagle took fifth place at the Western 13C District Tournament on Saturday, Feb. 22, with a 60-55 victory over Hot Springs. Over the course of the tournament, they also defeated Alberton in the play-in game and Valley Christian but fell to St. Regis and Lincoln.

The Eagles were off to a slow start against the Savage Heat and trailed 30-17 at halftime, but went on a 26-9 run in the third quarter and held on in the fourth.

Thomas Addison led Two Eagle with 21 points, while Rhiley Gates had 20 points, and Talon Addison scored 15.

Two Eagle improved to 12-11 heading into the Western C Divisional Tournament. Two Eagle had reached the fifth-place game after falling to Lincoln 74-49 earlier that day. On Friday, Two Eagle defeated Valley Christian 52-47.

The Eagles experienced their first loss of the Western 13C District Tournament on Thursday, Feb. 20, at the hands of St. Regis by a score of 75-48.

St. Regis (18-1) had a slim 32-29 lead at halftime but went on a 24-8 run in the third quarter. Rhiley Gates led the Eagles with nine points, and Talon Addison added eight points.

The Eagles made quick work of Alberton in the Western 13C play-in game on Wednesday, Feb. 19, scoring 26 points in the first quarter en route to an 81-58 victory.

Rhiley Gates led Two Eagle with 15 points, and his team had a 26-11 lead after one quarter and a 42-27 halftime lead.

Jayvian Burke added 13 points, while Whyatt Thomas had 11 points, and Thomas Addison notched 10. Ten different Eagle players scored in the matchup.

Alberton finished the year 2-17.

NOTE: Charlo lost its District 13C Play-In game to Valley Christian 58-56. The Vikings finished the season 4-14.

At Pablo

TWO EAGLE 81, ALBERTON 58

Alberton - 11 - 16 - 15 - 16 - 58

TERS - 26 - 16 - 13 - 26 - 81

TWO EAGLE SCORING: Rhiley Gates 15, Jayvian Burke 13, Wyatt Thomas 11, Thomas Addison 10, Jamian Adams 9, Talon Addison 7, Jason Trahan 5, Lathan PrettyWeasel 2, LaSean BigDay 2, Liam Shepherd 2

At Frenchtown

TWO EAGLE 60, HOT SPRINGS 55

TERS - 9 - 8 - 26 - 17 - 60

HSprgs - 14 - 16 - 9 - 16 - 55

TWO EAGLE SCORING: Thomas Addison 21, Rhiley Gates 20, Talon Addison 15, Jayvian Burke 2, LaSean BigDay 2

ST. REGIS 75, TWO EAGLE 48

StRg - 13 - 19 - 24 - 19 - 75

TERS - 10 - 19 - 8 - 11 -48

TWO EAGLE SCORING: Rhiley Gates 9, Talon Addison 8, Jayvian Burke 6, Jason Trahan 5, LaSean BigDay 5, Jamian Adams 3, Lathan PrettyWeasel 2

It was three-on-one as the Ronan Chiefs tried to corral Polson's Kyson Michel during a recent game between the valley rivals. Ronan moves on to Western A divisionals, playing at noon Thursday in Whitefish. (Christa Umphrey photo)

    Lex LaFrombois takes a shot against the Eureka Lions during the District 7B tournament, which saw the Mission athlete surpass the 1,000-point mark. (Christa Umphrey photo)
  

    Lex LaFrombois celebrates topping 1,000 points in his high school career, alongside the rest of the Mission Bulldogs, following Saturday's win against Superior (Christa Umphrey photo)
  

    Physicality was the name of Saturday's game between Polson and Ronan, with the Chiefs pulling ahead in the second half to land on top. (Bob Gunderson photo)