Hashley hits career-best 30 points
It looked like the Helena girls were going to run away with it. Monica Grimsrud hit a jump shot in the second quarter to give the hot-handed Bengals a 10-0 run and a nine-point lead.
But then Emilee Hashley and the Wolfpack came to life.
Hashley ignited for a career-best 30 points and Glacier bounced back to beat fourth-place Helena High 67-57 in Western AA girls basketball on Friday.
The 6-foot-0 senior, who also had 11 rebounds in the game, broke through a swarm of defenders midway through the second and scored five quick points in a matter of a minute to wake up the Glacier offense. After that, the rest followed her lead and the Wolfpack hustled its way to a decisive home victory.
"It was our first win in a long time so it feels really, really good," said Hashley, who has scored a combined 54 points in the previous two games. "My team is setting it up for me. It's just a good inside-outside game."
Sydney Sharaf and Kayla Smart chipped in nine points apiece for Glacier (7-10 overall, 3-6 in conference), which snapped a two-game losing streak and won the first of a three-game homestand.
"We were excited to play them again and we stepped up and expected to go hard at it, and it was our court so we wanted to play our best," said Smart, who also had five rebounds. The Pack previously lost to Helena 48-45 on Jan. 31.
This time around, Helena took advantage early thanks to its known shooting talents, led by Sarah Jackson, who sank five 3-pointers in the game en route to 17 points.
But in the second half, the Bengals' basket shrunk and their narrow lead quickly evaporated. Helena managed only nine points in the third-quarter while Glacier hustled its way to 18 and took a 10-point lead into the final period.
"That's a huge win for our program," Glacier coach Doug Hashley said. "I thought after the first quarter we made a couple of adjustments and I thought they did a wonderful job of covering their shooters."
Grimsrud finished with 14 points and Kelsey Williams added 11 for Helena (8-9, 4-5), who had won three straight.
"The girls did a wonderful job of executing the plays," coach Hashley added. "They were looking for each other, making good screens, I mean, it was just fantastic to see that. They just did it together."
Brooke Watkins chipped in seven points and Kadie Latimer had five points and five rebounds for Glacier, which out-rebounded Helena 37-20. The Wolfpack also capitalized from the free throw line, hitting 22-of-29.
Helena 19 15 9 14 - 57
Glacier 16 17 18 16 - 67
Helena - Kelly Hubbell 2 0-0 4, Kelsey Williams 4 3-4 11, Mariah Sheen 0 1-2 1, Sarah Jackson 6 0-0 17, Kindle Williams 1 2-2 4, Monica Grimsrud 7 0-0 14, Taylor Kanthack 3 0-0 6. Totals 23 6-10 57
Glacier - Kayla Smart 3 3-3 9, Kadie Latimer 1 3-4 5, Sydney Sharaf 3 3-5 9, Rachel Cutler 1 0-0 3, Lindsea Vaudt 1 2-2 4, Emilee Hashley 10 10-11 30, Brooke Watkins 2 1-4 7. Totals 21 22-29 67
3-point goals - Helena 5 (Jackson 5), Glacier 3 (Watkins 2, Cutler); Total fouls - Helena 21, Glacier 12; Fouled out - None; Total rebounds - Helena 20 (Grimsrud 5), Glacier 37 (Hashley 11); Turnovers - Helena 14, Glacier 20