Briefs: Lakers heat up; Jones staying with Cats
Daily Inter-Lake | UPDATED 1 hour, 48 minutes AGO
The Kalispell Lakers American Legion Baseball program has several events scheduled in the coming weeks and months, while continuing to invite prospective players to register for the 2026 season.
The 2026 Player Tryouts are scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 24 at the Logan Health Performance Center, from 8:30 a.m.-noon. Prospects should register at kalispelllakers.org before the tryouts.
The program will also be hosting an Indoor Spring Training at the Logan Health Performance Center beginning Feb. 9 and running through March 19. The training, which will run Monday-Wednesday-Friday for a total of six hours, costs $200.
There is also the Batter Up Bash, a hosted steak dinner to benefit Lakers baseball, scheduled for Feb. 20 at the Hilton Garden Inn. Patrick O’Connell, a former Laker player now playing linebacker with the NFL Seattle Seahawks, is a keynote speaker.
For more information head to kalispelllakers.org.
Adam Jones staying at MSU
BOZEMAN — With the NCAA transfer portal one day from closing for 2026, Montana State running back Adam Jones confirmed Thursday he is staying with the Bobcats.
Jones, who rushed for 1,093 yards and 15 touchdowns for the national champion Bobcats, posted, “There’s no place like home,” to Twitter/X on Thursday. The Missoula Sentinel product had a standout sophomore campaign; now he guarantees half of MSU’s 1,000-yard rushers — Julius Davis was a senior — from 2025 is back.
Several key offensive players have announced they’re staying with the Cats, including linemen Titan Fleischmann and Burke Mastel; quarterback Justin Lamson and receiver Taco Dowler.
Top defensive players returning include safety Caden Dowler, cornerbacks Tayden Gray and Takhari Carr and safeties Taki Uluilakepa and Bryant Meredith.
This is after three cornerbacks hit the portal in the days following MSU’s 35-34 win over Illinois State on Jan. 6: Jhase McMillan, Carson Williams and Seth Johnson. McMillan and Johnson blocked ISU kicks in the final 2:00 of the win.
Starting right tackle Cedric Jefferson also entered the portal.
Dawgs’ Gruhler ruling Frontier
Guard Kyle Gruhler, who helped Montana Western go 2-0 last week, was named Frontier Conference men’s basketball player of the week for the second straight time — and seventh time in the 11-week season.
The 6-foot-5 senior out of Vancouver, Wash., averaged 23 points, 3.5 rebounds and hit 9 of 14 3-pointers in the Bulldogs’ two victories. He leads the Frontier in scoring at 23.1 points a game while shooting a league-best 54 percent (68 of 125) from the arc through 17 games.
Western, 14-3, received votes in the latest NAIA Men’s Top 25. Montana Tech and Rocky Mountain College, also both 14-3, are ranked No. 15 and No. 19. Carroll, 12-4 overall and in first place at 10-1 in league games, also received votes.