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Bulldogs announce Noah Thatcher as new boys’ hoops coach
A familiar last name will lead the Butte High boys’ basketball program.
Noah Thatcher has been hired to replace Matt Luedtke as the leader of the Bulldogs, the school announced today. Luedtke stepped down in March after a successful seven-year run with Butte High. He took a team to the Class AA State tournament five times in that span.
Thatcher, who previously served as an assistant under Luedtke, is the son of John Thatcher, who guided the Bulldogs from the 2000-01 season through the 2009-2010 campaign. He took the Bulldogs to the Class AA State championship game in 2004 and 2007.
Noah Thatcher moved to Butte as a senior and played point guard for the Bulldogs during the 2000-01 season.
“Butte High School is excited to provide the opportunity for Thatcher to lead the Bulldog basketball program,” the Bulldog athletic department said in a statement. “Noah is a well-respected member of our community and has been preparing for this opportunity to lead an athletic program.”
Thatcher will be a guest on the ButteCast in the near future.
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Perspective is easy now that it is over
One time 20 some years ago, the Butte Muckers won a baseball tournament in Missoula.
This was a big deal because the Muckers were always kind of playing with one hand behind their back. They were Butte’s younger American Legion baseball team, and they played in the Class A.
The Butte Miners, who used to be Butte’s Class AA team, play in the Class A now.
That meant the Muckers were always playing against older players, and they rarely finished at .500 or above. So, winning the tournament was a big deal.
Making things even better was the fact that the Muckers won the tournament while playing all their players fairly equally. Every player on the roster got to see considerable playing time throughout the tournament.
The coach should have been nominated for Coach of The Year honors for pulling that off and winning the tournament.
After the Muckers won the championship game, however, a handful of angry parents verbally jumped the coach as soon as he walked out of the dugout. They were yelling at him because their son did not play enough.
These were not the parents whose players usually didn’t play much, either. They were the parents of the players who were used to playing all the time. They did not like that their sons had to sit on the bench more than usual.
They didn’t care if the team won. They were mad that their sons did not play every single inning.
To his credit, the coach told the parents to take a hike, and he quit on the spot. He was not going to deal with a group of parents like that, and Butte’s Legion program lost one of the greatest baseball minds we have ever known.
To this day, I am baffled by those parents.
One longtime coach once told me that most parents would rather have their son or daughter be named All-State than to have them play on a state championship team. Those Muckers parents sure seemed to prove him correct that day.
Of course, nothing brings out a person’s irrational side like being a sports parent. I have spent the better part of my career laughing at the high school and Legion parents who rail on the coach over playing time.
Then, four years ago, I became a high school sports parent myself, and I have seen a different perspective.
Now, I feel like I am a very rational person. I feel like I almost always put things in proper perspective. Eventually.
Sometimes I might find that perspective right away. More often it is later in the day. Sometimes it takes a week or longer. But I usually get there.
In the moment, though, I can be as nutty as the next guy. I have yelled at referees, and I have found myself angry with coaches who I have considered friends for years. I started to think that coaches with state championships under their belts were complete morons.
I did not tell them that, but I thought it sometimes.
There are still some decisions that I might not ever understand. But I have slowly come to the realization that the coaches are not obligated to give me an explanation.
That is something I knew long before my son started playing for the Butte High Bulldogs. The fog of being a parent, though, sometimes makes it less obvious.
I am not alone. Not by a long shot.
Every parent wants their child to play more, and it is often hard to be a parent of a baseball or softball player who is not getting the playing time we think they deserve.
You can see that as you look into the eyes of other parents at the games. Many of us have had our moments of anger. Most will get over that, but some will not. At least not right away.
Jeff LeProwse, the man who I think saved Butte’s Legion baseball program from fading away, gave me a reminder one time a couple of years ago. He said having your son our daughter be a part of a team is the greatest thing of all.
The players will take so much from the practices and the bus rides. The experience your son or daughter gains by buying into being a part of something bigger than themselves is more valuable than any home run they hit or touchdown they score.
I think I might understand that more than most because, as recently as five years ago, we did not think our son would ever play high school sports.
Back then, my wife and I were taking our son to Salt Lake City and Seattle to see specialists because we feared he might have muscular dystrophy. We thought there was a good chance he could be confined to a wheelchair by now.
He was such a good baseball player in Little League. Then, after a couple of flights to Missoula because of severe asthma attacks, Grady started to gain weight, and the muscles in his legs stopped working. He needed to pull himself into my truck with his arms, and running from the batter’s box to first base would take him about 10 seconds. But he still wanted to play.
In Seattle, we found a doctor who figured out that it was all the asthma medicine that messed with Grady’s body. The doctor figured Grady would grow out of his physical problems.
We took Grady to physical therapists Jake Querciagrossa and Beth Salusso, and they taught him how to run again. That enabled him to continue playing baseball — though he often needed a pinch runner — and he went out for the Butte High football team.
At his physical for his freshman year, Grady stood 5 feet, 4 inches, and he weighed 225 pounds. But he was determined to work. He worked out a ton at the Knights of Columbus, often staying way past his bedtime to get in more reps.
He worked as hard as any player I have ever known, even if some of his coaches did not see that because he preferred to do a lot of the work on his own. He figured it was more effective that way.
By the time of his physical for his senior season last summer, Grady was 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds. In three years, he gained nine inches and dropped 35 pounds. He does not have any problems running now.
Sure, he might have worked that hard to get into shape if he didn’t play football and baseball for the Bulldogs. But it is unlikely.
Playing those sports helped turn his physical life around.
Grady did not get a ton of at bats during his senior baseball season, and it is impossible to get into any kind of hitting grove when you only get one or two at bats a week. If that. Some games he did not play at all, and that was not always easy for a dad working as the team’s public address announcer.
But he was part of the team. He got to bat in the last inning of Butte High’s win that clinched a third-place trophy at the Class AA State tournament, and he reached base. It is the first trophy for a Butte High boys’ team since the Bulldog football team took home second place in 2019.
That trophy will be on display at Butte High forever, and Grady will forever be part of that team. Nobody can ever take that away from him and his teammates.
Likewise, nobody can take away the great memories of the practices, bus rides, wins, losses and important life lessons of playing football and baseball with his teammates. Really, that is what high school sports are all about.
That camaraderie outweighs wins, losses and playing time.
Now that his high school sports career has come to an end, it is easy to see that. In time, the proper perspective has set in. Hopefully, it will also register for those other frustrated parents out there.
But I’m pretty sure that there is no hope for those parents who jumped that Muckers coach.
— Bill Foley, who is really going to miss being a high school sports dad, 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.
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Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week: Brittyn Klima and Evan McEwen
Butte High juniors Brittyn Klima and Evan McEwen are this week’s Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week.
The honors come after the Bulldogs put up strong performances to help their teams win games at their respective Class AA State tournaments.
Klima takes home the girls’ honor after batting .444 with two home runs and seven RBIs in three games at the state softball tournament in Missoula. She belted at least one hit in each game.
The designated hitter went 1 for 3 as the Bulldogs opened with a loss to eventual state champion Billings West. Then she went 2 for 3 with five RBIs as the Bulldogs extended their season with a 13-3 win over Missoula Sentinel.
Klima blasted a walk-off grand slam to end the game by the run rule in the fifth inning.
Klima added another home run, this time a two-run shot to give Butte a 2-0 lead in the first inning, as the Bulldogs fell 4-3 in to Belgrade.
This marks the second Athlete of the Week award of the season for Klima, who finished the season batting .290 with two doubles, three bombs and 18 RBIs in 21 games.
McEwen takes home the boys’ award after his heroics helped lead the Butte High baseball team claim a share of third place during the state tournament at 3 Legends Stadium.
He picked up the win on the mound as Butte High won a 9-8 thriller over Missoula Big Sky to keep their season alive Friday morning. He moved from DH to pitcher to stop the bleeding and then hit the game-winning two-run double in the bottom of the sixth inning. Then, McEwen got the Eagles to go down in order to preserve that win.
McEwen also poked a hit and drove in two runs as the Bulldogs rolled past Kalispell Glacier to close their season with a victory. He moved over from third to get the final three outs of the game.
He played in 19 of Butte High’s 20 games, batting .286 with a .466 on-base percentage. He hit four doubles.
For the fourth year, Leskovar Honda, home of the non-commission sales staff that always has your back, is teaming 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.
The photo of Klima was provided by Tony DiFronzo. Photo of McEwen courtesy Alycia Holland Photography.
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Bulldogs leave mark on diamonds
Butte High’s baseball hoisted a team trophy, while the Bulldog softball team went down fighting at Class AA State tournaments Friday.
That comes as track athletes from Butte High and Butte Central impressed during raining state track meets in the final week of the 2025-26 high school sports season.
We said goodbye to some incredible seniors, and we got to see some flashes from some athletes with a lot more to come. We will look at that as we take one final lap around the Mining City sports slate before we head into summer.
Butte boys share third place
Butte High was one of three baseball teams to close the season on a victory Friday at the rushed Class AA State baseball tournament on Miners Field at 3 Legends Stadium.
The tournament was jammed into Thursday and Friday after weather forecasts accurately called for a heavy rain in Butte on Saturday. The tournament also included a couple of lightning delays — even though there was not a lot of lighting and very little rain — that had games playing into the wee hours of the morning.
Missoula Sentinel upset Gallatin 6-3 in a game that ended in the early minutes of Saturday morning. That game followed Butte High’s 14-4 win over Kalispell Glacier for a share of third place. (Boxscore)
Yes, Butte High shares third place with Great Falls Russell, which beat Bozeman 19-4 on Field 4 as the Bulldogs were beating the Wolfpack on Miners Field. No third-place game was played because there was simply not enough time with the wet weather moving in.
The trophy is the first for a Butte High boys’ team since the Bulldogs placed second in football in 2019. It is the third piece of hardware from state overall this decade for Butte High. The Bulldog girls placed third in swimming in 2020 and wrestling in 2023.
The tournament began in promising fashion for Butte High. Senior Logan Carden hit a leadoff home run against Gallatin, sending the Butte crowd and players into delirium.
That high did not last long, however, as the Raptors scored 11 runs in the bottom of the inning. After a fantom lightning delay of more than 3 hours, the game resumed and Gallatin won 18-7 in five innings. (Boxscore)
True Archer and Harvey Kimmell each drove in three runs, and Braeden Matthews hit a grand slam to lead the Raptors in the opener.
Cayde Stajcar homered and drove in four runs to lead the Bulldogs. Troy Samson doubled for Butte, while Calvin Cunningham and Evan McEwen hit singles.
Carden added a pair of walks for Butte. Kodye Kjersten, Teagan Duffy and Grady Foley each walked once.
Stajcar homered again Friday morning as the Bulldogs beat Missoula Big Sky in a loser-out game. (Boxscore) Noah Powers pitched five strong innings, striking out five, before leaving with the lead.
McEwen, though, was the hero at the plate and on the mound as the Bulldogs won the back-and-forth game. Butte High built a 6-2 lead before the Eagles rallied for six runs off the Bulldog bullpen in the top of the sixth inning.
McEwen, a junior, moved from designated hitter to pitcher to stop the bleeding. Then he burned Big Sky center fielder Kieran Cooney for a double to score Duffy and Cunningham.
After Cooney ended the inning with an incredible diving catch, to rob Chase Nasheim of extra bases, McEwen retired the Eagles in order to end the game.
Cunningham joined MeEwan with a double in the win. Duffy and Samson hit two singles. Stajcar, Kjersten, Gunner and Bushman each hit one.
Colter Nicolarsen hit an inside-the-park grand slam to put Big Sky on top 8-6 in the top of the sixth inning. Ethan Paugh hit a double and a single for Big Sky. Kade Williams and Tait Ramsay each hit a single.
After a long delay, the Bulldogs played their final game nearly 3 hours behind schedule. Then, they left little doubt.
Butte High took advantage of 11 walks and smacked nine singles to claim their share of third. After Glacier led 1-0, the Bulldogs took command with eight runs in the second, two in the third and four in the fourth.
The game ended after five innings by the run rule, but not before the Wolfpack made things interesting with three runs.
McEwen again came in to register the last three outs after runs were scored off the bullpen.
Duffy and Kjersten each poked two singles and drove in three runs. Cunningham, who pitched four strong innings before leaving with the big lead, also smacked two hits. Nasheim, McEwen and Carden each hit one.
Stajcar and Cunningham each worked two walks. Carden, Kjersten, Duffy, Bushman, McEwen, Samson and Nasheim walked once. Stajcar, McEwen, Foley and Carden were hit by pitches.
The trophy-claiming victory means Butte High’s six seniors — Brooks Vincent, Chase Lubick, Bushman, Carden, Foley and Stajcar — close their high school careers with a win. Bulldog senior Jaxon Williamson missed the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his pitching arm in November.
Butte High goes 1-2 in Missoula
The Bulldogs did not bring home a trophy from the Class AA State softball tournament in Missoula.
Butte High, though, did not leave the rainy Garden City without a fight. Butte’s season came to an end with a 4-3 win to Belgrade late Friday. (Boxscore)
The tournament started at the Fort Missoula Regional Park, and it ended in the University of Montana Stadium with Billings West beating Great Falls Russell 10-0 for the title.
Butte High began the tournament Thursday against West. That game, though, was delayed and picked up on Friday mornding. West won 4-0. (Boxscore)
West ace Tatum Bush struck out 11 Bulldogs and held Butte High to two hits in the win. Ryane Viker homered, and Bush hit two singles to lead the Golden Bears offense. Brittyn Klima and Gracie Jonart hit singles for the Bulldogs. Freshman Brea Henderson pitched well in the loss. She struck out five and walked one.
The Bulldogs followed with a 13-3 win over Missoula Sentinel to keep their season a live for one more game.
Klima hit a grand slam to walk off the win by the run rule. She drove in five runs on the day. Mattie Stepan, who was in a walking boot with an ankle injury before the tournament, also homered and drove in three runs, joining Klima, Jonart and Cliry Conway with a two-hit game.
Reese Johnson doubled and drove in two runs. Allie Becker also singled in the win.
Henderson went the distance, scattering five hits and fanning three in the five-inning win.
Alyssa Hanninen homered and Hayden Slater doubled to lead the Spartans.
Butte High’s season ended with two runners on base in a 4-3 loss to Belgrade later Friday. (Boxscore) The Panthers fell 2-0 to Glacier in their next game.
Brooke Stump, Krissy Carillo and Trinity Marble drove in runs to back up pitchers Londyn Freese, Leah Larson and Mallory Zimmer to lead the Panthers to the win.
Klima belted another home run, and Stepan doubled for the Bulldogs. Stepan also hit a single, while Kendallyn Schad, Henderson and Conway singled.
Henderson went the distance in the hard-luck loss.
The loss closed the high school career for Butte High’s three seniors — Stepan, Jonart and Ally Godbout.
The Bulldogs won six straight games, including a playoff win over Helena Capital, on their way to the tournament. They close the season at 12-9.
Hanson second in high jump
Butte High senior Ryan Hanson closed his career with a silver medal in the high jump at the Class AA State track & field meet at Missoula County Stadium. (Results)
Hanson matched his career best by clearing 6 feet, 4 inches to tie Asher Hanzen of Helena High for second place. Josiah Coelho of Billings Senior cleared 6-6 to take home the gold.
That was the best finish for the Bulldog boys, who claimed six top-10 performances.
Junior Brady Walsh jumped 21 feet 1 ¾ inches to place sixth in the long jump for the Bulldogs. Hanson placed ninth in the long jump and 14th in the triple jump.
Senior Camden Houchin placed seventh in the 1,600-meter race. He also ran to 10th place in the 3,200.
Senior Jacob Galle placed sixth in the 110-meter hurdles. He also ran a leg of Butte High’s eighth-place 400-meter relay team. Miner Lee, Preston Jensen and Brady Walsh also ran a leg for the Bulldogs. Galle ran to 12th in the 300 hurdles.
Jaeger Hansen, who took second in the javelin as a sophomore, placed 12th in the event this time around with a throw of 156 feet, 2 inches. Junior Bradey Doyle took 13th in the pole vault, clearing 12-6.
Butte High’s 1,600-meter relay team placed 14h. Chase Choquette and Raeder Grey ran legs along with Houchin and Galle.
On the girls’ side, junior Cadence Graham and freshman Sophia Houchin led the way for the Bulldogs.
Graham placed fifth in the 330-meter hurdles with a personal-best time of 45.37 seconds. She also took seventh in the 100 hurdles.
Houchin placed sixth in the 800-meter race with a personal-best time of 2:16.85. Houchin and Graham also ran a leg of Butte High’s fifth-place team in the 1,600-meter relay along with sophomore Wakely Burelson and freshman Saege Grey.
Senior Emma Johnson and eighth grader Peyton Poole also placed in the top 10, saving their best for the end of the year. Johnson took eighth in the discus with a personal-best mark of 118-5. Poole took eighth in the javelin with a personal-best throw of 117-2.
Butte High’s 400-meter relay team placed 12th. Kloe Dickinson, Kate DeShaw, Graham and Grey each ran a leg.
Billings West swept the team titles. The boys won with 76 points, edging Kalispell Glacier by two. Helena Capital and Bozeman tied for third at 54. The Bulldogs placed 14th with nine points.
West scored 122 points to run away with the girls’ crown. Gallatin was second at 84, and Glacier took third at 66. Butte High finish 14th with five.
Kellicut, Palmer medal in Laurel
Two Butte Central runners returned from the Class A State meet in Laurel with medals. (Results)
Sophomore Palmer Kellicut ran to fourth place in the 110-meter hurdles. He finished with a personal-best time of 15.03 seconds.
Junior Danny McCarthy placed fifth in the 100-meter race. He also reached a personal-best team, crossing in 11.10 seconds.
Senior Will McGree placed 21st in the triple jump for the Maroons.
On the girls’ side, BC’s 1,600-meter relay team ran to 18th place. Sophomore Cambri Campbell and freshmen Ashley White, Harper McGree and Evyn Tippett each ran a leg of that race.
Host Laurel won the boys’ title with 96 points. Bigfork placed second with 50 points, which was one better than Corvallis. BC and Miles City tied for 17th with six points.
Havre won the girls’ crown with 62 points. Corvallis took second at 58, and Stevensville placed third at 53. The Maroons did not score any team points.
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Baseball bracket updated for forecast
The inaugural Class AA State baseball tournament will now be a two-day event at Copper Mountain Park, tournament officials announced this morning. (Updated bracket)
The tournament bracket has been adjusted to complete the tournament by Friday night because of the wet forecast on Saturday. That means that Field 4 at the complex will be used in addition to Miners Field at 3 Legends Stadium.
No third-place game will be played. The two teams that advance that far on the consolation side of the bracket will share third-place honors.
No changes have been made to today’s schedule.
Butte High will open the tournament today at 4 p.m. against Gallatin, the top seed from the Eastern AA. A win will send Butte High to a 1:30 p.m. semifinal game Friday. A loss would mean an 8:30 a.m. game on Friday.
The way the bracket is set up, all of Butte High’s games will be played inside 3 Legends Stadium.
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Dogs, Maroons head to final weekend
The 2025-26 high school sports season will come to an end this weekend.
What a busy weekend it will be. Butte High will host the Class AA State baseball tournament at 3 Legends Stadium, while the Bulldog girls head to Missoula for the Class AA State softball tournament.
Meanwhile, 40 track athletes — 31 from Butte High and nine from Butte Central — will compete in state track meets. Butte High will head to Missoula for the Class AA meet. BC’s athletes will be in Laurel for the Class A meet.
We will take a look at off of that and more as we take a lap around the last week of Mining City Sports.
Bulldogs face Raptors in opener
Miners Field at 3 Legends Stadium will feature four games a day Thursday through Saturday at the inaugural Class AA State tournament. (Bracket)
This is the fourth year of high school baseball in Montana, but it is the first season in which enough teams played to break up the teams into classifications.
Butte High will play the third game of the day Thursday, taking on Gallatin at 4 p.m. The Raptors are the No. 1 seed from the Eastern AA. The Bulldogs are the No. 4 seed from the Western AA.
Great Falls Russell (No. 2 Eastern AA) will battle Kalispell Glacier (No. 3 Western AA) in the opener at 10 a.m. Missoula Sentinel (No. 1 Western AA) faces Bozeman (No. 4 Eastern AA) at 12:30 p.m.
Billings Wester (No. 3 Eastern) will play Missoula Big Sky (No. 2 Western AA) in the 6:30 p.m. nightcap.
This is not a true double-elimination. One loss will end a team’s title hopes, although a team can lose and still battle back to place third.
Coach Jim LeProwse’s Bulldogs (7-9) booked a spot in the tournament with last Friday’s 5-4 walk-off win over Kalispell Flathead at 3 Legends Stadium. Gallatin (15-1) won the Eastern AA regular-season crown, earning a bye to state.
The Raptors beat Butte High 11-4 March 27 in Butte. That was the first game in school history. Gallatin lost its first game May 14, a 5-4 decision to the Bozeman Hawks. The Raptors beat Bozeman 16-0 in April.
Shortstop Louis Musial hit a triple and two doubles to lead the Raptors the last time they played in Butte. Braeden Mathews and Cody Smith also doubled.
Starter Wyatt Ford struck out eight batters in just three innings of work.
Senior shortstop Cayde Stajcar leads the Bulldogs with a .413 batting average. His season included 14 extra-base hits — seven doubles, four home runs and three triples. Senior Gunnar Bushman and sophomores Teagan Duffy and Kodye Kjersten are the only other Bulldogs to hit homers. Bushman catches, Duffy plays first base, and the speedy Kjersten plays right field.
Calvin Cunningham, a sophomore third baseman who returned for the playoff game after missing four games with a hip injury, hit 409 on the regular season. Kjersten hit .352, while Bushman hit .306.
Senior center fielder Logan Carden hit .288, followed by Duffy at .264 and junior second baseman Evan McEwen hit .244. Freshman Chase Nasheim has played left field most of the season, while junior Cole Solomon and seniors Brooks Vincent and Grady Foley have started at a few games at first base or designated hitter.
Freshman Zyler Peterson has also seen time at third base, and sophomore Tucker Kissell, a catcher on the junior varsity team, has seen time as a runner.
Senior Chase Lubick will likely get the start in the opener for the Bulldogs. He threw 38 and a two thirds innings during the regular season. Sophomore Noah Powers, junior Hunter Davies, McEwen, Solomon, Vincent, Cunningham, Kjersten and Peterson have also pitched for the Bulldogs this season.
The winner of the Butte-Gallatin game will advance to Friday’s 6:30 p.m. semifinal against West or Big Sky. The loser will move to loser-out play at 12:30 p.m. on Friday.
Butte girls face Golden Bears
Butte High will open the Class AA State softball tournament at 4 p.m. Thursday. The Bulldogs will take on Billings West (15-3), the No. 1 seed from the Eastern AA at the Fort Missoula Regional Park.
The tournament will begin at 2 p.m. when Kalispell Glacier (No. 1 Western AA) takes on Great Falls Russell (No. 4 Eastern AA) and Belgrade (No. 2 Eastern AA) faces Missoula Big Sky (o. 3 Western AA). Missoula Sentinel (No. 2 Western AA) will play Billings Senior (No. 3 Eastern AA) at 4.
Butte High qualified for the tournament Thursday with a 7-0 playoff win over Helena Capital. Coach Ryan Stosich’s Bulldogs enter the tournament red hot. They have won six straight and seven out of their last eight games.
Junior first baseman Kendallyn Schad and senior right fielder Gracie Jonart hit back-to-back home runs in the first inning to put the Bulldogs on top 3-0. Junior shortstop Allie Becker added a three-run blast for Butte High.
Freshman pitcher Brea Henderson was once again lights out. She struck out nine batters and surrendered just three singles in the shutout victory.
Henderson has racked up 113 innings through 18 games. She carries a 3.22 ERA with 107 strikeouts compared to 41 walks.
Schad is hitting a team-best .390 batting average (for players with more than 10 plate appearances). Senior catcher Mattie Stepan is hitting .385, while Becker is hitting .364 and Jonart is batting .311.
Stepan and Henderson lead the team with three home runs on the season. Becker has two bombs, while junior Brittyn Klima joins Schad and Jonart with one.
Sophomore Cliry Conway, senior Ally Godbout and junior Reese Johnson have been dependable players for the Bulldogs.
Junior Avery Barsness, freshmen Lilly Sandoval, Aspen Shaffer, Taylor Regan and Elli Graham have also contributed for the Bulldog varsity team, as has eighth grader Savannah Stosich.
Shaffer and sophomore Rigby Bauer have also pitched for the Bulldog varsity squad this season.
Butte High fell 11-0 to West April 30 in Billings. Tayten Abrahms hit two homer runs and Asa Edwards added one for the Bears in that win. Tatum Bush struck out 14 batters in 14 innings.
After that loss, though, the Bulldogs turned their season around.
Saturday’s championship game will be played at the University of Montana stadium.
Dogs send 31 to state
The field at the Class AA State meet at Missoula County Stadium will include 31 Butte High Bulldogs. (Schedule)
The three-day tournament, which runs in conjunction with the Class B meet, kicks off at 4 p.m. Thursday with the girls’ pole vault competition.
Butte High is coming off a Western AA Divisional meet that saw the Bulldogs finish sixth on the girls’ side and seventh on the boys’ side. (Results)
Seniors Jacob Galle and Ryan Hanson will be the busiest Bulldog boys in the meet. Galle will compete in the 100- and 200-meter races along with the 110- and 300-meter hurdles races. He will also run the 1,600-meter relay along with teammates Chase Choquette, Reece Cunneen and Bridger Luebke.
Hanson will compete in the high jump, long jump and triple jump. His sophomore brother, Brady Hanson, qualified in the high jump.
Cunneen will also run the 400 for the Bulldogs. Miner Lee will run the 200-meter race. He will also compete in the 400-meter relay with Preston Jensen, Jory Xavier and Bridger Stearns.
Brady Walsh will run the 100 and jump in the long jump.
Jaeger Hansen will look to build in his second-place performance at last year’s state meet in the javelin. He has been peaking late in the season.
Seniors Camden Houchin and Levi Wiltsie are Bulldog distance runners looking for metals. Houchin, a future Montana State Bobcat, will run the 1,600- and 3,200-meter races. Wiltsie, who signed to run at the University of Providence in Great Falls, will compete in the 3,200.
Bradey Doyle will compete in the pole vault, and Raeder Grey will run the 300 hurdles. Tyce Snow and Rhett Arntson will make the trip as relay alternates.
On the girls’ side, sophomore Wakely Burelson and Cadence Graham will each compete in three events for the Bulldogs.
Graham will run the 100- and 300-meter hurdles as well as a leg of the 400-meter relay along with Burelson, Autumn Clary and Kloe Dickinson. Burelson will also run the 400-meter race and the 1,600 relay with teammates Sophia Houchin, Evelyn Smith and Clary.
Saege Grey will run the 100- and 200-meter races. Houchin will also run the 800-meter race, Kate DeShaw will compete in the long jump, Emma Johnson will throw the discus, Valerie Trabert will compete in the pole vault, and eighth grader Peyton Poole will throw the javelin.
Franki Salusso and Penelope Luebke will make the trip as alternates.
Nine Maroons head to Laurel
Laurel will once again play host to the Class A State meet. (Schedule)
Butte Central will send nine athletes to compete after last week’s Western A Divisional in Frenchtown. (Results)
Palmer Kellicut, Danny McCarthy and Will McGree will represent the Butte Central boys. Kellicut, a sophomore, will run the 110-meter hurdles, and McCarthy, a junior, will run the 100.
McGree, a senior, will compete in the triple jump.
Central’s girls will only compete in the relay races. Cambri Campbell, Harper McGree, Lexa Thompson and Evyn Tippett are signed up to run the 400-meter relay. Caden Tippett and Ashley White are listed as alternates.
Campbell, McGree, Evyn Tippett and White will run the 1,600. Thompson is an alternate in that event.
Tennis season closes
Butte High and Butte Central did not send any tennis players to their respective state tournaments. The Bulldogs and Maroons, though, had a few near misses at divisional tournaments.
Butte Central hosted the Central A Divisional tournament last week at Stodden Park. (Results) Butte High competed in a divisional tournament in Missoula.
Two Butte High doubles teams came within one win of advancing to the Class AA State tournament in Kalispell. Josh Schraeder and Matthew Weldon teamed up and fell on win short of the third-place match on in boys’ doubles. Chloe Jewell and Sienna Bradley did the same in girls’ doubles.
Tashi Hanley came within on win of state in boys’ singles.
At the Central A tournament in Butte, Central’s Presli Smith-Anderson and Tessa Ganzenmueller came within one win of qualifying for the Class A State tournament in Harden. They received a first-round bye before dropping their second-round match. They then won two matches before bowing out.
On the boys’ side, Aidan McPartland and Connor Hardy each picked up a victory on the consolation side of the bracket.
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Episode No. 350: Hellacious Kate and Dino Mac
Their stage names are Hellacious Kate and Dino Mac, but you might know them as Katie Lockmer and MacKenzie Christinsen.
They are members of the Copper City Queens roller derby team in Butte, and you can catch them in action Saturday at the Butte Civic Center. The Queens will take on the Big Hole Brawlers from Idaho at 6 p.m. That will be the team’s last home bout until October.
Kate is a jammer, meaning she is one of the team members who scores the points. Mac is a blocker. Both are tough as nails, as are all the Copper City players.
Both are also relatively new to the team that began in Butte in 2014, and they both look to be competing in roller derby for years to come.
Tonight I met with Kate and Mac at the Knights of Columbus to talk about roller derby. It was a bit of an educational experience for me. It was also a lot of fun.
Listen in to hear how they got their roller derby names. Listen in to hear that Kate actually has two names. She sometimes skates under the moniker “80’s Katie,” and that name makes her take on a much different persona.
Listen in to hear how they got started in roller derby and why they have no plans to stop. Listen in to hear why you should be heading to the Civic Center on Saturday night.
You can buy tickets on line or from any of the Copper City Queens player in advance of the bout.
Today’s episode is presented by Leskovar Honda, home of the friendly non-commission sales staff that always has your back.
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Cassidy, Vicevich perfect in finale
Tim Cassidy and Dave Vicevich each posted a perfect score of 50 to lead all shooters during the final week of the Butte Trap Club’s Spring League. (Results)
Ryan Miller and Garrett St. Clair each shot a 49, while Chris Andersen, Jake Dennehy, Riley Rigby and Travis Birkenbuel each shot a 48.
Mindy McLernan fired a 47 to lead women shooters. Rayelynn Brandl and Gillian Clark each shot a 45. They were followed by Michelle Andrene at 43 and Jen Hislop at 42. Mark Powers’ 46 led wobble shooting.
Vicevich won the “High Gun Male” award with a 291 out of 300 on the season. Walt McIntosh was second at 285. Brandle won the “High Gun Female” at 286, and Chase White was the “High Junior” at 244.
Wolverine Systems won the AA division in the final team standings at 1,129. Triple S Construction was second at 1,110. Members of the winning team are Vicevich, Josh Bridgeman, Seth Duclos, Mark Hislop and Gillian Clark.
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She told me she was the lucky one
When driving from Butte to Missoula, you will see Pana Jo’s mountain.
Heading west as you go past the Bearmouth Chalet on the Clark Fork River, it looks like Interstate 90 is going to drive right into it. Then, the highway bends to the right to curve around what Google Maps calls “Medicine Tree Hill.”
It is a little hill that is mostly covered by trees, but it is one that distinctively stands out.
“I must have seen that mountain a thousand times,” Pana Jo told me a few months before her sixth birthday.
That was in the fall of 1996, and I have thought about my cousin Jody’s daughter each of the dozens, if not hundreds, of times I have driven to Missoula since that day.
Pana Jo, who lost her mother to an illness when she was just 15, passed away at the age of 35 a little more than a month ago. Every time I see that “mountain,” it makes me smile to think about how happy she was.
At the time, I was going to college at the University of Montana, studying journalism. Pana Jo was stuck in the middle of a divorce that was contentious, to say the least. Her mom moved to Missoula, while her dad still lived in Butte.
Every time I went home for the weekend, I would call to see if Pana Jo needed a ride so I could save her parents a few hours and some gas money. The chance to visit with my little cousin made me want go home more often because she was so much fun to be around.
She would roast me like Nikki Glaser, and she would engage in some incredibly deep conversations for such a little girl. Even though she was living through what I figured must have been a nightmare, she was always in a fun mood.
Sometimes we would get back to Missoula before her mom was ready to pick her up. So, I would take her to my dorm room, where we would get a pizza, watch cartoons and do a whole lot of laughing.
Pana Jo was so beloved by her entire extended family. She was born on Jan. 10, 1991, which was nearly three years after my cousin Jerry, an uncle Pana Jo never got to meet but heard so much about, was killed in an automobile accident in the Highlands.
Jerry was only 20 years old, and his death devastated our family. It still hurts.
Late in the night of Jerry’s wake, a few of us stood around his coffin in the front of the church. My older brother, who was amazingly stoic for the first couple of days after Jerry died, broke down and started to cry hysterically.
Jerry’s dad put his arm around him and said, “It’s OK. Something good will happen.”
It took a few years, but our uncle’s words proved to be correct. That something was Pana Jo. For the first time since Jerry’s death, Pana Jo’s arrival made it seem like it was OK for us to be happy again.
Thinking of my time driving Pana Jo also takes me back to a stressful time in my academic career. Back then, I was having some serious doubts about my chosen profession as a writer. I wasn’t sure I was good enough.
That was coming to a head as we were assigned what I thought was a difficult assignment in a 300-level class called “specialized writing,” which was taught by my favorite journalism professor Sharon Barrett. I had her for three or four classes previously. She was good, and she was tough. She held her students to a very high standard.
Today, this assignment seems rather easy. Back then, however, it was a different story.
Each student had to draw a piece of paper out of a hat. Each piece of paper had a word typed on it, and we had to write a story featuring that word in the first paragraph.
I drew the word “roof.” We could write about anything, but we had to use that word.
I don’t remember how long of a story this had to be, but it had to be a real piece of journalism. To pass one of Sharon Barrett’s classes, it also had to be good, and I was not sure I could make it good enough.
It was also early December, and this was our last big assignment. Adding to the pressure was the fact that I had to print one copy for the teacher and one for every student in the class.
We would dissect each story as we sat around the University of Montana School of Journalism’s iconic horseshoe table. If my story stunk, all the classmates I respected so much would see how badly it stunk.
As I stewed over the project, those doubts multiplied. Maybe I should try a different profession, I thought. Maybe I could go home and try a field at Montana Tech. Sure, I was three and a half years into my college career, and knew that I wanted to be a writer for years. But I could still change majors.
Then I drove Pana Jo to Butte on a Friday night. Like always, I picked her up on Sunday afternoon, and we headed back to Missoula.
As we drove down Continental Drive on our way out of town, Pana Jo spotted a Santa Claus decoration on the roof of a house, and she got excited.
She turned to me and boasted, “I’m lucky. Santa Claus comes to my house twice.”
I smiled as the little girl bragged about what must be about the only thing “lucky” about being the child of divorce.
When I was a kid, nothing scared me more than that scenario. Every time my parents would fight, I would fear the devastation of them splitting up. One of my best friends had a step-dad, and it just seemed to make his house feel like anything but a real home.
Never would I want to go through that, and I felt so sorry that Pana Jo was put into my worst-case situation. Somehow, though, it did not seem to faze her. She genuinely seemed to think she was the lucky one.
In an instant, I knew I had the story for my class. I was going to write about Pana Jo, the little girl who would not let a nasty divorce stop her from being happy.
I told her story as I wrote about all the fun we had on our rides back and forth from Butte. I wrote about how difficult that time was supposed to be for her and how she never made it seem that way.
Throughout the story, I sprinkled in some quotes from an interview I did with a social work professor at the school. I can still remember the first sentence, even though I do not have a copy of what I wrote.
“I’m lucky,” she told me as we drove past the Santa Claus on the roof of a house.
Then, I closed with a question she posed to me as I described the Santa Claus fading in my rearview mirror.
“Don’t you wish Santa Clase went to your house twice?” she said. “Yep,” I said. “You sure are lucky.”
To this day, I think that was my favorite story I ever wrote. My classmates really seemed to like it. More importantly, Sharon Barrett loved it.
In front of the class, she told me that when she read the story, fireworks were going off and champagne bottles were popping in her head. She said that I finally became the writer that she always knew I could be.
Just like that, those doubts were gone, and I once again felt like I was doing what I was supposed to be doing.
And I owe it all to Pana Jo, that adorable little girl we already miss so much.
Yes, having Santa Claus go to your house twice must be pretty cool for a child that age. But of the two people riding in that car, I was the lucky one.
We were all lucky to have Pana Jo in our lives, even if she only lived to be 35.
I will get a reminder of that every time I drive past her “mountain.”
— Bill Foley 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.
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Bulldog baseball, softball open tournaments at 4 p.m. Thursday
Butte High’s baseball and softball teams will both open their Class AA State tournaments at 4 p.m. Thursday.
The baseball tournament will be held at 3 Legends Stadium in Butte, while the softball tournament will be played at Forth Missoula Regional Park in Missoula. Saturday’s softball championship game will be played at the University of Montana stadium.
In the softball tournament, the Bulldogs will open against Billings West, the No. 1 seed from the Eastern AA. Butte High is the No. 4 seed from the Western AA. (Bracket)
In the baseball tournament, the Bulldogs open against Eastern AA top seed Gallatin. Butte High is No. 4 seed from the Western AA. (Bracket)
Note that the baseball bracket has been flipped so the hometown Bulldogs will play later in the day on Thursday. Other media outlets have not recognized that change.
