Senior was first prep athlete from Mining City to compete at meet
You will have to excuse Sam Henderson for missing Butte High’s track meet with Billings Senior and Butte Central last Thursday.
The Butte High senior was busy placing fifth in the boys’ high school triple jump at the Penn Relays.
The Penn Relays, officially known as the Penn Relay Carnival, is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States. The event, which began in 1895, is held at the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. (Results)
Henderson is the first high school athlete from Butte to compete in the prestigious event.
The longest triple jumper in Butte High history, Henderson placed fifth with a leap of 46 feet, 10 inches. That is shorter than the personal-best mark of 48-4 ¾ that he set two days earlier to break the meet record at the Russ Pilcher Top 10 meet in Missoula.
Michael-Andre Edwards of Jamaca College won the event with a mark of 52-4. Joachim Johnson of the Episcopal Academy of Pennsylvania took second in 48-7 ½. Nicardo Grey Clarke of Wolmer’s Boys in Jamaca was third at 48-7 ½, and he was followed by Tristan Harris of Lafayette, Virginia at 48-6.
The triple jump was limited to 18 athletes who reached the qualifying mark of 46-3 ½ during the season.
Henderson placed second in the triple jump and third in the high jump at the Class AA State meet last year in Great Falls. He has already reached qualifying standards in those events plus the 110-meter hurdles to compete in this year’s State meet in Kalispell.
Henderson has signed to compete in track and field at the University of Montana.
Bulldogs rack up victories
While Henderson was busy in the City of Brotherly Love, many of his Butte High teammates were busy picking up victories at a meet between the Bulldogs, Billings Senior and Butte Central on the Charlie Merrifield Track. (Results)
Senior won the team titles. The Broncs scored 94 points to win on the boys’ side. Butte High scored 78, while BC checked in with eight. The Senior girls won with 102 points. The Bulldogs scored 68, and the Maroons scored two.
In all, 11 Bulldogs posted wins in the meet.
Senior Dylan “Bobby” Bache won the long jump with a State qualifying mark of 21 feet. That set a personal record. Bache also posted PRs while taking second in the 200 and third in the 100.
Sophomore Raeder Grey won the 300-meter hurdles with a personal-best time of 43.22 seconds. He laced second in the 110 hurdles.
Junior Levi Willtsie won the 1,600-meter race in 5 minutes, 12 seconds, while classmate Jacob Galle won the 110 hurdles with a PR of 16.09 seconds.
Junior Ryan Hanson cleared 6 feet, 2 inches to win the high jump, and senior Mason Leber got over 11 feet to win the pole vault.
Also for the Butte High boys, Sam Sampson took second in the 100 and third in the 200, Lincoln Zell placed second in the 800, Cohen Andrews jumped to second in the triple jump, Bridger Luebke placed third in the 800, Braydon Pierce took third in the javelin, Ryan Popovich placed third in the high jump, and Tyler Olsen finished third in the pole vault.
Olsen also cleared 11 feet, but took third on jumps.
Brityn Stewart, Milee Stillwagon, Elly Rumler, Cadence Graham and Peyton Traber posted wins for the Butte High girls.
Stewart launched the javelin a season-best 127-9 to easily eclipse the State qualifying standard of 113. The senior is the defending state champion in that event.
Stillwagon, a freshman, won the 800 with a PER of 2:42.19, and Graham, a sophomore won the 300 hurdles in 49.62. Rumler, a freshman, was the lone runner in the 3,2000.
Trabert, a senior, cleared 8-6 to win the pole vault. Valleria Trabert placed third in that event.
Senior Dylann Bartoletti took second in the 100 and third in the 200. Also for the Bulldogs Sophia Houchin took second in the 1,600, Mylee Demarais placed second in the shot put, Ellie Yates took second in the javelin, and Kloe Dickinson finished second in the long jump.
Senior Catherine Sholey placed third in the discus and javelin, while Kate DeShaw placed third in the triple jump, Berkli Salusso finished third in the 800, and Saege Grey took third in the 100.
Butte Central sophomore Danny McCarthy won the 100-meter dash in 11.46 seconds. Maroon senior Michael Peck placed third in the shot put, while junior Caden Tippett took third in the girls’ shot put for BC.
McGree doubles up at Tomich
Butte Central senior Keefer McGree ran to victories in the 110- and 300-meter hurdles to highlight the host team’s performance at the annual John Tomich Invitational Friday on the Charlie Merrifield Track. (Results)
McGree, who was celebrating his 18th birthday, also ran a leg of BC’s second-place 1,600-meter relay team. Justus McGee, Patrick Stimatz and Palmer Kellicut also ran a leg. (Note: the results on athletic.net misidentify Kellicut in the relay.)
Stimatz is an emerging story for the BC boys. The senior ran to second place in the 100. He also posted a PR with a time of 11.53 seconds while competing in the JV race of the meet the day before.
Kellicut a freshman, took third in the 110 hurdles and fifth in the 300 hurdles. Peck took sixth in the shot put.
Tippett’s third-place showing in the shot put led the Central girls.
Frenchtown won the boys’ team title with 101.5 points. Boulder was second at 80, followed by Manhattan Christian at 68 and Livingston at 64.
The Maroons finished fifth in the event that saw 11 teams score points with 45.
Dillon’s girls scored 133.33 points to win. Broadwater was second at 101, followed by Frenchtown at 92.16. BC placed ninth with six.
Jory wins 100 at Freshman Meet
Xavier Jory ran to victory in the 100-meter dash to lead Butte High’s performance in Saturday’s Western AA Freshman Meet at Missoula County Stadium. (Results)
Jory finished the race in 11.93 seconds for the victory. Brent Humbert of Kalispell Glacier placed second in 11.98.
In all, 10 Butte High athletes posted top-five performances in the meet of ninth graders.
Colt Stenson placed third in the discus and fourth in the shot put for the Bulldog boys. Sawyer Casey took fourth in the javelin.
On the girls’ side, Clara Sigler led the Bulldogs with a second-place showing in the pole vault. She also took seventh in the long jump.
Elly Rumler placed third in the 3,200, while Wakely Burelson (100), Stella Callaghan (200) and Sophia Houchin (800) placed fourth. Milee Stillwagon (1,600) and Penelope Luebke (300 hurdles) placed fifth.
Butte High slams Flathead
Butte High’s softball team bounced back from two tough losses at Kalispell Glacier last Tuesday by pounding Kalispell Flathead twice in a Western AA twin bill Saturday at Stodden Park.
Butte High cruised to a 13-1 win in the opener. Then, the Bulldogs completed the sweep with a 15-4 rout. Both games were called by the run rule, the first after five innings and the second after six.
Junior right fielder Mattie Stepan hit a grand slam to lead Butte High’s 12-hit attack in the opener. The shot came as Butte High broke the game open with an eight-run third inning.
Gracie Jonart and Gracie Ferriter each hit a double and a single while driving in two runs apiece for the Bulldogs. Kendallyn Schad and Madisyn Swanson each smacked two singles, and Reese Johnson, Ashlinn Mullaney and Ally Godbout added a base knock.
Mullaney pitched four innings, striking out five in the win. Brea Henderson, an eighth grader, struck out three in one inning of work.
Allie Becker hit a three-run bomb, and Schad added a two-run blast as the Bulldogs used 15 hits to win Game 2.
Johnson, Ferriter, Mullaney, Stepan, and Godbout each smacked two hits in the win. Godbout hit a double. Jonart added a single, and Johnson, Ferriter and Mullaney joined Schad with two RBIs.
Mullaney again went five innings, fanning five. Henderson got the last six outs, two by way of the K.
The Bulldogs are back in action Thursday when they travel to Missoula Sentinel. Butte High will then celebrate Senior Day when it takes on Missoula Hellgate Saturday at Stodden Park.
Maroons pick up first win
Butte Central’s softball team closed a busy week with with an exciting 13-11 victory over East Helena Tuesday at Stodden Park.
The victory, which was BC’s first of the season, closed out a stretch of six games in seven days for the young BC squad. Central went 1-5 in that stretch.
Kodee Badovinac ripped three hits, including a pair of doubles, to lead the Maroon offense. BC scored six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning before holding off a Vigilante team that countered with five in the top of the seventh.
Braelynn Schelin, who struck out nine batters to get the win, also poked three hits in the victory. Zayonna Otherbull and Arika Stajcar each hit a double and a single, while Kenzie McQueary hit two singles.
Marly Mansanti and Cambri Campbell added hits in the victory.
That win came after Butte Central fell 8-0 to Ronan earlier and 15-0 to Lewistown Saturday to close out the Frenchtown tournament. Autumn Lozeau smacked three hits, and Kylee Kelch homered to lead the Maidens. Kailyn Marengo and Alexa Youngren combined to hold BC to just one hit, a single by Badovinac.
Lewistown’s Kayla Jensen and Britta Sparks combined to hold BC scoreless in Saturday’s last game. The game was called after three innings.
Central fell 16-3 to Libby and 14-0 to open play in Frenchtown on Friday.
Badovinac hit two doubles, and McQueary hit a double and a single to lead the Maroons in that loss. Schelin and Evyn Smith singled.
Frenchtown’s Ryan Lucier struck out eight and held the Maroons to just one hit. That was a single by Schelin.
Central’s busy week started with an 8-7 home loss to Dillon Wednesday at Stodden Park,
Kaitlin Konen blasted a home run in the top of the seventh for the winning run. Tyler Gibson also homered for the Beavers.
Badovinac went 3 for 4, while Schelin, McQueary and Otherbull added singles.
The Maroons will play at Hamilton and Corvallis on Saturday. They go to Dillon next Tuesday.
Bulldogs down BC, drop next two
Butte High’s baseball team suffered a crushing loss Tuesday at a cold-and-windy Miners Field at 3 Legends Stadium.
Killian Snarr pitched the distance as East Helena completed the regular-season sweep of Butte High with an 8-4 victory. Snarr also set the plate for the Vigilantes by drawing three walks from the leadoff spot.
Jack Taylor tripled, and Beau Pearce, Boston Adams and Hunter Sutton doubled in East Helena’s 15-hit attack.
Tocher Lee and Logan Carden tripled for Butte High, which played its second game without star shortstop Cayde Stajcar. The 2024 Montana Gatorade Player of the Year suffered a concussion off the field.
Tegan Duffy and Matthew Donaldson doubled for Butte, which got 10 hits on the day.
Lee went 3 for 4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Will Stepan added two hits and two RBIs, while Duffy and Carden joined in the two-hit day.
Jaxon Williamson pitched better than his line might say. He struck out eight and gave up five earned runs.
That loss came on the heels of Saturday’s 15-2 loss to Belgrade.
Butte committed five errors in the cold and wind of 3 Legends Stadium. That led to 13 unearned runs scored by the Panthers.
Andrew Hazen, Cade Thomas and Mason Zimmer doubled to lead the Panthers. Gage Banks pitched five strong innings in the win, which was called by the run rule after six innings.
Donaldson doubled, while Stepan and Gunner Bushman each poked two hits in the loss. Tegan Duffy also singled for Butte High.
Butte High entered the weekend riding high after beating Butte Central 10-0 on Thursday.
Donaldson struck out seven in the complete-game win. The game was called in bottom of the fifth by the run rule. He gave up just two hits, singles by Trapper Stajcar and Gunnar O’Brien.
Duffy and Donaldson each hit a pair of doubles to lead the Bulldogs. Donaldson drove in three runs. Evan McEwen added two singles for Butte High. Stepan, Lucas Harris-Huerta, Calvin Cunningham and Karsen McEwen each added one.
The Maroons then fell 13-2 at home to Billings Central on Monday.
Howie Martin went 3 for 5 with a triple, three runs scored and three RBIs from the leadoff spot for Billings Central, who used five pitchers to hold the BC bats at bay.
Trapper Stajcar and Colt Hassler each smacked two hits for the Maroons. O’Brian, Beau McGree and Kelton Berger each added one.
The Maroons are back at home Thursday against Dillon and Saturday against Belgrade.
Butte High will play host to Lone Peak on Friday before taking on Livingston at home Saturday.
Bulldogs grab wins on courts
Butte High’s boys’ tennis team picked up a 5-3 win over the Belgrade Panthers Saturday in Belgrade.
Josh Schrader, Matthew Weldon, Tashi Hanley and Bryce Gratton won as Butte High swept the singles matches. Gratton won in a tiebreaker, while the other three won in straight sets.
Jaxon Jonart and Briggs Joseph teamed to win a thrilling tiebreaker at No. 3 doubles as the Bulldogs grabbed the win.
Belgrade’s girls beat Butte High 7-1. Murphy Sullivan grabbed straight sets win at No. 2 singles for the Bulldogs.
On Saturday, the Bulldogs went to Kalispell to take on Glacier and Flathead.
The Bulldogs boys fell 6-2 to Glacier. Hanley won a tiebreaker at No. 3 singles for Butte High. Phillip Russo and Shrader won a tiebreaker at No. 3 doubles.
In the girls’ battle, the Wolfpack walked away with an 8-0 win over Butte High.
Flathead topped Butte High’s boys 5-2. Butte got a tiebreaker win from Gratton at No. 4 singles and the team of Hunter LaPier and Kanyon Flynn at No. 2 doubles.
Butte High’s girls topped Flathead 5-3. Sullivan and Avery Blue won singles matches in straight sets. The Bulldogs got a win at No. 2 doubles by Chloe Jewell and Sierra Bradley.
Sofia Groesbeck and Renna Hubbert won at No. 3 doubles, and Aubbrie Allmendinger and Isabella Babb won at No. 4 doubles.
“It was a great two days of tennis,” Butte High coach Shawndee Gratton said.
The ButteCast with Bill Foley 