WHITEFISH — Alexa Friske and Jory Hill each led their team in scoring and splashed three triples, leading Columbia Falls to a sweep over Whitefish in a Northwest A basketball doubleheader Friday evening. 

Friske scored 14 of her 21 points in the second half in a 60-31 Wildkats win. Peyton Ross added 11 and Rylee Sweeney contributed 10. 

“Really proud of the girls, any rivalry game is always fun,” Columbia Falls girls coach Jeremy Grilley said. “This is going to help us build momentum for the rest of our conference season.” 

Avery Orme led Whitefish with 11 points. 

On the boys’ side, the Wildcats beat the Bulldogs zone defense with eight 3-pointers and never trailed after the first period. 

Hill finished the night with 19 points for the Cats; Easton Brooks and Caleb Mee had 10 each.

“It was a good road conference win, that was a good team, and I thought our defense carried us,” Columbia Falls boys coach Chris Finberg said.  “To hold a team like Whitefish to 44 points is what got us our win tonight.” 

Columbia Falls girls 60, Whitefish 31 

The Wildkats (8-6, 6-2 in Northwest A games) kicked off the Cat-Dog doubleheader strong.

Friske set the tone early with a layup to score the game’s first points; Ross followed with a 3-pointer to force an early Bulldogs timeout. Whitefish (10-5, 6-3) answered with a pair of baskets to trail 10-4 entering the second period.  

Ross and Sweeney connected from deep to build a 20-9 lead for the Wildkats.

In the third quarter Friske continued the hot streak, scoring multiple baskets including a three, while Ross added another from beyond the arc. The Wildkats’ athleticism on the inside and out helped widen the gap. By the fourth, they led 34-15. 

“I feel so good, the Cat-Dog rivalry has been such a special part of our season and it’s so fun,” said Friske. “Just to beat them on their home court, we have been waiting for it all season.” 

The Columbia Falls girls currently sit second in the Northwest A conference. 

“They make it easy, they know how to win, they know how to compete, they know how to prepare, it makes my job easier,” Grilley said.

Bigfork (11-4, 8-1) currently sits atop the conference and will meet the Wildkats on Feb. 20. The Wildkats next head to Polson to battle the Lady Pirates on Tuesday. 

C-Falls    10    16    13    21    -    60 

Whitefish    4    11    8    8    -    31 

COLUMBIA FALLS — Alexa Friske 21, Riley Byrd 2, Onnikka Lawrence 2, Peyton Ross 11, Alanis Peterson 7, Rylee Sweeney 10, Kylor Gietzen 1, Lana Byers 6. 

WHITEFISH — Reese Hudson 4, Avery Orme 11, Allie Shors 5, Sammie Shors 6, Blake Ruta 3, Viv Trieweiler Schmidt 2.  

Columbia Falls boys 59, Whitefish 44 

Whitefish (5-8, 1-6) struck early in the boys game. Reyd Hobart and Finn Ryan scored layups in the opening quarter to put the Bulldogs ahead 13-12. Hobart finished with a team-high 13 points and Ryan added eight.  

Hill took off from the moment the second quarter started. He knocked down back-to-back triples to put Columbia Falls (10-4, 6-2) up 24-18.  

“We did good as a team moving the ball around, defensively we did great, overall, I thought we did well,” Hill said. “We take a lot of pride in defense, defense wins championships.” 

Rhett Lindskoog and Bjorn Pedersen connected from deep to fuel a 13-2 Wildcat run out of halftime to make it 39-24.  

“That run in the third quarter, we were getting some stops which allowed us to get going, then we took care of the ball offensively,” Finberg said. “We were able to move it, make them work defensively and things just opened up and we were able to get some easy baskets.” 

Whitefish’s Will Sisson responded with two pull-up triples, shrinking the Columbia Falls lead to just nine, 41-32, entering the final frame. Sisson finished with 10 points. 

Senior, Easton Brooks, lit the final fire that was needed; he found Caleb Mee wide open in the corner for a 3-pointer and scored two layups in contested traffic to seal the game for the Wildcats. 

“Obviously getting it done here is great,” Brooks said. “There is a lot of respect between these two programs and towns, always a fun matchup.” 

With the win Friday, the Columbia Falls boys sit atop the everchanging Northwest A conference. The Wildcats resume their season on Feb. 10 at 7:15 p.m. against Polson. 

C-Falls    12    14    15    18    -    59 

Whitefish    13    9    10    12    -    44 

COLUMBIA FALLS — Easton Brooks 10, Jett Pitts 5, Jory Hill 19, Bjorn Pedersen 5, Rhett Lindskoog 5, Joe West 4, Nico Young 1, Caleb Mee 10. 

WHITEFISH — Will Sisson 10, Aiden Rickels 3, Jayke Thew 4, Reyd Hobart 13, Finn Ryan 8, Drew Queen 6.