AA state basketball: Glacier girls go out in style
BUTTE — Glacier capped off its best season ever by pulling off two huge victories on the final day of the Class AA girls state basketball tournament on Saturday at the Butte Civic Center.
The Wolfpack slipped by Missoula Sentinel 49-48 in a morning loser-out contest and then knocked off Billings Senior 45-42 in the consolation final to claim a third-place trophy.
Glacier finished the season with a 20-5 mark overall.
“Best record ever,” Glacier coach Kris Salonen said.
The consolation trophy is also the first ever for the Wolfpack program.
“It’s fun to end on a win; that’s for sure,” Salonen said.
“Everyone is a little happier.”
Glacier entered state play with a 17-4 mark. The Wolfpack lost to Billings West in the opening round on Thursday, but followed that with a Friday victory over C.M. Russell.
“Be mad, have a chip on your shoulder,” was Salonen’s message to her players after the loss to West.
“We deserve a trophy.
“A big win over CMR,” she said.
“Then to beat a team like Sentinel. They had been to four championship title games in a row and here we’re playing for loser out. To beat a team that has been so dominant is a huge leap for our program and our girls.”
Glacier trailed Sentinel by 14 at the half and was down 10 heading into the final quarter.
Sentinel pushed its lead back to 13 at one point after that and held an 11-point edge with 2:40 to play.
“A couple huge 3s by Katie Wiley, a steal by Taylor Salonen, two offensive rebounds by Brielle Bumgarner, who got fouled and went to the line and scored two, and an offensive rebound and putback by Tessa Krueger and the next thing I know were up by one with 24 seconds (to play),” Kris Salonen said.
She said the Wolfpack “locked down on defense” after that.
“They got a shot off, but we got the rebound,” she said.
Krueger pulled down the missed Sentinel shot to end the game.
Sentinel and Glacier had split during the regular season.
Then in the third-place battle with Senior hours later, “there was not a lot of energy for either team,” Kris Salonen said.
“It was slow going.”
Glacier trailed by four at the half.
She said both teams went back-and-forth down the stretch.
A 3-point play — a field goal and a free throw — by Senior’s Taylor Mims tied it up.
Hailee Bennett followed with two free throw to put Glacier up by two with just over a minute to play.
Senior added a free throw, but Taylor Salonen finally put the game to rest when she grabbed a steal, was fouled and made both free throws with seven seconds left. That put Glacier up 45-42.
West managed to get two shots off, but none to drop as time ran out.
“Pretty crazy,” Kris Salonen said.
“I’m so proud of my seniors — Tessa Krueger, Katie Wiley and Brielle Bumgarner — for leading this team at the state tournament.”
Against Senior, Taylor Salonen had a perfect shooting game — 4 for 4 in field goals (3 for 3 from behind the arc) and 3 for 3 free-throw shooting. She led the offense with her 14 points.
She also had four rebounds.
Bumgarner added 10 points.
Mims finished with 18 for Senior.
Bennett led the offense against Sentinel with 17 points. Krueger was next with 13.
Shannon Worster had 17 for Sentinel.
Consolation Final
Third Place
Glacier 10 10 12 13 — 45
Senior 11 13 8 10 — 42
GLACIER – Taylor Salonen 4-4 3-3 14, Hailee Bennett 2-9 3-4 7, Brielle Bumgarner 5-8 0-2 10, Katie Wiley 1-6 0-0 2, Tessa Krueger 4-8 0-0 8, Hailey Ruggles 0-0 0-0 0, Nikki Krueger 1-3 0-0 2, Ali Williams 0-1 2-4 2. Totals: 17-39 8-13 45.
BILLINGS SENIOR – Kortney McNeil 2-9 0-0 3, Alli Kieckbusch 2-6 4-4 10, Jordyn Wagner 1-9 1-3 4, Naomi Bad Bear 1-2 0-0 2, Taylor Mims 7-14 4-4 18, Anna Paine 0-0 0-0 0, Sydney Norwood 2-4 0-0 4. Totals: 15-44 9-11 42.
3-point goals – Glacier 3-10 (Salonen 3-3), Senior 3-12 (Kieckbusch 2-5 Wagner 1-4). Total fouls – Glacier 12, Senior 12. Fouled out – none. Rebounds – Glacier 27 (Bumgarner 7), Senior 28 (Mims 8). Assists – Glacier 8 (Bennett 4), Senior 5 (Wagner 2).
Loser-out games
Glacier 9 3 15 22 — 49
Sentinel 11 15 11 11 — 48
Glacier — Hailee Bennett 7-16 0-0 17, Taylor Salonen 0-4 1-2 1, Brielle Bumgarner 0-5 2-4 2, Hailey Ruggles 1-1 1-2 3, Katie Wiley 4-8 1-4 2, Tessa Krueger 6-9 1-2 13, Nikki Krueger 0-2 1-2 1, Ali Williams 0-3 0-0 0. Totals: 18-48 7-16 49.
Missoula Sentinel — Brittney Delridge 1-1 0-0 2, Haley Rogers 2-3 0-0 5, Kylie Frohlich 2-5 6-10 10, Lexi Steele 2-4 2-2 8, Shannon Worster 2-9 13-14 17, Jordyn Schweyen 2-4 0-0 4, Natalie Hamilton 0-0 0-0 0, Brie Finbraaten 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 12-27 21-26 48.
3-point goals — KG 6-13 (Bennett 3-8, Wiley 3-5), MS 3-12 (Roger 1-2, Steele 2-4, Worster 0-5, Schweyen 0-1). Fouled out — Salonen. Rebounds — KG 28 (T. Krueger 5, Williams 5), MS 25 (Frohlich 5, Steele 5). Assists — KG 12 (Bennett 4), MS 9 (Rogers 4, Steele 4). Total fouls — KG 21, MS 11.
Senior 8 10 11 20 — 49
West 9 8 7 16 — 40
Billings Senior – Kortney McNeil 1-4 7-10 9, Alli Kieckbusch 3-7 4-4 10, Jordyn Wagner 3-5 5-8 12, Naomi Bad Bear 1-8 0-3 2, Taylor Mims 3-7 7-10 13, Anna Paine 0-0 2-2 2, Sydney Norwood 0-1 1-2 1. Totals: 11-32 26-39.
Billings West – MorningRose Tobey 5-15 3-7 16, Jessi Zuroff 1-5 1-2 3, Cody Rogers 3-10 1-6 7, Haylea Elkin 3-6 1-2 7, Brianna Shirley 2-7 3-6 7. Totals: 14-45 9-25.
3-point field goals – Senior 1-7 (Wagner 1-3), West 3-18 (Tobey 3-12). Total fouls – Senior 20, West 28. Fouled out – Norwood, Zuroff, Kennedy Hildebrand. Rebounds – Senior 37 (Bad Bear 13), West 31 (Zuroff 11).
Championship
Helena Capital 8 17 11 27 — 63
Bozeman 8 13 18 16 — 55
HELENA CAPITAL — Tjaden Pallister 4-8 7-10 15, Mary Bryggman 4-4 0-0 8, Raynna Pilgeram 1-5 6-6 8, McKenzie 2-7 13-14 18, Savanna Bignell 2-5 2-2 6, Madi Quick 0-0 2-3 2, Abbie Witham 0-1 0-0 0, Kyra Dawes 1-2 0-0 2, Taylor Sullivan 1-3 2-2 4. Totals: 15-35 32-37 63. 3-point goals: 1-7 (Pallister 0-1, Pilgeram 0-2, Johnston 1-2, Bignell 0-1, Witham 0-1). Rebounds 20 (Pallister, Pilgeram 4). Assists 8 (Johnston 7). Steals 10 (Johnston 4). Blocks 2 (Pallister, Sullivan). Turnovers 13. Total fouls: 18. Fouled out: none.
BOZEMAN — Jacey Delaney 3-5 1-1 10, Averie Collins 6-13 2-2 16, Caitlin Lonergan 5-7 3-4 13, Bailey O’Leary 1-3 0-0 3, Emerald Toth 2-5 0-0 4, Melanie Johnson 2-7 4-4 9, Amber Tarabochia 0-0 0-0 0, Tyler Olson 0-0 0-0 0, Hailee Olsen 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 19-41 10-11 55. 3-point goals: 7-19 (Delaney 3-5, Collins 2-6, O’Leary 1-2, Johnson 1-6). Rebounds 22 (Lonergan 8). Assists 8 (Delaney 4). Steals 6 (Lonergan, Toth, Johnson 2). Blocks 1 (Lonergan). Turnovers 22. Total fouls: 27. Fouled out: Collins, Lonergan, O’Leary.
Boys
Loser-out games
Bozeman 11 25 1 4 16 13 — 79
Great Falls High 19 16 19 22 5 — 71
Bozeman – Adam Huse 3-8 4-5 12, Bennett Hostelter 3-7 9-11 15, Jesse Meade 1-1 1-1 3, Trace Bradshaw 3-5 4-4 10, Drew Huse 4-5 0-1 8, Adam Weidenaar 10-16 5-5 31. Totals: 24-45 23-28.
Great Falls – Lukas Vining 7-14 3-3 19, Lester Johnson 1-3 1-3 3, Mathew Wyman 6-10 2-4 14, Brendan Howard 7-13 4-6 20, Jake Wetzel 4-12 2-2 13, Kody Torgerson 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 26-53 12-18.
3-point field goals – Bozeman 8-15 (Weidenaar 6-9, Adam Huse 2-4), GFH 7-22 (Vining 2-5, Howard 2-5, Wetzel 3-9). Total fouls – Bozeman 14, GFH 21. Fouled out – Bradshaw. Rebounds – Bozeman 25 (Hostetler 5), GFH 29 (Howard 9).
Hellgate 16 15 11 16 — 58
Capital 15 12 8 11 — 46
Missoula Hellgate — Tres tinkle 10-15 4-6 25, buckley Belcourt 1-1 0-0 2, Rhett Baerlocher 7-14 1-1 18, Peter Vandam 0-0 0-0 0, Easton Packard 0-1 2-2 2, Devin Bray 0-3 0-1 0, Mark Lebsock 1-7 4-7 6, Connor Schenk 0-0 0-0 0, Brayden Frohlich 2-3 1-2 5. Totals: 21-44 12-19 58.
Helena Capital — Danny Burton 0-0 0-0 0. Casey Ebelt 2-7 4-6 9, Sean Mulcahy 2-6 0-1 4, Keegan Syvrud 3-9 3-4 12, Christian Jacobsen 3-5 0-0 8, Trevor Larson 0-0 0-0 0, Gus Chancy 0-4 3-4 3, Daniel O’Malley 1-2 0-0 2, Will Huntausen 1-2 0-0 3, Bradley Haller 0-0 0-0 0, Connor Dowdy 0-0 0-0 0, Sam Bryggman 2-4 1-1 5. Totals: 14-39 11-16 46.
3-point goals — MH 4-14 (Tinkle 1-3, Baerlocher 3-7, Packard 0-1, Bray 0-3), HC 7-15 (Ebelt 1-5, Syvrud 3-6, Jacobsen 2-2, Hunthausen 1-1, Bryggman 0-1). Fouled out — none. Rebounds — MH 38 (Tinkle 14), HC (Team 6, Mulcahy 3). Assists — MH 17 (Bray 7), HC 11 (Syvrud 3, O’Malley 3, Hunthausen 3). Total fouls — MH 18, HC 16. Technical foul — Tinkle.
Consolation Final
Third Place
Hellgate 19 17 15 19 — 70
Bozeman 7 7 21 14 — 49
Missoula Hellgate — Tres Tinkle 10-23 7-9 29, Rhett Baerlocher 6-8 0-0 16, Devin Bray 1-5 0-1 2, Mark Lebsock 1-1 0-0 2, Brayden Frohlich 2-4 2-2 6, Buckley Belcourt 0-1 0-0 0, Peter Vandam 0-0 1-2 1, Easton Packard 1-2 5-5 8, Justin Koehn 1-1 0-0 3, Conor Schenk 2-4 0-1 4, Bob Schenk 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 24-49 15-20 70.
Bozeman — Adam Huse 5-10 0-0 11, Aaron Weidenaar 5-17 0-1 14, Bennett Hostetler 3-7 2-2 9, Grant Blomstrom 3-8 0-0 7, Trace Bradshaw 3-4 1-1 7, Drew Huse 0-2 0-0 0, Lance McCutcheon 0-0 0-0 0, Jesse Meade 0-1 1-2 1. Totals: 19-49 4-6 49.
3-point goals — MH 7-14 (Tinkle 1-4, Baerlocher 4-5, Bray 0-2, Packard 1-2, Koehn 1-1), Bozeman 7-20 (A. Huse 1-2, Weidenaar 4-11, Hostetler 1-3, Blomstrom 1-2, D. Huse 0-2). Fouled out — none. Rebounds — MH 36 (Tinkle 16), Bozeman 23 (Weidenaar 6). Assists — MH 14 (Bray 4), Bozeman 8 (A. Huse 5). Total fouls — MH 10, Bozeman 17.
Championship
West 9 17 8 22 — 56
Skyview 12 19 9 22 — 62
BILLINGS WEST (20-4) —Trever Spoja 4-10 4-5 12, Danny Becher 6-12 4-8 16, Kameron Rauch 1-4 4-4 7, Mitch Brott 1-1 0-2 2, Jared Samuelson 3-8 1-2 8, Reece Neilsen 0-0 0-0 0, Bryson Deming 2-5 0-0 4, Jayson Leinwand 2-3 0-0 4, Braydon Deming 1-4 0-0 3. Totals: 20-47 13-21 56. 3-point goals: 3-14 (Spoja 0-3, Betcher 0-1, Rauch 1-2, Samuelson 1-2, Brys. Deming 0-2, Bray. Deming 1-4). Rebounds: 37 (Spoja 8, Samuelson 8). Assists: 8 (Betcher 2, Samuelson 2). Steals: 4 (Four with one). Blocks: 2 (Spoja, Betcher). Fouls: 23. Fouled out: Rauch. Turnovers: 16.
BILLINGS SKYVIEW (20-3) — Ray Evans 4-8 4-5 13, Nolan McHugh 4-9 1-2 11, Tre’von Strong 0-6 7-8 7, Kendal Manuel 7-20 10-14 26, Jameson Willems 0-0 0-0 0, Taylor Trollope 0-2 0-0 0, Brenden Acheson 1-4 3-5 5, Austin Zacher 0-0 0-0 0, Logan Nelson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 16-49 25-34 62. 3-point goals: 5-18 (Evans 1-3, McHugh 2-4, Strong 0-3, Manuel 2-6, Acheson 0-2). Rebounds: 32 (Evans 8). Assists: 2 (Evans, Strong). Steals: 5 (Manuel 3). Blocks: 1 (McHugh). Fouls: 16. Turnovers: 6.