Glacier girls thump Big Sky
Three shots.
That’s all it took for the Glacier girls to turn their slugfest with visiting Missoula Big Sky into a blow out.
The Wolfpack hit three straight 3-pointers at the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth, stretching a two-point lead to 11 to give itself a comfortable cushion to compliment its stellar defense. The run helped Glacier pull away in the fourth to claim a 60-45 Western AA conference basketball win on Saturday afternoon.
“We always said this was the year we had to shoot 3s,” Glacier coach Kris Salonen said. “Big 3s by those girls. Those are big buckets at a crucial time in the game. We’re getting defensive stops and they hit those. It hits them in the gut a little bit. That was a big quarter for us.”
The baskets came at a time when Glacier’s defense was at its most stifling. The Wolfpack held Big Sky without a field goal for the more than 10 minutes of game time, but led just 35-33 when junior guard Hailee Bennett hit her fourth 3-pointer of the contest with just under a minute to play in the third. On Glacier’s next trip down the floor, Zoee Boschee hit a three to close the quarter with a 41-33 lead.
The first play of the fourth quarter popped out to Katie Wiley on the wing, where she also hit from deep, leading a 13-0 run that took the game out of contention. Glacier ran its lead to 51-36 before surrendering a field goal in the fourth quarter. The Wolfpack was able to coast to the finish from the free-throw line after that.
“They’re going to win a lot of games in our conference,” Salonen said. “They’re a solid team. We knew it was going to be a battle tonight.”
The two teams were locked in a virtual dead heat in the first half, Glacier taking minor leads, only to end up tied a few possessions later. Big Sky junior guard McKenna Arledge was on fire from deep, hitting three 3s in the first 10 minutes to keep the Eagles close. She tied the game at 31-31 early in the second quarter with another deep ball, then saw her team take the lead on the next possession as teammate Madisyn Shaide made one of two free throws.
“We need to adjust defensively,” Salonen said. “We left her open a couple times, that’s where we got hurt. That’s why we went straight man, so we knew where their shooters were.”
Glacier adjusted, putting lanky forward Taylor Salonen on Arledge to prevent the outside shot, then focused on preventing star post Anna Gragg from getting touches.
The result was the Eagles’ 10-minute field goal drought and the Wolfpack’s long run. Big Sky shot just 14 percent in the second half and was only 1 of 9 from deep.
Bennett led the charge for Glacier, scoring 22 points with four assists and three steals.
“I was waiting for her to have a 20-point breakout,” Salonen said. “This was a good game for it to happen. I’m proud of her. She keeps leading us.
“Not just her, all the other girls that stepped up. We’ve got to keep focusing on this as a team effort. It’s going to be a different person each game that steps up. And it has been.”
Arledge had 15 points and Shaide 13 to lead Big Sky.
Glacier hits the road for a pair of Class A matchups next week, playing at Polson on Tuesday and at Columbia Falls on Thursday.
Big Sky 10 17 6 12 — 45
Glacier 14 17 10 19 — 60
BIG SKY — Kendall Mooney 0-3 1-4 1, Kelsi McEnaney 1-2 5-7 7, Madisyn Shaide 3-14 6-12 13, McKenna Arledge 4-7 3-5 15, Anna Gragg 3-3 2-4, 8, Cassidy Pierce 0-0 1-2 1. Totals: 11-29 18-34 45.
GLACIER — Katie Wiley 1-11 0-0 3, Tessa Krueger 1-2 0-0 2, Brielle Bumgarner 2-7 2-6 6, Taylor Salonen 3-10 1-2 8, Hailee Bennett 7-13 4-6 22, Zoee Boschee 3-4 0-0 7, Hailey Ruggles 0-0 2-4 2, Nikki Krueger 3-6 1-4 7, Ali Williams 0-2 3-4 3. Totals: 20-55 13-26 60.
3-point goals—Big Sky 5-13 (Arledge 4-4, Shaide 1-8, Mooney 0-1), Glacier 7-13 (Bennett 4-7, Wiley 1-1, Salonen 1-3, Boschee 1-2). Rebounds—Big Sky 26 (Gragg 6), Glacier 31 (Bumgarner 7). Total fouls—Big Sky 23, Glacier 26. Fouled out—Big Sky, Gragg. Glacier, Wiley, T. Krueger, Bumgarner.