Flathead Watercooler

Business trainings and gatherings

Kalispell chamber president elected chair of association, while child care initiative honored

Lorraine Clarno, President and CEO of the Kalispell chamber, was recently elected as the 2023-24 chair of the Western Association of Chamber Executives.

ImagineIF board pledges to spend $70K on materials for Bigfork branch

The ImagineIF Library Board of Trustees is pledging to buy $70,000 in materials for the system’s Bigfork branch once its renovation project is complete.

Law roundup: Ex-boyfriend reportedly steals child’s toys

A woman told the Kalispell Police Department she was at her wit’s end with an ex’s alleged harrassment. In the days following Valentine’s Day, where the couple

Valkyries win Western B title

The Bigfork Valkyries easily won the Western B girls divisional title Saturday with a 63-30 win over Loyola and finish the season 23-0.

Big Sky tour nears end for 'TJ'

Not quite a year ago, Tiana Johnson scored 14 points for Idaho against Northern Arizona, in a Big Sky Conference women’s basketball game played in Flagstaff last March 4.

Hellgate girls outlast Wolfpack in fourth

Missoula Hellgate’s Alex Covill poured in 27 points, and the Knights surged in the first and fourth quarters in their 59-50 defeat of Glacier in girls basketball action Saturday. Noah Fincher scored 16 points for the Wolfpack, which trailed 17-7 early but closed to 41-40 going into the final quarter.

Cummings, Braves fall at Missoula Big Sky, 73-57

Flathead’s Noah Cummings struck for 26 points, hitting three 3-pointers along the way, but the Braves still fell 73-57 to Missoula Big SKy in the regular season finale for both teams Saturday.

Buls buries six 3s, Glacier tops Hellgate

Kaidrian Buls scored a career-high 24 points, including six 3-pointers, and Glacier beat Missoula Hellgate 69-62 in boys basketball Saturday on the Knights’ floor.

Browning 4th, C-Falls 5 at Western A girls tourney

Browning’s 46-37 win over Polson Saturday morning put the Lady Indians in the third-place game at the Western A girls basketball divisional. They lost to Dillon 58-30 to fall to 19-3, but the top four teams advanced to the State A tournament March 9-11 in Bozeman.

Columbia Falls boys 5th, one win from State A

Jace Hill had 25 points and seven rebounds to lead the Wildcats over Browning 69-50 in the fifth-place game at the Western A Divisional Saturday. Columbia Falls next plays Havre, the fourth-place team out of Eastern A, for a berth into the State A tournament March 9-11 in Bozeman.

Vikings top Anaconda, into Western B chipper

Three players scored in double digits for the Bigfork Vikings on Friday in a 64-37 semifinal win over Anaconda, earning them a trip to the Western B boys divisional championship game.

Valkyries in Western B final

The Gunlock sisters again led the way for the Bigfork Valkyries at the Western B girls divisional on Friday, who cruised past Mission 69-25 and will face Loyola in the final today at 6:30 p.m.

Browning girls fall; Wildkats, Pirates stay alive

RONAN — Down one possession late, the Browning Lady Indians couldn’t close the gap and fell to Frenchtown 53-47 in the semifinals of the Western A girls basketball tournament Friday.

C-Falls, Browning boys stay alive at Western A

RONAN — While Frenchtown and Butte Central advanced to the championship game, Browning and Columbia Falls stayed alive at the Western A boys basketball divisional Friday.

Inquiry issues damning report into Dutch gas drilling

A Dutch parliamentary inquiry released a damning report Friday into the government's handling of lucrative natural gas extraction that caused a string of earthquakes in the northern province of Groningen, saying that authorities put profits before people.

FVCC class focuses on live storytelling

A new non-credit class at Flathead Valley Community College wants to help both experienced and inexperienced students perfect the craft of live storytelling.

Affordable housing advocates push to put state dollars toward price-controlled housing

Housing affordability advocates are working to drum up support in the Montana Capitol for a pair of bills that would put state resources into supporting the construction of more price-controlled housing for middle- and low-income Montanans — policies that would take a step beyond the free-market strategies that have so far drawn support from Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte.

Legals for February, 24 2023

First-place Knights hold Braves down for 14th win

Connor Dick scored 15 points, Easton Sant added 10 and Missoula Hellgate pulled away after the first quarter to beat Flathead 59-29 in Western AA boys basketball Thursday.