Bulldogs jump back into action

Wrestlers head to LeProwse Invite

While Butte Central’s basketball teams have an extended break following Christmas, the Butte High Bulldogs are wasting no time getting back into action.

The Bulldog boys’ and girls’ teams will take on Gallatin Friday in a doubleheader at the Butte Civic Center. The girls play at 5:30 p.m., and the boys will tip off around 7.

We could see a milestone reached in the girls’ game. After scoring 14 points in Butte High’s 62-24 Dec. 23 win over Butte Central, junior guard Cadence Graham is just 11 points shy of joining the 1,000-point club.

That will make Graham, who first cracked a sport on the varsity team when she was in the eighth grade, just the second Butte High girl with 1,000 points or more on her career, joining the great Lexie Nelson.

Nelson holds Butte High’s record — for a boy or girl — with 1,696 points. Senior Hudson Luedtke, who led the Bulldog boys to a 4-0 December, could make a run at that mark. Last year, Luedtke passed John Dawson to become Butte High’s all-time leading scorer on the boys’ side.

Luedtke averaged 29.5 points per game during the first four games, and he sits at 1,287. That leaves Luedtke 409 points, so if he stays on that pace, he would pass Nelson late in the regular season.

Of course, staying on such an insane scoring pace is much easier said than done. Luedtke led the state in scoring and assists last year with 19.2 points and 6.1 assists per game. Realistically, Luedtke would likely need to lead the Bulldogs on a deep postseason run to pass Nelson.

While Graham led the Bulldogs in scoring in the win over Central, she is not the only player with a big performance in the rivalry game. Butte High got contributions from up and down the bench.

Senior Emma Johnson scored nine points in the win. Freshmen Ellison Graham and Saege Grey each scored eight points apiece, junior Allie Becker tossed in seven, senior Franki Salusso scored six and junior Kendallyn Schad netted five. Butte High also got three points from sophomore Stella Callaghan and two from junior Avery Barsness.

The win lifted Butte High to 2-2. The Bulldogs opened the season with a win at Bozeman before falling at home to Dillon and on the road to Billings West.

Butte High’s boys will be looking to go to 5-0 after their 71-30 win over the Maroons.

Luedke scored 32 points to lead the Bulldogs, who shot 57.6 percent from the field (19 of 33). That includes a 10-for-20 performance from the 3-point line.

While the Bulldogs could not miss, Butte Central had a frigid night shooting, thanks in large part to a tough Butte High defense. The Bulldogs held the Maroons 21 percent shooting (10 of 47). That includes a 2-for-22 performance from behind the 3-point line.

BC entered the game as a hot-shooting team, jumping out to a 4-0 start to the season.

Senior Cayde Stajcar, who returned to the team after not playing as a sophomore or junior, was key on the boards, where the Bulldogs held a decided advantage. Stajcar led the team with 12 rebounds, including nine on defense.

Senior Josh Liston scored eight points, Stajcar and seniors Rhett Arntson and Mitch Verlanic each scored six, 6-foot-9 sophomore Brady Hanson scored five, senior James Peterson scored four, and junior Brady Walsh and senior Ryan Hanson each tossed in two.

The showdown with the Raptors will be the only action of the week for Butte High. The Bulldog boys will head to Kalispell to take on Flathead and Glacier Jan. 9 and 10. The Butte High girls will be home against the Kalispell schools.

Butte Central’s break will end up more than two weeks. The Maroons don’t play until Jan. 8, when the boys’ and girls’ teams will head to Anaconda for a doubleheader with the Copperheads.

The Maroons will open Southwestern A play Jan. 10 against Stevensville. The girls will play at home, while the boys head to the Bitterroot Valley.

LeProwse Invite is Friday, Saturday

Butte High and Butte Central’s wrestlers will get right back at it, too, competing in the Tom LeProwse Invitational Friday and Saturday at Gallatin High School in Bozeman.

The tournament is named after the Butte High and Bozeman legend. The late Tom LeProwse, played football at Butte High and MSU before becoming a Montana coaching icon with the Bozeman Hawks. He was inducted into the Butte Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.

Action begins at 11 a.m. on Friday and 9 a.m. on Saturday.

Butte is coming off a 7-1 performance at the Pat Weede Memorial dual tournament in Gillette Wyoming.

Junior Bridger Garrison (at 157 pounds) and senior Ryder McEwen (144) led the Bulldogs, going undefeated in their eight matches on the weekend. Senior Darryn Rossiter won seven matches at 132 pounds.

Junior Bradey Doyle (138), senior Keegan Hunt (120) and sophomore Reveles McEwen (144) picked up six wins for the Bulldogs, while Junior Bode Hazlett (150) and freshman Renzy LeProwse (106) both win five matches. Senior Caden Phillips (215), junior Cameron Fleege (165) and eighth grader Crew O’Conner (113) won four.

Butte High’s girls will compete Friday and Saturday at the Belgrade Invitational. The Bulldogs closed out their December schedule at the CMR Holiday Classic in Great Falls.

Wrestling for that tournament begins at 11:30 a.m. on Friday and 8:30 on Saturday.

Senior Mattie Stepan led the way for the Bulldogs, placing fifth at 155 pounds. Eighth grader Adalie Hazlett (125 pounds) and senior Peyton Liva (105) took seventh, and junior Chyanne Robinson (235) and senior Jessic Blow (125) finished eighth.