-
Episode No. 379: Remembering 9/11 with Bernie Boyle and Shane Worley
Next Friday will mark the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.
While 25 years might seem like a long time, those of us old enough to have lived through that day remember it like it was yesterday. We all know exactly where we were when we first heard about it. We all know exactly where we were when we watched that second tower fall.
In Butte, we were watching from more than 2,000 miles away. But the sights and sounds of New York, Washington, D.C. and the field in Pennsylvania hit home. They did for every American and for most of the people around the world.
That day saw 343 New York City firemen and some 40 police officers killed in the line of duty. When people were desperately trying to get out of the buildings, they were running in. Most probably had a pretty good idea that there were not going to come out, either.
This morning, I went to the Knights of Columbus Hall, where they have a terrific memorial set up to honor the fallen firefighters and police officers from that infamous day. I sat down next to the memorial in the Felix Madrazo Gym with retired Butte firefighter Bernie Boyle and current Butte-Silver Bow firefighter Shane “Bucky” Worley for an interesting and important conversation to remember Sept. 11, 2001.
Next Friday, Sept. 11, the KC will hold a ceremony to mark the 25th anniversary of that fateful day. A 3:30 p.m. ceremony will include a blessing from Rev. Tom Haffey and remarks from Chief Executive J.P. Gallager, Sheriff Ed Lester and Butte-Silver Bow firefighter Derek Harvey.
The ceremony will be held at the memorial, which was unveiled in March of 2002 and includes a print of a painting by Butte artist Mike Hamblin. New York City firefighter Michael O’Hanlon and New York City police officer Thomas Patrick O’Riordan traveled to Butte for that ceremony. O’Hanlon passed away from 9/11-related cancer in 2017.
Now, 25 years later, we will show that O’Hanlon and the rest of the heroes from 9/11 will never be forgotten with another service at the KC.
Following the ceremony in the gym, a video will be shown upstairs in the KC Hall. The video will include the 2002 remarks from O’Hanlon and O’Riordan.
A social will follow to give those who attend a chance to catch up and share memories of that day. It is important to remember the fallen heroes — those who died on that day and those who passed away from the exposure to hazardous materials from Ground Zero.
Everyone has stories about 9-11. That is true if you were there that day or watching it on television from Butte.
Here are the some of those stories shared by Bernie Boyle and Bucky Worley.
Today’s episode is presented by Casagranda’s Steakhouse. Eat where the locals eat.
-
Bulldogs welcome Falcons to Naranche
Friday night lights will return to Naranche Stadium this week as Butte High plays host to Billings Skyview in the final non-conference football game before the Bulldogs open Western AA play.
That game is just part of a very busy sports slate for the Mining City this week. We will also see flag football, cross country, volleyball, golf and soccer teams in action.
We will take a look at all that action in this week’s lap around the week in Butte sports.
Butte High looks for rebound
A pair of teams looking to get up off the mat will meet Friday at Naranche Stadium as Billings Skyview comes to town to face the Butte High Bulldogs.
Kickoff is 7 p.m. for the non-conference game on Litte Guy Football Night.
Skyview is looking to bounce back from last Friday’s 41-13 home loss to Helena High. Butte High, meanwhile, dropped a 39-10 decision to Gallatin in Bozeman (stats).
The Falcons will come to town with a new head coach. John Simpson, who led the Falcons in 2024 and 2025, resigned on Sunday, according to media reports in Billings. An interim coach will be named.
Skyview used a pair of senior quarterbacks in the loss. Jaxon Zagata completed 10 of 12 passes for 123 yards and a score. Jackson Carter completed 2 of 8 passes for 30 yards. He also ran for 39 yards and a touchdown.
Senior Miner Lee punched in a 3-yard run for Butte High’s lone touchdown at Gallatin.
Senior quarterback Raeder Grey passed for 74 yards and scrambled for 27 more. Senior Jaeger Hansen and juniors Matt Marsenich and Zavier Jory also got carriers behind an offensive line made up of starters Max Pearston, Konnor Hanni, Sawyer Casey, Will Olds and Mayson Swanson.
Pearston and Swanson are seniors. Hanni and Casey are juniors, and Olds is a sophomore.
Seniors Kodye Kjersten, Evan McEwen and Lee also caught passes, as did sophomore Ryan Bache. Lee had a big day in the return game.
On the other side of the ball, Grey led the Bulldogs with 11 total tackles. Hansen got in on five, while Pearston, McEwen and junior Colt Stenson all registered four. Senior Finn Wortham joined Kjersten and sophomore Cooper Carter with three.
Senior defensive back Bradey Doyle picked up a pair of tackles for a loss, and senior Reece Cunneen was credited with a quarterback hurry.
Boyle booted a 31-yard field goal, and junior Tegan Duffy, who handled punting and kickoff duties, kicked Butte’s extra point.
The Bulldogs hit the road next Friday to take on defending Class AA State champion Kalispell Glacier. Butte High’s next home game is Sept. 18 against Missoula Big Sky.
Butte High will celebrate Silver B’s Night and homecoming when the Bulldogs take on the Eagles.
Lightning, Lions strike Maroons
If you had a 2-2 pull tab on Butte Central’s season opener against Lockwood (and having such a tab was legal), you were a highly unlikely winner.
The score after the first quarter on Montana Tech’s Bob Green Field was a rare 2-all tie after the first 12 minutes of action.
The final tally, though, was not so lucky for the Maroons, who fell 26-8 to the Lions. (Boxscore)
Lockwood took a 2-0 lead when the Maroons snapped the ball through their own end zone just 2 minutes, 8 seconds into the game. About 5 and a half minutes later, Maroon sophomore Henly Mansanti blocked a punt out of the back of Lockwood’s end zone to tie the score.
In the second quarter, however, the Lions took over. Macclain Thompson broke the tie with a 54-yard punt return for a touchdown with 6 minutes, 6 seconds left in the second quarter.
The Lions added eight quick points in the final 40 seconds of the half. Just 16 seconds after another BC snap sailed through the end zone for the third safety of the game, Isaiah Greer hauled in a 40-yard pass from Raider Kalfell.
Even after a long lightning delay, the Maroon offense could not get going after that. The lone BC touchdown came on a 2-yard run by GG Fantini in the third quarter. Kalfell countered with a 3-yard run in the fourth.
Senior Danny McCarthy lead the BC rushing attack with 46 yards, while quarterback sophomore Noah Sutton ran for 31, and Mansanti carried the rock for 29.
Sutton completed passes to junior Treigh Hollow, senior Joshua Sutton, Fantini and Mansanti.
Junior Palmer Kellicut and seniors Gunnar O’Brien, Bobby McCarthy, Burkley Lakkala and Jack Nylund stood out in BC’s tough defensive effort. For more on that game, read Bruce Sayler’s story on ButteSports.com.
The Maroons will be on the road for Week 2 of the 2026 season. They will take on Hardin at 7 p.m. Friday night.
Hardin roll to a 44-0 win at Stevensville last Friday. Details on that game, however, are hard to come by. The Maroons beat Hardin in a 17-16 thriller in Week 2 of last season at Montana Tech.
Flag football team back at home
Butte High’s flag football team will be back at Naranche Stadium Thursday to take on Missoula Sentinel.
Varsity action begins at 5 p.m., with the junior varsity playing at about 7. The Bulldogs will play Glacier and Flathead Saturday in Kalispell.
Butte High is coming off last Thursday’s 18-0 home loss to Missoula Sentinel.
Second-year Bulldog coach John Stenson said that key turnovers undid the Bulldogs in a game that was closer than the score might indicate. Butte trailed 6-0 at the half.
“Every time we would get close to scoring, we had an interception,” Stenson said. “The defense actually played pretty good.”
The coach pointed to the play of Brooke Johnson, who registered six sacks. Junior Addisyn Lambrecht also stood out rushing the passer.
Junior Charliee Richter pulled in four receptions to lead the Bulldog offense. Junior Kenzie Rowe and senior Mackenzie Read also caught passes for the Bulldogs.
This Thursday’s action will not be easy for the Bulldogs. Hellgate played in last year’s championship game, falling to Glacier.
Soccer teams head to Kalispell
Butte High’s soccer teams head northwest to take on Kalispell Glacier and Flathead this weekend.
Butte will battle Glacier on Friday. The boys play at 2 p.m., and the girls play at 4. Boys open action with a 10 a.m. matchup with Flathead on Saturday. The girls are set to play at noon.
The action comes after Butte High fell to Missoula Big Sky and Missoula Sentinel in home action last week.
On the boys’ side, Butte High fell 5-0 to Big Sky and 8-0 to Kalispell. Still, Bulldog coach Adam Colvin said he saw some good things from his boys.
“We had the early season jitters vs. Big Sky, and we learned a lot on the field that day,” Colvin said. “Unfortunately, we had something like a 90-minute lighting delay at halftime that was really tough to recover from. It was only 0-2 at half. I think we could have definitely came back from it, but the huge delay mentally and physically drained us. I would have loved to see what we could have done with some fresh legs that second half.”
While the score might not indicate it, Butte High was better on Saturday. The weather, however, was not.
“We switched a few things and I think it looked a lot better,” Colvin said. “We have a bit of a learning curve to overcome still, but the lightning got us again. We did our warmups and had to immediately go into about an hour delay. Sentinel is one heck of a team though and their depth was a hard to compete with.”
Colvin pointed to the play of junior Daniel Schaible and senior Kato Kuusisto.
“Learning how to play with new teammates, these two were invaluable on defense for us,” the coach said. “Daniel is a center back for us and single handedly saved us three or four goals over the weekend, including a sliding save on a wide-open net vs. Big Sky. Kato is our varsity keeper. He has been a rock in goal which includes a PK save vs Sentinel — a huge momentum swing for us at the time.”
On the girls’ side, the Bulldogs lost 10-0 in both games. That, though, does not damper the enthusiasm coach Geno Liva has for his Bulldogs.
“We are looking forward to a great season,” the coach said. “We have 34 girls out for soccer this year, and for the first time in three years have a JV team. Our season has started tough, but we are looking forward to traveling to Kalispell this weekend and taking on both area schools.”
Liva said his team is full of hard-working girls, many whom are new faces to the team and the sport. He pointed to the play of sophomore Elsa Thieszen, who is back from a year off playing soccer.
“She has played the center-mid positions as well as on defense this year and is a bright spot,” Liva said. “Her work ethic is second to none, her attitude is great, and she makes people around her better.”
Junior Berkli Salusso is new to the team. The coach said she is adapting quickly to the sport, playing center defensive back. Liva also pointed to the play of sophomore Liz Wood and senior Alaina Grochowski.
“Liz is playing defense and goalie, and Adalie playing center defensive back,” Liva said. “(Senior) Rory Trafford and (freshman) Maizie Tomsheck have been seeing time on both JV and varsity and have played well.”
Dogs spike Broncs in five
Butte High’s volleyball team only won one of their three non-conference matches last week. But what a win that one was.
Butte High closed Saturday’s trip to senior with a five-set win over Billings Senior. After winning the opener 25-23, the Bulldogs fell 25-19 in the second and third sets. Butte High won 27-25 in a marathon Game 4 before closing out the win with a 15-12 win. (Statistics)
Seniors Allie Becker and Avery Barsness paced the Bulldog attack in the win. Becker spiked 13 kills, while Barness followed with 19. Junior Stella Callaghan followed with nine kills, and senior Brittyn Klima and junior Gia Field each followed with seven.
Junior Kalee Wright served five aces.
Sophomore Elli Graham set 37 assists, and senior Ellie Yates (23), Becker (22), Graham (16), Callaghan (14) and senior Cadence Graham (12) registered double figures in digs. Cadence Graham added three aces.
Earlier Saturday, the Bulldogs fell 3-0 to Billings West. The Golden Bears won 25-19, 25-15, 25-23 (Stats)
Butte High opened the season Thursday with a 3-0 loss to Belgrade. The Panthers took the match 25-18, 25-15, 25-20. Stats for that match are not available.
The Bulldogs don’t play a varsity match this week. Their next action is their Sept. 11-12 trip to Kalispell to take on Glacier and Flathead in Western AA matches.
Butte Central’s volleyball team opened the season at the Western A tipoff tournament in Dillon. Results from BC’s action was not submitted in time for this report.
The Maroons will play at the Southwest/Southeast A Tipoff tournament this Friday and Saturday in East Helena.
Central will play its first Southwestern A match against Stevensville Sept. 10 at the Maroon Activities Center.
Runners kick off season
Butte Central’s cross country team opened the season Friday at the Seamus Camp Invitational in Livingston. (Results)
The race saw 16 boys and 15 girls compete. That included three Maroons — senior Joe Bradshaw and freshman Roman Terry on the boys’ side and sophomore Ashley White for the girls.
Anaconda’s Gage Novak won the boys’ race, finishing the 5-kilometer race in 18 minutes, 33 seconds. Livingston’s Langley Hamilton took second at 19:33, and Remi Jorgensen of Twin Bridges placed third at 19:19.
Bradshaw placed eighth at 22:45, and Terry ran to 11th at 24:00
White placed sixth in the girls’ race, crossing in 25:37.
Maeve McGrath of Livingston won the girls’ race in 22:24. Teammates Esperanza Hernandez (22:37) and Hannah Boyce (24:19) placed second and third.
The Maroons will host the Butte Central Invitational next Tuesday at Fairmont Hot Springs.
Butte High’s runners turned some heads at the Billings Invitational on Friday. Click here to read about that action.
The Bulldogs will run Friday at Belgrade’s Run BXC Invitational at Gallatin County Regional Park in Bozeman.
Golfers back in action
The golf teams from Butte High and Butte Central are back in action Wednesday.
Butte High heads to the two-day Helena Invitational tournament. Play begins at 10 a.m. both days at the Bill Roberts Golf Course.
The Maroons play at the Dillon Invitational, which begins at 9 a.m. at the Beaverhead Golf Course.
-
KC eyeing start of fall hoops league
The Knights of Columbus Athletic Club is looking to start its fall basketball league. The league will begin next Monday or the week after, depending on how many teams sign up.
The four-man league will run for 10 weeks an conclude with a double-elimination tournament. Games will be played Monday through Thursday nights at the Felix Madrazo Gym.
Cost is $125 per team, and teams can sign up at the KC or by contacting Dan Boyle at (406) 491-2529.
-
Butte’s Jack Hocking named top ump
The National Federation of State High School Association (NFHS) Officials of the Year for Montana were released to the media today, and the list included a Butte official.
Jack Hocking was named the Official of the Year for baseball.
Brian Michelotti, the Executive Director of the Montana High School Association and Commissioner of the Montana Officials Association (MOA), announced the awards.
Nominees for this award must exemplify the highest standards of ethical conduct, moral character and carry the endorsement of their respective state high school associations, according to the NFHS. The NFHS Officials’ Association annually recognizes officials in each state for the commitment they make to young people who participate in activities throughout the country.
In addition to baseball, Hocking officiates basketball and football. He has also officiated softball and lacrosse.
Rock Rayl of Great Falls was named the Montana Official of the Year. All the Montana award winners follow:
Baseball: Jack Hocking — Butte
Boys Basketball: Chris Anderson — Missoula
Girls Basketball: Lonnie Swigart — Sidney
Football: Joe McElmurry — Libby
Boys Soccer: Mike Karl — Bozeman
Girls Soccer: Jeremy Hill — Great Falls
Softball: Wayne Wade — Missoula
Volleyball: Jared Delaney — Park City
Wrestling – Girls & Boys: Michael Leinwand — Havre
Montana Official of the Year Rock Rayl — Great Falls – Soccer and Softball
-
Here is one golfer you can trust
From a very young age, my dad and grandpa instilled into me two very important virtues.
The first was to never cross a picket line, no matter the circumstances. Even if it was just the shoeshine boy with a single picket sign at the M&M, my grandpa said we never, ever cross that line. That, he said, would be a cardinal sin.
The second thing they told me was to never cheat in golf. If I cheat in golf, they said, it would only be cheating myself. I might fool my playing partners into thinking I took a 6 instead of an 8 on that hole, but I would never fool myself.
Every time I looked into a mirror, I would be looking at a cheater.
That is probably why, in my eyes, there was never anything worse than even being accused of cheating at golf.
In the mid 1980s, a boy was accused of cheating in a junior golf tournament at the Highland View Golf Course. I don’t know if he cheated or not, but the accusation was made. Years later, that boy rose to stardom in high school sports, leading his team to victory after victory. Yet, all I could ever see was an alleged golf cheater.
Of course, you can waterboard me, and I will not tell you the name of that great athlete, who I hope really did not cheat.
I won’t even tell you the name of the Dillon golfer who cheated like Donald Trump during a high school tournament while playing with me during my senior year in high school. I can’t remember his name, but I wouldn’t tell you if I did.
On the par-3 No. 17 that day, he hit his tee shot into the sand trap, chipped out, two putted and then tried to take a par. You might forget if you had an eight or a nine on a hole, but nobody forgets the difference between a three and a four.
That instance marked at least the 10th time we suspected or caught him cheating that day.
I never heard his name after high school on the golf scene, but I can only assume he is a successful real-estate developer somewhere. But he probably struggles looking into a mirror.
If you cheat in golf, you will cheat in life. That was the premise of the 2019 book by the great Rick Reilly trying to warn us about Donald Trump. The book is titled “Commander In Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump,” and it details Trump’s long history of cheating at golf almost as bad as a North Korean dictator.
It should be noted that Trump has never directly refuted the claims of the world’s second-best sportswriter, either.
North Korean state media claims that the late supreme leader Kim Jong-il shot a 38-under-par round of 34, including up to 11 holes-in-one, the first time he ever played the gentleman’s game. That whopper makes Trump just the second-biggest cheater in the history of the game.
In the late dictator’s defense, he might not have realized his people were running ahead and planting balls in the hole for him. Trump knows exactly what he’s doing when he has his caddies make well-placed drops on his behalf.
Trump can turn an 82 into 67, and claims to win a club championship with virtually every round he plays. He does that even when U.S. state media shows his god-awful swing on its nightly broadcasts.
In the book, Reilly theorizes that 85 percent of golfers are honorable. I wonder if he takes into account the sandbagger when he makes that claim. It seems to me that more than 15 percent of golfers cheat, even if they would never cheat to the degree that the president does.
Sandbagging means that you lie about your handicap to make it look like you are a worse golfer than you are. Then you can win your flight in a tournament or get some strokes given to you when playing against golfers with a lower handicap.
I ran into some of them the first time I played a tournament at the Highland View Golf Course when I was 10 or 11 years old. My best round of golf for 18 holes was like a 110 at the time, so I was in one of the worst flights.
The winner of the flight shot something like an 87 and an 84 to win the by about 30 shots.
I did not win any merchandise money from the clubhouse in that tournament, but I learned a whole lot about humanity that weekend.
Sandbagging is not thought to be as bad as taking eight shots to hole out and then writing down a five on the scorecard, but I never understood why. People even laugh at their friends who openly sandbag to help their team win a tournament.
I would never do business with a sandbagger. Like I said, if you cheat in golf, you will cheat in life. Sandbaggers don’t cheat to pretend that they are better than they are, like Trump does. They do it to steal your money.
But, I wouldn’t play Trump for money, either
The best part about Reilly’s book about Trump cheating was that I was listening to the audiobook when I heard what Butte High junior golfer Jack Muhlestein did at the Great Falls Invitational.
While listening about the worst golf has to offer, I heard the story about the best when Jack showed the world that he is a golfer with true integrity.
After carding a 4-over-par 73 at the Anaconda Hills Golf Course, Muhlestein shot an even-par 71 at the Eagle Falls Golf Club. He would have placed fourth in the tournament that included many of the top Class AA teams.
In golf tournaments, one of your playing partners keeps your scorecard, and you keep the score of one of your playing partners. So, you must carefully check your scorecard before you sign it and turn it into the tournament officials.
Adults make mistakes on scorecards. So do high school players. And when you are done walking 18 holes in the heat for about 5 hours, it is easy to miss a mistake. So, Jack signed his card without noticing that there was a goof on it. When he did notice the mistake, he reported the error.
While golf is a game of honor, it does not reward such honor, and Jack was disqualified from the tournament. He knew that he would be disqualified when he reported the error.
Even many of the 85 percent of honorable golfers Reilly wrote about might have kept their mouth shut in that situation. Can you imagine playing that well and having the score thrown out?
Can you imagine everyone looking at the DQ next to your name? It doesn’t mean you are getting a chocolate chip cookie dough blizzard, either.
Imagine if one of Hudson Luedtke’s 30-point basketball games was thrown out because he signed a scorebook that said he had one more point than he actually scored? What if one of Cayde Stajcar’s game-winning home runs was taken off the board because the official scorer made an error?
Golf, though, is like life. It is not always fair.
Yet, Jack pointed out the mistake, and he suffered the unfair consequences. It was a steep price to pay for honesty. It also tells you everything you need to know about Jack, whom I hope to meet one day soon.
Jack might not ever be a successful real-estate developer, and his honesty has probably already disqualified him from running for political office. But you better believe that Jack is the kind of guy you will want to do business with.
He doesn’t cheat in golf, so he most likely will never try to cheat in life.
I bet he wouldn’t even cross a picket line.
— Bill Foley, who might tell you the name of that sandbagger, can be reached at foles74@gmail.com. Follow him at twitter.com/Foles74 or Bluesky at @foles74.bsky.social. Listen to him on the ButteCast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.
-
Beau McGree wins Park Invitational
LIVINGSTON — Beau McGree’s hot start to the high school golf season continued in a big way Monday.
The Butte Central junior matched par for a 72 at the Livingston Golf and Country Club to claim medalist honors of the Park Invitational. The victory was McGree’s third of the season. He is 5 for 5 in placing in the top 10 at tournaments this season.
McGree followed a 1-over-par 37 on the front nine with a 1-under 35 on the back for the win on the nine-hole course. He tied with Livingston’s Miles Young, who followed a 35 with a 37. McGree was awarded first place based on a scorecard playoff.
Livingston’s Vann Wagman recovered from a 40 for a 33 on the back side for a 73 and third place. East Helena’s Peyton Meyer placed fourth at 75, and fellow Vigilante Chris Schaefer took fifth at 78.
Livingston won the boys’ team title at 306. East Helena placed second at 323, and the Maroons took third at 397. The tournament also included the Hardin boys, who shot 458.
Connor Kachmarik carded a 91 for Butte Central. Cohen Stajcar added a 99, and Ganon Button hit 117.
Butte Central freshman Mya McGree, BC’s lone girl player, did not play in the tournament, but she will rejoin the Maroons when they play in a tournament in Dillon on Wednesday.
Complete results from the Park Invitational are not currently available.
Beau McGree won the season-opening Butte Central Invitational at the Highland View Golf Course before tying Butte High’s Teagan Yelenich for the title at Butte High’s tournament the next day at Fairmont Hot Springs.
He also tied for ninth place at the Frenchtown Invitational, and he took 10th at the Ronan Invitational.
-
KC sets 9/11 remembrance ceremony
The Butte Knights of Columbus Hall will hold a ceremony to mark the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.
The ceremony will take place at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 11 by the 9/11 memorial inside the Felix Madrazo Gymnasium. The memorial includes photos and the names of all firefighters and police officers who died in the line of duty on that fateful day.
Rev. Tom Haffey will offer a blessing and welcome guests before Butte-Silver Bow Sheriff Ed Lester and Butte-Silver Bow firefighter Derek Harvey offer remarks.
The ceremony will also feature a video about the events of Sept. 11 with personal stories of many who lost their lives.
The Knights of Columbus Hall is located at 224 W. Park Street. The entrance to the Felix Madrazo Gym is on Idaho Street.
-
Episode No. 378: Meagan Thompson
The past several years, Meagan Thompson of KXLF-TV has proven to be a fearless reporter who is not afraid to ask the tough questions.
Last week, she took her camera into a homeless camp filled with potential danger to make sure she got all sides of a complicated story about a neighborhood fed up with transients, drugs and garbage.
Meagan also brought to light the fight of Jamie Decker and Top Deck Medical Aesthetics to build a handicap ramp at the office across the street from the Courthouse when county leaders were saying they could not. Her coverage helped right a wrong right in front of our eyes.
Meagan asked tough questions of the governor and other state and local officials when our water supply was exposed to possible contamination last summer. She was one of the first on the scene after the Owl Bar shooting last August, and she continues to cover the story of the alleged shooter, the victims and their families.
You have seen her near the front lines of wildfires, reporting on the people impacted by the disasters.
The thing you might not have known about Meagan, though, is that she never intended to be a television journalist. She graduated from the University of Montana with a degree in journalism, a camera and a love of art.
That came after former Emerson Yellowjacket and Whittier Wildcat graduated from Butte High School, where she played soccer four seasons for the Bulldogs, in 2000.
Meagan worked for five years as a staff photographer at a newspaper in Idaho before return to Butte to open a photography studio and then take a job as a photographer at The Montana Standard.
When Lee Enterprises, which owns the paper, started forcing employees into unpaid furloughs, Meagan moved out of her comfort zone and got on the other side of the camera for KXLF.
On Friday, I met with Meagan inside the Vault at the Metals Sports Bar & Grill for a fun conversation. Listen in as she talks about her long road to television reporting.
Listen as she talks about some of the hard-hitting stories she delivered to the viewers of KXLF and around the state on the Montana News Network. Listen in to hear why it is important to her got always get all sides of every story.
Today’s episode is presented by Thriftway Super Stops. Download the TLC app and start saving today.
-
Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week: Allie Becker and Miner Lee
Butte High seniors Allie Becker and Miner Lee are this week’s Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week.
The honors come after the Bulldogs opened the volleyball and football seasons.
Becker takes home the girls’ honor after a big-time performance led the Bulldogs to ta 3-2 win over Billings Senior Saturday in Billings. The thrilling 25-23, 19-25, 19-25, 27-25, 15-12 victory closed a 1-2 opening week for the Bulldogs.
Becker, a 5-foot-8 outside hitter, spiked 13 kills, served an ace and collected 22 digs on the match. She led the team in kills and finished second in digs.
Through three matches, Becker leads the Bulldogs with 24 kills. She ranks third on the team with 38 Digs. Becker is a three-sport standout for the Bulldogs. She is also a key contributor in basketball and softball.
Lee takes home the boys’ award after scoring Butte High’s lone touchdown in a 39-10 loss to Gallatin in Bozeman. The 5-9, 160-pound running back punched in a 3-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Game stats credited Lee with 40 yards receiving and 28 yards rushing. Lee returned four kickoffs for 120 yards with a long return of 57 yards. He also starts at cornerback for the Bulldogs.
Lee is primed for a big senior campaign after his junior season was cut short by injuries.
Since the beginning of 2023, Leskovar Honda, home of the non-commission sales staff that always has your back, has teamed up with the ButteCast to honor the finest student-athletes from the Mining City to encourage more children to get up, get out and try all kinds of sports and activities.
Photos of Becker and Lee are courtesy Alycia Holland Photography.
-
Shorthanded Butte High runners open at Billings Invitational
BILLINGS — Butte High’s cross country teams were far from full strength Friday as they opened the season at the Billings Invitational. (Results)
The Bulldogs who ran, however, turned some heads in a crowded field at Amend Park.
Butte High’s boys placed 19th out 33 teams with enough runners to score in the event. In all, 55 boys’ teams and 52 girls’ teams competed.
Helena High’s girls and Bozeman’s boys took home the team titles.
Bozeman’s boys took the crown with 67 team points, edging Helena High, which scored 78. Hardin took third at 101. Butte High scored 484 points for 19th place, finishing ahead of Billing Skyview and Billings West.
Taylor Neil of Bozeman ran to the team title, finishing the 5-kilometer race in 15 minutes, 22.66 seconds. Ben Bird of Hardin was second at 15:37, and Milo Kauffman of Helena took third at 15:40.
Senior Bridger Luebke finished the race in 17:19.35, placing 45th out of 258 runners. He was one of three Butte High runners to break 19 minutes the first time out.
Junior Isaac Zell crossed in 18:38, and sophomore Kai Schuler finished in 18:54. Sophomore Jason Real finished in 19:10, while senior Colton Yoakum ran in 19:14, junior Jack Taylor ran in 20:19, and sophomore Lyric Haston crossed in 22:20.
Helena’s 87 points topped the girls’ standings. Gallatin was second at 115, followed by Cody, Wyoming at 140.
Addison Kegel of Billings Central won the varsity girls’ race with a time of 17:23.06. Phoebe Maixner of Bozeman was second at 18:02, and Missoula Hellgate’s Reed Stromberg placed third at 18:22.
Junior Penelope Luebke was the lone varsity runner for the Bulldogs. She placed 62nd out of 249 runners with a time of 21:04.89.
The Bulldogs are expected to be closer to full strength next Friday when they run at the Belgrade Invitational.
