GIRLS STATE RESULTS--SAT., 3-7

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Back-to-back champs

By The Montana Standard Staff - 03/08/2009

Pat Ryan / The Montana Standard McCall Flynn celebrates with an Anaconda cheerleader after the Copperheads beat the Hamilton Broncs Saturday.

Mark it two straight for Anaconda.

The Copperhead girls' basketball team won a second-straight State A basketball championship at the Butte Civic Center Saturday night.

Anaconda topped Hamilton 56-41 in the chipper.

In the consolation final, Glendive avenged its only loss of the season - suffered in the opening round Thursday against Havre - to take third place.

Anaconda 56, Hamilton 41

There were some basketball lessons, but more importantly there were some life lessons in Anaconda's second-straight Class A state championship win.

Hamilton scored on the first possession of the game and ended up trailing the rest of the way against Anaconda's dominant defense and accurate shooting.

By halftime, the 'Heads had doubled Hamilton's point total, 32-16.

At one point early in the fourth quarter, Anaconda took a 50-23 lead.

With a little more than three minutes left in the game, a spectator went down with a medical emergency. Referees halted play for more than 10 minutes while a relative of one of Anaconda's players was taken to an ambulance.

After that, another man went down about 10 feet away from the first emergency. Play was halted, but eventually he regained his strength and was escorted outside the gym.

The mood of the winners after the courtside events was somber, but hopeful.

"It's a fantastic feeling," Anaconda coach Maury Cook said. "But we saw tonight there are some things bigger than basketball. We hope everyone is all right."

Hamilton coach Mark Albert agreed.

"You look at the folks that went down tonight and realize that it's just a game," he said.

Aside from the two emergencies, Anaconda put on what coach Albert called "a defensive clinic."

The Copperheads held a 17-9 turnover advantage by the end of the game.

Defensive pressure on Hamilton baller and future Montana State Bobcat Ashley Albert halted her momentum early.

Anaconda defender Korey Krumm found herself in foul trouble in the first quarter, but her cousin McCall Flynn and other teammates stepped up to defend Albert.

On the other side, Anaconda ended up shooting 57 percent from the field.

It was everything coach Cook hoped for, in that he had a solid defensive effort from his team along with an enviable shooting performance.

"Our gameplan has always been the same," Cook said. "I'm proud of the way they played. They all shot well. It was a great team effort. I'm very proud of the entire team."

Junior All-State guard Torry Hill led the Copperheads with 27 points. It was another remarkable state championship game for her as she went 9-for-16 from the field. Even more impressive was that she had only a single turnover the entire game.

Hamilton, like every other team Anaconda faced, couldn't stop Hill.

"Torry is a scoring machine," coach Albert said. "You can't stop her. Misha (Trotter) played as great as she could and couldn't stop her."

She averaged 25 points per game in the State A Tournament. After the game, Hill was satisfied with the win, but felt bittersweet.

"It feels good," she said. "Emotions were up and down with what happened."

Junior guard Lisa Laslovich was Anaconda's second-leading scorer with 11 points.

Laslovich lit it up from long range during the tournament going 9-for-16. The most surprising thing about her last three games was that she was injured last weekend at divisionals and played through a pulled hip flexor quite well.

"I didn't practice all week," Laslovich said. "Thursday came and I was like ‘I gotta do this.'"

She wore the Anaconda logo proud after the game.

"I'm honored to be a part of this team and this town," Laslovich said.

The Copperheads' lone senior, Flynn, put up a memorable performance in front of a large Anaconda contingent in her finale.

Laslovich broke into tears when asked about her teammate.

"I'm gonna miss McCall terribly," Laslovich said. "She's a great person and a great leader."

Flynn helped take control with a group of juniors and sophomores that were hell-bent on repeating.

"We knew we could win," she said. "We came out, we rocked it, we had to."

Other scoring contributors for Anaconda were Krumm with six and Chelsea Galle with three.

Other players that took the floor for Anaconda included Nicole Schaefer, Vanessa Jense, Shannon Ryan, Rachel Wagner, Cara McNeil, Emily Morani and Teryn Green.

The girls' assistant coaches, and unspoken heroes, were Bob Matosich and Nick Laslovich.

Anaconda won its' third championship in school history.

"I'm proud of my teammates and coaches," Hill said. "They all did the best they could. I can't wait until next year."

Ashley Albert ended up with 14 points. She picked up her third foul early in the second quarter and ended up sitting a good portion of the first half.

Cierra Smith put up nine and Annie Schultz added eight.

Cook and his team had all the respect in the world for the Broncs.

"They're a classy outfit," Cook said. "They've shown they're a class act. They had a bit of an off night. We don't take anything away from them."

Hamilton went from watching divisionals at home last season to playing in the championship this year.

"We were a possession away from state last year," coach Albert said. "The kids have put the time in and that's what it takes. Hopefully this isn't a rare occurrence."

- By Sean Eamon

of The Montana Standard

ANACONDA (19-4) - McCall Flynn 2-4 4-4 9, Torry Hill 9-16 7-9 27, Lisa Laslovich 4-7 2-2 11, Chelsea Galle 1-6 0-0 3, Korey Krumm 2-2 2-2 6, Nicole Shaffer 0-1 0-0 0, Vanessa Jense 0-2 0-0 0, Shannon Ryan 0-1 0-0 0, Rachel Wagner 0-0 0-0 0, Cara McNeil 0-0 0-0 0, Emily Morani 0-0 0-0 0, Teryn Green 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-40 15-17 56.

HAMILTON (17-6) - Misha Trotter 1-2 0-0 2, Ali Mildenberger 0-0 1-2 1, Cierra Smith 3-7 0-2 9, Ashley Albert 6-14 1-5 14, Annie Schultz 2-6 4-4 8, Ashley Hayes 0-0 0-0 0, Presley Chadwick 0-0 2-2 2, Kaurie Albert 0-3 3-4 3, Jill Harmon 0-0 0-0 0, Rachel Hudson 0-0 0-0 0, Averyl Lasalle 0-0 2-2 2. Totals 12-32 13-21 41.

Anaconda 13 19 8 16 - 56

Hamilton 10 6 7 18 - 41

3-point goals - Anaconda 5-17 (Flynn 1-2, Hill 2-6, Laslovich 1-3, Galle 1-4, Jense 0-1, Ryan 0-1), Hamilton 4-11 (Smith 3-7, A. Albert 1-3, Albert 0-1). Rebounds - Anaconda 23 (Galle 6, Hill 5, Flynn 4), Hamilton 24 (Schultz 8, A. Albert 7). Fouls - Anaconda 20, Hamilton 16. Fouled out - Smith. Technical fouls - none. Assists - Anaconda 7 (Laslovich 4), Hamilton 5 (Schultz 2). Turnovers - Anaconda 9, Hamilton 17. Blocks - Anaconda 1 (Laslovich), Hamilton 2. Steals - Anaconda 10 (Laslovich 3), Hamilton 3.

Third place

Glendive 47, Havre 34

The Blue Ponies didn't have another ace up their sleeve.

After giving their all in a 1-point consolation semifinal win over Belgrade earlier in the day, Havre didn't have the fuel for another upset of Glendive. The Blue Ponies shocked the previously undefeated Red Devils in the opening round of the tournament on Thursday.

"When we got beat Thursday it was like their world came crumbling down," said Glendive coach Richy Powell. "That's life, and I challenged them to come back and go for third. They avenged the only loss they had all season, and I think it was a tremendous accomplishment."

Abbey Dufner led the Devils' offensive effort with 14 points, but it was 6-foot-2 junior Carly Selvig whose presence in the middle made the rest possible. Selvig finished with nine points, 10 rebounds, five blocks, three assists and a pair of steals. Two of her blocks came within seconds of each other, as Selvig stopped shots by two different Havre shooters on the same possession.

Four different Devils scored in the opening four minutes to give Glendive a 7-2 cushion. Havre pulled within two in the second quarter as Cassi Darrah successfully finished all three of her 3-point shots. Darrah netted 11 of her team-high 12 points in the first half.

The Blue Ponies couldn't match the Devils' firepower early in the second half, as Glendive outscored Havre 16-8 through the third period. Hannah McPherson knocked down five of her 10 points early in the period.

"Hey, Glendive is a good team," understated Havre coach Dustin Kraske. "It's a privilege for me to coach against a guy like Richy Powell, and for the kids to play a team like that.

I thought the kids represented our high school well. They played with class and they played hard. I'm pleased with the season we had."

Havre got seven points off the bench from Madison Ruff, while the Ponies also saw five points each from Hope Hedges and Hayley Donovan. Sarah Blessum and Karly Evans also scored for Havre, while Cali Freier gave a good defensive effort off the bench.

Glendive got six points and five rebounds from Kyla Johnson, while Blair Milne had five points and four boards. Kallie Madler scored a bucket for the Devils, while Lillian Temple and Katie Turner also saw action.

"The girls worked hard," Powell said. "They went out and did what I asked them to do."

- By Pat Ryan

of The Montana Standard

HAVRE (17-8) - Sarah Blessum 1-9 0-0 3, Hope Hedges 1-6 3-4 5, Karly Evans 1-2 0-2 2, Cassi Darrah 4-10 1-2 12, Hayley Donovan 1-5 2-2 5, Madison Ruff 2-4 3-4 7, Cali Freier 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 10-36 9-14 34.

GLENDIVE (23-1) - Abbey Dufner 5-9 2-2 15, Carly Selvig 3-8 3-4 9, Kyla Johnson 1-5 4-4 6, Hannah McPherson 3-7 3-4 10, Blair Milne 1-2 3-6 5, Katie Turner 0-0 0-0 0, Lillian Temple 0-0 0-0 0, Kallie Madler 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 14-34 15-20 47.

Havre 5 10 8 11 - 34

Glendive 12 7 16 12 - 47

3-point goals - Havre 5-13 (Blessum 1-5, Hedges 0-3, Evans 0-1, Darrah 3-3), Glendive 4-13 (Dufner 3-5, Johnson 0-3, McPherson 1-5). Rebounds - Havre 22 (Donovan 8, Blessum 5), Glendive 28 (Selvig 10, Johnson 5). Fouls - Havre 14, Glendive 12. Fouled out - none. Technical fouls - none. Assists - Havre 8 (Hedges 5), Glendive 8 (Selvig 3). Turnovers - Havre 9, Glendive 8. Blocks - Havre 0, Glendive 6, (Selvig 5). Steals - Havre 3, Glendive 5.

Loser Out

Havre 39, Belgrade 38

Havre's quickness to the scoring lanes, primarily that of guard Hope Hedges, was the difference most of the way in a rematch of Central A Conference rivals.

The 5-foot-2 senior wound up with 18 points, mostly on drives and pullups. One such drive resulted in the winning point.

Belgrade had taken 38-36 lead by scoring the first 11 points of the fourth quarter after finishing the third behind 36-27. The Blue Ponies had committed so few fouls they needed to make four quick ones as the clock passed the minute-left mark just to put the Panthers on the line. Havre needed misses by Belgrade shooters and rebounds by Blue Pony boardworkers.

Jamie Greany missed the front of a one-and-one after a Cali Feier foul with 24 seconds to go. Hayley Donovan of Havre grabbed the rebound and the ball wound up with Hedges. She drove the hoop, made the basket to tie the score and was fouled on the play by Panther Brittany Larsen.

Hedges coolly caged the free throw for the go-ahead point that proved to be the winner.

Belgrade lost the ball on a traveling call and then, with three seconds showing, Hedges drew another foul from Larsen. Hedges missed the free throw but snared the rebound and time expired.

Three straight foul calls on Belgrade's Lindsey Halgren early in the first quarter caused the standout to play sparingly, limiting the Panthers' offense.

The win sent the Blue Ponies to the Saturday consolation final against top-ranked Glendive. Havre upset the previously unbeaten Red Devils in Thursday's first round.

Belgrade finished 15-8 for the season and was led in scoring Saturday by Corie Smith with 10 points. The Panthers defeated Havre a week earlier in the championship game of the Central A Divisional tournament.

- By Bruce Sayler

of The Montana Standard

HAVRE (16-7) - Sarah Blessum 3-7 0-0 9, Hope Hedges 7-13 3-5 18, Karly Evans 2-4 0-0 4, Cassi Darrah 2-7 2-4 6, Hayley Donovan 0-3 0-0 0, Cali Freier 0-0 0-0 0, Madison Ruff 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 15-37 5-9 39.

BELGRADE (15-8) - Sierra Monger 2-11 0-0 6, Jamie Greany 2-13 0-2 5, Brittany Larsen 2-8 4-4 8, Lindsey Halgren 2-10 2-2 6, Corie Smith 4-8 2-3 10, Meagan Bell 0-2 0-2 0, Justine Taylor 0-1 0-0 0, Melissa Bell 0-0 0-0 0, Amanda Hayden 1-1 0-0 3, Nycole Devers 0-0 0-0 0, Angie Schmit 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 13-54 8-13 38.

Havre 13 8 15 3 - 39

Belgrade 9 9 9 11 - 38

3-point goals - Havre 4-11 (Blessum 3-5, Hedges 1-4, Evans 0-1, Darrah 0-1), Belgrade 4-21 (Monger 2-9, Greany 1-6, Larsen 0-4, Hayden 1-1, Meagan Bell 0-1). Fouled out - Larsen. Total fouls - Havre 11, Belgrade 13. Technicals - none. Rebounds - Havre 31 (Blessum 9), Belgrade 35 (Smith 10, Greany 9). Blocks - Havre 2 (Blessum 1, Freier 1), Belgrade 1 (Halgren). Assists - Havre 6 (Hedges 5), Belgrade 6 (Larsen 5). Steals - Havre 4 (Hedges 1, Evans 1, Darrah 1, Donovan 1), Belgrade 9 (Greany 3, Halgren 3). Turnovers - Havre 15, Belgrade 11.

Glendive 64, Miles City 45

The chance to play Havre again might have added incentive for Glendive as it beat Eastern A Conference rival Miles City. The Red Devils brought an undefeated record to the tournament, but lost 38-37 to Havre in the first round Thursday.

Havre's Saturday morning win over Belgrade preceded the Glendive triumph over Miles City, setting up a chance for the Red Devils to avenge their only loss.

Glendive powered on as three Miles City starters found themselves in quick foul trouble, letting the Red Devils double- and even triple-team Cowgirl star Kalli Durham. Taylor Henderson's 3-point shooting - 5-for-7 - helped keep Miles City in the contest until she became one of those with too many infractions to stay in long.

The Cowgirls never led. Glendive scored the first seven points of the game on a three-point play by 6-foot-2 junior standout Carly Selvig, a basket by Kyla Johnson and two free throws by Hannah McPherson.

Miles City tied the score 13-all on a 3-point basket by Durham, daughter of Montana Western Athletic Director Mark Durham. But a shot by Johnson at the first-quarter buzzer broke the knot and the Cowgirls never got any closer.

Balanced scoring carried the Red Devils as all five starters notched double figures. Selvig and McPherson had 13 points each, Abbey Dufner and Blair Milne 12 apiece,and Johnson finished with 10. Glendive controlled the boards by a 38-18 rebounds margin, and Selvig had seven of her team's nine blocks.

Miles City ended the season with a 16-8 record. Henderson and Durham scored 15 points each.

- By Bruce Sayler

of The Montana Standard

GLENDIVE (22-1) - Abbey Dufner 3-4 4-6 12, Carly Selvig 5-15 3-5 13, Kyla Johnson 3-6 4-4 10, Hannah McPherson 1-4 11-12 13, Blair Milne 4-7 4-4 12, Lillian Temple 0-0 0-0 0, Sadie Sampson 0-0 0-0 0, Kallie Madler 1-1 1-2 3, Katie Turner 0-1 1-2 1, Ashley Skillestad 0-0 0-0 0, Jessica Zander 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 17-38 28-39 64.

MILES CITY (16-8) - Taylor Henderson 5-8 0-0 15, Alexia Mader 2-5 1-2 6, Rae Mader 0-5 0-0 0, Kalli Durham 5-16 4-7 15, Anna Magnuson 0-2 2-2 2, Kaylee Swope 2-8 1-1 7, Shelbi Dobie 0-1 0-0 0, Jessica Cremer 0-1 0-0 0, Ezaria Rickett 0-0 0-0 0, Ashlee Janitell 0-1 0-0 0, Callie Griffin 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 14-47 8-12 45.

Glendive 15 11 18 20 - 64

Miles City 13 9 8 15 - 45

3-point goals - Glendive 2-5 (Dufner 2-3, McPherson 0-2), Miles City 9-20 (Henderson 5-7, A. Mader 1-3, Durham 1-2, Swope 2-7, Dobie 0-1). Fouled out - Henderson, A. Mader, Magnuson. Total fouls - Glendive 12, Miles City 24. Technicals - none. Rebounds - Glendive 38 (Milne 10, Dufner 8, Selvig 8), Miles City 18 (R. Mader 4, Durham 4). Blocks - Glendive 9 (Selvig 7), Miles City 0. Assists - Glendive 9 (McPherson 3), Miles City 9 (A. Mader 2, Magnuson 2). Steals - Glendive 8 (Dufner 3), Miles City 10 (A. Mader 4).

State A Girls

at The Butte Civic Center

Saturday

Havre 39, Belgrade 38, lo

Glendive 64, Miles City 45, lo

Glendive 47, Havre 34, third place

Anaconda 56, Hamilton 41, championship