Bravettes beat Dogs; back on track

It's a win and the Flathead Bravettes will take it without apology.

Every Bravette but one got into the scoring column on Friday night as Flathead (5-4) dumped visiting Whitefish, 64-20.

Freshman Emma Andrews led all scorers with 10 points. Sam Thompson and Tess Brenneman tossed in eight apiece in a balanced Bravette offensive effort.

"We really needed that. We needed a win to kind of get rolling again," said Flathead coach Karly Tait.

"A win is a win. We'll take it. We needed it and next week isn't going to be any easier," the coach said.

It didn't take long for the Bravettes to rev up their offense - Brenneman had four of her eight points in the first 1:17 of the game. Flathead led 10-1 with 5:41 left in the first quarter.

By halftime, 10 Bravettes had scored and Flathead led 31-5.

"We did a much better job shooting the ball with confidence. I thought we worked together really well.

"We still need to work on our free-throw percentage and on taking better care of the ball. Those are two things that are hurting us and we've got to do better," Tait said.

But otherwise, the coach handed out compliments all around.

"I thought Emma Andrews stepped up and had a really nice game. Sam Thompson shot the ball really well and Tess (Brenneman) had a better night shooting. (Brenneman) squared up when she needed to. That was something she needed to work on.

"Danika (Johnson) finished more of her bunnies ... it was just nice to get some confidence for all the girls. I thought we played well," she smiled.

She didn't forget the Bulldogs, either.

"Every time we play them, they play hard and they never give up. They definitely step out and play," Tait said.

"The biggest thing for us is confidence," said Whitefish coach Sean Duff.

"It's our shooting. It's not like we don't get good looks, but right now we're not hitting the broad side of a barn. (Making shots) builds confidence and that's been our problem all year," he said.

"A lot of times we're shooting the ball more than the people we're playing ... but they make more than we do," he added.

By the time Flathead had that 10-1 lead, the Bulldogs had had "six or seven great looks and we were at the line four times," Duff said.

"If we make the free throws and half those shots, it's a 12-10 game, us," he said.

"It's tough being 0-9. They have to have some confidence and believe they can go out there and win before they step on the court," he said.

"But there's only one way to go and that's up. In my mind, this is practice for the (divisional)," he said.

Whitefish 3 2 6 9 - 20

Flathead 15 16 17 16 - 64

Whitefish - Olivia Nagler 0 1-2 1, Taylor Havens 0 1-2 1, Ashley Millard 1 0-0 3, Heather Bailey 1 1-4 3, Olivia Curtiss 1 2-6 4, Jessica Poe 1 0-0 2, Simone Craft 1 0-0 2, Ashlee Brewer 2 0-0 4. Totals 7 5-14 20.

Flathead - Emma Andrews 4 0-0 10, Sam Thompson 4 0-0 8, Tess Brenneman 4 0-4 8, Megan Jones 2 1-2 5, Ashlee O'Dell 0 1-2 1, Taylor Twichel 1 0-0 2, Brittany Earnest 3 0-2 6, Malia Ozegovich 1 3-4 6, Cassie Krueger 2 0-0 4, Jenessa Heine 3 0-2 6, Danika Johnson 4 0-1 8. Totals 27 5-17 64.

3-point goals: Whitefish 1 (Millard), Flathead 3 (Andrews 2, Ozegovich 1). Total fouls: Whitefish 17, Flathead 10. Fouled out: None.