Spencer, 'Kats beat buzzer, Whitefish
WHITEFISH - Callie Spencer scored from beneath the basket as time expired Friday night, and the Columbia Falls High School girls basketball team beat Whitefish 56-54 in a Northwestern A thriller.
Spencer scored 13 of her team-leading 15 points in the second half as the Wildkats rallied from a seven-point fourth-quarter deficit.
Columbia Falls trailed 54-51 with 34 seconds left in the game when ophomore guard Alyssa Ladenburg tied it with a 3-pointer, setting the stage for Spencer's heroics.
"I put it in her hands," said Columbia Falls coach Kris Salonen of her senior guard. "I said, 'Get it to Callie' and 'Callie, just take it to the hole and see what happens.'"
The victory keeps Columbia Falls - which lost at Libby on Tuesday - in the Northwestern A title race at 8-2 in conference and 10-6 overall.
"It's big because if we lose two games this week, mentally that just takes us down," Salonen said. "It's a situation where my kids were down seven and they battled back and (won) the game."
Alyssa Ladenburg finished with 11 points as the Wildkats started five guards. Junior post Sam Ladenburg came off the bench to score 10 first-half points, but Salonen went back to her guards-only look in Columbia Falls' 16-point fourth quarter.
"I went with more guards just to have some more offense," Salonen said. "Not that I didn't have faith in Sam Ladenburg by any means, but Callie was rebounding the ball so well, getting offensive rebounds, that I thought if I had her inside in the post that maybe that would give her an opportunity to score."
Whitefish's Ashley Ferda found plenty of ways to score. The junior guard went off for 27 points, including three treys and eight free throws, while keeping her teammates involved.
"She got some great looks, she was patient," said Whitefish coach Tim Olson. "She's willing to give the ball up, but she knows she's going to get it back somewhere in the offense. We showed some great offensive patience, got some great looks for the other kids, and it's definitely a team that's molding itself."
Sophomore forward Kate Klundt scored nine points off the bench for the Lady Bulldogs, who fell to 5-5 in conference play and 6-10 overall.
Whitefish lost to the Wildkats by 14 points in Columbia Falls last month, but showed drastic improvement in the rematch.
"We've come so far, I'm so proud of the kids," Olson said. "The way they played three weeks ago in Columbia Falls - to come over here and have a shot to win it and a lead late in the fourth, it shows how far we've come. The girls are going to get tighter for this and they're going to be just fine. They're even hungrier now than they were before the game."
Olson said the game was emotionally draining, but it won't deflate his athletes.
"It's all a learning experience for the kids," Olson said. "You're going to win some, you're going to lose some. Some are tougher to swallow than others, but if it makes you stronger as a team and as a person, then we've done our job."
Neither team led by more than five points until the fourth quarter. Columbia Falls led 29-28 at halftime, but Whitefish pulled ahead 43-40 after three quarters.
"In a game like that you need a couple bounces to go your way, and credit C-Falls - they never gave up," Olson said. "They fought their way back into it and made the big shot when they needed to."
It was the final home game for Whitefish seniors Kirsten Blackburn, Kaitlin O'Leary and Kali Schmidt, who combined for 13 points.
"They've been volleyball stars for four years and basketball stars for four years, but most importantly they've been just great kids for the program and great role models," Olson said.
The Lady Bulldogs visit first-place Bigfork on Tuesday while Columbia Falls visits Polson next Friday.
Columbia Falls 15 14 11 16 - 56
Whitefish 16 12 15 11 - 54
COLUMBIA FALLS (10-6, 8-2) - Callie Spencer 4 7-8 15, Amber Lampman 2 1-2 5, Jessica Boyer 4 0-0 8, Mary Nolan 3 0-0 7, Alyssa Ladenburg 5 0-0 11, Sam Ladenburg 3 4-6 10. Totals 21 12-16 56.
WHITEFISH (6-10, 5-5) - Kirsten Blackburn 2 0-0 4, Kaitlin O'Leary 1 1-2 3, Ashley Ferda 8 8-12 27, Kali Schmidt 2 2-2 6, Desiree Clarke 0 3-4 3, Dana Labuda 1 0-1 2, Kate Klundt 2 5-5 9. Totals 16 19-26 54.
3-point goals - CF 2 (Nolan 1, A. Ladenburg 1), WF 3 (Ferda 3). Rebounds - CF 14, WF 27. Assists - CF NA, WF 10. Steals - CF NA, WF 5. Blocks - CF 2, WF 1. Turnovers - CF 11, WF 16. Total fouls - CF 19, WF 14. Fouled out - none.