Columbia Falls mourns for teens killed in icy crash at Evaro

A former standout Columbia Falls athlete and his girlfriend were killed in a two-vehicle accident on an icy Evaro Hill on U.S. 93 on Friday, Jan. 3.

Missoula County Sheriff Jeremiah Petersen identified the victims as 19-year-old Alihn T. Anderson, of Columbia Falls, and 17-year-old Brynn A. Courville, of Dixon.

Anderson, who graduated in 2024, was a key member of the Columbia Falls High School football and basketball teams. He started for the Wildcats as a freshman and could play just about anywhere on the field, said Jaxon Schweikert, who coached Anderson during his entire four-year football career. 

Schweikert recalled Anderson as a selfless player. He started in the offense as a slot receiver, but when the team’s running backs went down, he moved to that position. He was also a lock-down corner on defense. 

“He was willing to sacrifice for the team,” Schweikert said Tuesday. “Most importantly, he was a brother. He was loved by all his teammates.” 

In basketball, he was a sharpshooter, with an excellent jump shot. 

As a student, Schweikert recalled Anderson as being quiet in class, but with attention to detail. 

“His core values set a very high standard,” Schweikert said, “It’s a devastating loss to all of us.” 

He said the community was praying for Anderson’s family and parents, April and Tanner Barth. 

“No.13 will be in our hearts and memories forever,” he said.

Courville was also an excellent athlete and a member of the Ronan Wrestling Club.

“Our hearts are broken for the Courville family and we would like to offer them our deepest condolences,” the wrestling club stated in a Facebook post. “It was our honor to have the privilege of watching Brynn wrestle. She was an exceptional athlete who brought a lot of talent to the sport of wrestling. Although she had a quiet demeanor off the mat, she was fast and furious once that whistle blew.  We are thankful for the time we were able to see this amazing athlete perform and thankful for the incredible memories.” 

The four-vehicle crash happened on icy and slushy roads at about 3:56 p.m. in Missoula County, according to a Montana Highway Patrol accident report. 

The semi out of South Dakota was southbound on U.S. 93 at mile marker 4.5 when it jackknifed and spun across the center line and collided with a GMC Sierra traveling northbound driven by Anderson. Anderson and Courville both died at the scene, according to the report. 

A Ronan man in an International MV series truck was following the semi and crashed into its trailer as it slid down the highway. The impact caused the trailer to un-jackknife, spin 180-degrees and lose its load of plyboard. 

Another Ronan man driving a Chrysler Town and Country northbound also collided with the trailer. 

Both Ronan drivers were wearing seat belts and were not injured.