FRITZ NEIGHBOR
SPORTS EDITOR
Fritz Neighbor is the Sports Editor for the Daily Inter Lake. He oversees sports coverage across the Flathead Valley, including high school athletics, youth sports, and regional competitions. In his leadership role, he helps shape the newspaper’s sports coverage and editorial direction. Fritz’s column, Full Count, taps into his decades’ long career covering Montana sports. You’ll also see Fritz sharing his thoughts and insights on the Big Sky Now podcast.
IMPACT: Fritz’s work celebrates the athletes and teams that bring Northwest Montana communities together.
Recent Stories
Glacier’s Christy Harkins retiring as teacher, coach
You could say the Glacier Wolfpack found unprecedented success under Christy Harkins and it would be true, even if she wasn’t the only volleyball coach the school has had.
Big Sky boys handle Glacier
The way the Missoula Big Sky boys got it going against Glacier Tuesday, in a convincing 72-56 at the Wolf Den, probably surprises some.
Moy, Bravettes top Pack convincingly
Looking at the final score from the girls crosstown basketball game Friday — Flathead won 52-23 on its homecourt to stay unbeaten — it’s easy to forget that Glacier looked right as rain nine minutes in.
Wolfpack surges to boys crosstown win
The Glacier Wolfpack showed no jitters on Flathead’s home floor Friday, in a 69-49 crosstown boys basketball win.
Flathead welcomes high-scoring Joston Cripe back to court
What was supposed to happen was Joston Cripe was going to have a solid spring season of AAU basketball, followed by an excellent summer of playing hoops with his Flathead teammates, all building up to a satisfying senior season.
Bengals make early lead hold up on Glacier girls
The Glacier Wolfpack have a plan to combat its usual size disadvantage, and on Saturday the hosts again pushed the issue full-court against the visiting Helena High Bengals.
Bravettes stay calm, improve to 7-0
There are many times to call a calming time out in high school basketball, but seconds into the third quarter might be a little early.
Braves, Bravettes win crosstown duals
The top-ranked Flathead Braves and highly touted Bravettes lived up to their roles as favorites Thursday at the crosstown wrestling dual held at Glacier High, yet the Pack had its moments.
Crosstown wrestling on deck Thursday in Glacier’s gym
Glacier wrestling coach Ross Dankers would like to have a better lineup ready for the crosstown rivals, but with open dates short and four weeks left in the season, tonight will have to do.
Youso, one of 3 co-captains, having excellent senior season for Brawlers
To hear him and his coach tell it, wrestling was not a duck-to-water sport for Flathead 205-pounder Chase Youso.
Butte pulls off big rally at Flathead
You could have just about stuck a fork in the Butte Bulldogs Friday, after they struggled with pressure and allowed 21 second-quarter points and found themselves down 42-22 in the third period.
COLUMN: Gilman has front-row seat to Cats’ run
When Tadan Gilman languished a bit for the Montana State Bobcats football team from 2017-19, he had a solid sounding board: His father, Mark.
Taking stock of the best of a 'normal' 2021
The Year 2021 is almost gone, and it was a bit of a blur, maybe because the pandemic (well, temporarily) winded down and there were more live sports to cover.
Wolfpack attacks the rim to edge Raptors
Connor Sullivan leads Wolfpack with 20 points
Bobcats plan chilly reception for SDSU
Game is at noon at Bobcat Stadium, and on ESPN2
Back on the road: Glacier, Flathead wrestlers in top tournaments
Glacier has a two-time state champion amid a burgeoning team. Flathead has the makings of a repeat.
Touchdown Tommy makes his mark
Touchdown Tommy Mellott is close to being a household name, even if people at the World Wide Leader don’t quite have the pronunciation down.
Pirate boys deepest of very deep league
Polson was the best of a solid Northwest A boys basketball league a season ago, and the Pirates have the manpower to stay on top — but it won’t be easy.
Kats remain favored in young Northwest A
Columbia Falls has talent and history on its side, and that might be enough to outlast the competition in the Northwest A girls basketball race.
Column: Griz keep proving they belong
It is perhaps with maroon-colored glasses that Montana coach Bobby Hauck views his team’s 57-41 win over Eastern Washington in the FCS playoffs last Friday.
Eureka, Bigfork, T-Falls girls to battle in 7-B
The District 7-B got a little bigger, and not just in terms of teams (Plains is up from Class C), but in terms of length.
Bigfork boys could go big after New Year
On their way to another boys basketball season, the Bigfork Vikings took a little detour through Florence – and came out of the Bitterroot a man short.
Consistent Lady Wolfpack retools for another run at state
Here’s what the Glacier girls have going for them: One returning starter, two seniors, and a whole lot of consistency.
Bravettes just may rise to the top
While the Flathead Bravettes didn’t have a great 2020-21 girls basketball season, garnering just two wins in a pandemic-shortened campaign, they were putting down quite the foundation.
Glacier replaces seniors with big front line
It was a cache of seniors that graduated off last year’s Glacier boys basketball team, which upset Missoula Hellgate on the way to the State AA tournament.
Braves bring size, youth to 2021-22 season
It’s unique that a basketball team can graduate a 6-foot-8 senior (Ezra Epperly), and the first detail that people mention ahead of the new season is size.
Big Sky notes: Another special victory for Griz
How special can special teams be? Let the Montana Grizzlies count the ways. Garrett Graves, sophomore out of Eureka, returned the third-quarter pooched kickoff 27 yards to set his team up at the 48; that led to a field goal that gave the Grizzlies the lead for good in a 57-41 FCS playoff win over Eastern Washington Saturday.
Humphrey, Griz light up Eagles to win 57-41
Cam Humphrey threw for three touchdowns and the Montana defense tightened up in the third quarter of the Grizzlies’ 57-41 win over Eastern Washington Friday in a second-round FCS playoff game
Seasoned QBs in one place, new faces at the other
Friday could be the Grizzlies’ time to shine, though the Bobcats seem intent on stealing headlines.
Jake Rendina chooses West Point
Jake Rendina visited a remote area of New York state before Thanksgiving, and it seems he enjoyed the sights.
Big Sky notes: A rematch with a (non) rival
If Eastern Washington fans were expecting a Liberty Lake boat full of bulletin board material coming out of Missoula, they didn’t get it from the Montana Grizzlies’ Monday press conference.
Beasley, Griz hit the gas to beat Southern Miss
Robby Beasley, a sophomore guard, hit five long-range shots Friday night in Montana’s 74-62 win over Southern Mississippi at the Zootown Classic men’s basketball tournament.
Big Sky Notes: Playoff-bound EWU Eagles seeing red
It’s Football Championship Subdivision playoff time, and the Eastern Washington Eagles are seeing red.
Bergen ignites Griz, who snap 4-game skid against Cats
Cam Humphrey’s 74-yard touchdown pass to Junior Bergen set the tone for the Montana Grizzlies, who went on to soundly beat Montana State 29-10 in the 120th Cat-Griz game Saturday.
Griz defense ready to measure up
Two years ago the Montana State Bobcats ran all over the Grizzlies, piling up 382 rushing yards in a 48-14 win.
Cats, Griz ready to brawl in 120th meeting
The betting line has moved, the Montana State Bobcats are on a streak and the Montana Grizzlies are still beat up.
Vikings get another crack at Falcons in Class B chipper
The 62-26 loss on Oct. 21 doesn’t look good for the Bigfork Vikings, who get a rematch with the Florence Falcons today, for the State B football championship.
Two Flathead Valley soccer players helped UM have a banner year
It’s been a whirlwind 2021 for Flathead Valley soccer products Josie Windauer and Skyleigh Thompson, who saw Montana’s soccer season end Saturday with a 3-0 loss to Washington State in the NCAA tournament.
COLUMN: Looking toward a more perfect Saturday
I, for one, am not as upset as some Montanans about College GameDay, the long-running, Saturday morning, football-centric show on ESPN not coming in for the Cat-Griz game this week.
Big Sky Notes: First look at Saturday’s Brawl
And so it is now “Brawl” week, or as some like to call it, “Cat-Griz Week,” which is what it was for decades upon decades before Griz fans started wondering why it wasn’t “Griz-Cat.”
Adam Jones, Spartans end Wolfpack’s season
The Wolfpack’s playoff run came to a screeching halt Friday night at MCPS Stadium, and playing the stopper was Missoula Sentinel’s Adam Jones.
Pirates’ reward: Semifinal clash with defending champs
The Polson Pirates’ reward for beating perennial power Billings Central by three touchdowns last Saturday is playing the team that beat Central by two touchdowns in October.
Lions, Vikings battle for B title game berth
Bigfork and Eureka have developed quite the rivalry over the years, in what used to be District 7-B and is now the Western B, and now comes a football game that means a little bit more.
Glacier’s Luke Bilau has made the most of a move from QB
There was a point not that long ago that Glacier tight end Luke Bilau was a signal-caller. He was tall, had the arm and played the position in junior high and his freshman year.
Wolfpack gets another shot at Spartans in semifinal
A gnarly Missoula Sentinel defense got its sternest test on Sept. 17, in the Spartans 29-21 win over Glacier: Nobody has scored more against the defending State AA football champs this season.
COLUMN: Flathead sees rare pair head to Division I
It is once again Signing Day Ceremony Season, and Flathead High had a nice one Wednesday to celebrate two future Division I athletes in swimmer Lily Milner and wrestler Fin Nadeau.
Big Sky notes: A few words about Mr. Andersen
Saturday’s game in Bozeman will feature all the current Big Sky Conference players of the week: Idaho running back Roshaun Johnson, Montana State linebacker Troy Andersen and MSU punter Bryce Leighton.
Flathead Valley PBL team home opener is June 14
The Pioneer Baseball League released its 96-game schedule Thursday, and the expansion Flathead Valley squad will have its home opener on June 14 against the Billings Mustangs.
Pirates plunder Rams
Polson outpaces Billings Central to go 10-0
Building a three-touchdown advantage in the third quarter can lead to some serious clock-squeezing, B-gap running offense for any football team. That’s not Polson’s style.
Area gridders gird for quarterfinals
As Polson gears up for a State A quarterfinal football game today, several things stand out about opponent Billings Central.