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Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week: Brady Hanson and Luci Fantini
Butte High basketball player Brady Hanson and Butte Central hoopster Luci Fantini are this week’s Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week.
The young honorees are showing that the future of basketball in the Mining City is bright.
Hanson, a 6-foot-9 sophomore, takes home the boys’ honor after scoring a career-high 19 points in Tuesday’s 62-54 win at Missoula Big Sky. Hanson added nine points three nights later in a Butte High loss at Missoula Sentinel.
Already the unofficial school record holder in backboard-shaking dunks, Hanson is averaging 9.4 points per game for the Bulldogs. He entered last week averaging 6.2 rebounds per contest. Hanson has been a varsity contributor for Butte High since he was in the eighth grade.
Fantini, a 5-6 eighth-grade guard, takes home the girls’ honor. That comes after she scored a career-high and team-leading 18-points in Central’s 60-42 win Saturday at Stevensville. That marked the second straight game that Fantini led the Maroons in scoring, sinking seven 3-pointers in those two games.
She has stepped up her game just in the right time for a young BC team that was hit hard by injuries.
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 Hanson courtesy Alycia Holland Photography. The photo of Samson was provided by Jacqueline Photography.
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KC honors Butte legend Jim Street
For maybe the first time, Jim Street was speechless.
The legendary Butte High wrestling coach was lured to the Knights of Columbus Hall Sunday evening, thinking he was there for a celebration of a friend. Instead, he walked into a celebration of one of the greatest high school coaches of all time.
It was a night to honor Street as more than 100 people showed up for the coach. It was a virtual who’s who of the Butte wrestling community of the past and present.
A banner featuring 22 photos honoring the legacy of Street and his 15 Class AA State championship wrestling teams was unveiled on the wall of the northwest corner of the Felix Madrazo Gym.
Former Bulldog wrestler Brandon Queer spoke before the banner was uncovered. He said the wall is about a lot more than those 15 titles — 13 of which came in consecutive years from 1980 through 1992. It was about a program of greatness.
“What made this program great was consistency and a dedication to things that work,” Queer said. “It was a well-oiled machine. It wasn’t flashy, but it worked.”
Street’s son, Jason, and daughter, Jackie, removed the covering. As audience applauded, Coach Street could hardly speak.
“I had no idea,” he softly said, eventually. “I’m sorry I’m emotional. If I could control it, I wouldn’t be.”
Street then slowly started to talk about his years as the coach of the Bulldogs. He talked about how he told the school board that he expected to win the State title when he interviewed for the job.
“I said, ‘If. You give me the job and I don’t win a title in four years, I’ll resign,’” Street said. “’You won’t have to fire me.’”
Street’s team delivered on that promise time and time again.
At first, the coach said he thought the success came because his program outworked other programs. He said that as he the invitations to speak at coaching conventions piled up as the titles started to stack.
“I worked harder than the other coaches,” Street said. “The kids worked harder than the other wrestlers — in all aspects.”
Eventually, Street came to realize that the success was built on a foundation of honesty. Then he directed his comments to the many of his former wrestlers in the audience.
“When you walked off the mat, whether you won or lost, I told you the truth,” he said. “What I was doing that the other coaches weren’t doing was that I was telling them the truth. They trusted me, and I think I it was because I didn’t bullshit them.”
Street told the story about how Jim Blow beat Mike Mathews of Great Falls to win the 130-pound title. Mathews, was a dominant wrestler, but Street told him to go out and “pin his ass.”
“He didn’t pin him,” Street said, “but he sure as heck beat him. I believed in him, and he believed in me.”
Now, Street’s teams and his legacy will be on display for future generations to see when they work out or play basketball at the KC. It is the latest piece of what Bernie Boyle has turned into a great museum about sports in the Mining City.
“It’s about a culture that demanded excellence and built people beyond the mat,” Queer said of Street’s Bulldog program. “This wall will be there as symbol that people will look at and talk about what the Coach Street years were all about.”
Then, the crowd went upstairs to the KC Hall for food, drinks and stories about the legendary coach.
This banner was unveiled Sunday evening at the KC’s Felix Madrazo Gym. -
KC basketball schedule
Following is the Knights of Columbus Athletic Club’s four-man basketball schedule for the week of Feb. 2.
Monday
7 p.m. — Jellyfam vs. ButteSports
8 p.m. — Kenworthy vs. HoopballasTuesday
7 p.m. — ButteSports vs. Someday Starters
8 p.m. — Jellyfam vs. Washington GeneralsWednesday
7 p.m. — Everett-Cook Law vs. Poi Time
8 p.m. — Everett-Cook Law vs. KenworthyThursday
7 p.m. — City Boys vs. Hoopballas
8 p.m. — City Boys vs. Washington Generals
9 p.m. — Someday Starters vs. Poi Time
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Maroons sweep Yellowjackets again
Butte Central’s varsity basketball teams completed the season sweep of Stevensville with a pair of Southwestern A victories Saturday afternoon.
Butte Central’s boys beat Stevi 74-45 at the Maroon Activities Center, while the Maroon girls rolled to a 60-42 victory in the Bitterroot Valley.
Central’s teams have a pair of huge battles coming up on Tuesday. The Maroon boys head to Frenchtown looking to sweep the Broncs after winning a 74-71 thriller Jan. 13 in Butte. Central’s girls will play host to the Broncs.
BOYS
Butte Central 74, Stevensville 45
Joshua Sutton and Ryan Peoples combined to score 51 points in Saturday’s victory that the Maroons led nearly wire to wire.Sutton buried five 3-pointers and scored 29 points, while Peoples sank three treys and tossed in 22 for the Maroons, who won their seventh straight game. They completed January without a loss, and BC is undefeated against Class A competition.
Noah Sutton came off the bench to score seven points for the Maroons (11-1 overall and 6-0 in conference). GG Fantini and Jaxon Hiatt each tossed in four for BC, which got three from Henly Mansanti and Grady Button, and two from Burkley Lakkala.
Cade Kelly, who blocked a pair of shots, also contributed along with Gunnar O’Brien and Teghan Sparks.
Taeshawn Luster, a 6-foot-5 junior, scored 13 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Yellowjackets. Kaden Wyant scored 10 points for Stevi, which got seven from Jake Tschida and six from McCoy Endres.
STEVENSVILLE (1-13, 0-6) — Kaden Wyant 2-14 5-6 10, McCoy Enders 2-7 2-6 6, Jake Tschida 3-9 0-0 7, Gage Bierer 1-4 0-0 2, Taeshawn Luster 6-10 1-4 13, Luca Schmidt 102 0-0 3, Trenton Scharff 1-1 1-4 3, Luis Eberhardt 0-1 1-2 1. Totals 16-48 10-22 45.
BUTTE CENTRAL (11-1, 6-0) — Ryan Peoples 8-14 3-4 22, Cade Kelly 0-1 0-0 0, Joshua Sutton 10-20 4-4 29, GG Fantini 2-4 0-2 4, Jaxon Hiatt 1-5 2-2 4, Noah Sutton 2-4 3-6 7, Burkley Lakkala 1-1 0-0 2, Henly Mansanti 1-2 0-0 3, Gunnar O’Brien 0-1 0-0 0, Teghan Sparks 0-1 0-0 0, Grady Button 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 26-54 12-18 74.
Stevensville 11 8 15 11 — 45
Central 17 21 20 16 — 74
3-point goals — Stevi 3-16 (Wyant 1-8, Tschida 1-4, Schmidt 1-1, Endres 0-2, Bierer 0-1), BC 10-29 (J. Sutton 5-12, Peoples 3-8, Mansanti 1-2, Button 1-1, Hiatt 0-2, Kelly 0-1, Fantini 0-1, O’Brien 0-1, Sparks 0-1). Fouls — Stevi 11, BC 22. Fouled out — none. Technical — Luster.GIRLS
Butte Central 60, Stevensville 42
STEVENSVILLE — Eighth grader Luci Fantin scored 18 points, and sophomore Kenzie McQueary added 16 to lead the Maroons in the victory.McQueary, who put together her best game since returning from injury, scored 12 points in the first half to help the Maroons take a 30-15 lead.
Zayonna Otherbull added 11 points for the Maroons, who got five points from Braelynn Schelin, four from Arika Stajcar and Rylee Forbes, and two from Evyn Smith.
Addi Drye scored 20 points to lead the Yellowjackets.
BUTTE CENTRAL (4-8, 2-4) — Kenzie McQueary 5 6-10 16, Zayonna Otherbull 2 7-13 11, Rylee Forbes 2 0-1 4, Braelyn Schelin 1 3-4 5, Arika Stajcar 2 0-0 4, Evyn Smith 1 0-0 2, Luci Fantini 6 2-3 18. Totals 19 18-30 60.
STEVENSVILLE — Addi Drye 7 3-3 20, Emma Tan 4 0-0 14, Kayden Tolley 0 1-4 1, Harley Gilleard 0 0-0 0, Josie Randles 0 0-0 0, Talyn Bean 0 0-0 0, Amy Donaldson 2 1-4 5. Totals 15 5-11 42.
Central 21 9 13 17 — 60
Stevi 8 7 8 19 — 423-point goals — BC 4 (Fantini 4), Stevi 7 (Tan 4, Drye 3). Fouls — BC 18, Stevi 21. Fouled out — Drye, Tan. -
Trefts leads Bulldog swimmers in Missoula
MISSOULA — Butte High senior Tatum Trefts picked up a victory in the 100-yard breaststroke to highlight a nice day for the Butte High swimming teams at the Missoula County Public Schools Invitational.
The Bulldog girls placed fourth in team standings. The Butte boys swam to seventh.
Gallatin won the girls’ team title with 342.5 points, besting a field of 16 teams. Missoula Hellgate was next at 218, followed by Billings Central at 212 and Butte High at 181.
Bozeman won the boys’ title with 382.5 points. Helena Capital was next at 272, and Billings Central placed third at 267.5. Butte High scored 132 points.
The meet was the second in as many days for the Bulldogs.
“Everyone swam extremely well with being very tired with hard workouts and two meets in two days,” Bulldog coach Lynn Shrader said. “I am extremely proud of everyone.
Butte High junior Alaina Grochowski placed third in the 100 breaststroke and fourth in the 100 butterfly for the Bulldog girls. Her sister, Adalie Grochowski, a freshman, placed fifth in the 100 freestyle and ninth in the 200 individual medley.
Senior Olivia Thurmond swam to seventh in the 200 freestyle and 100th in the 100 free.
Freshman Bryher Fitzpatrich placed sixth in the 100 butterfly.
Bella Corrales, Alaina Grochowski, Adalie Grochowski and Thurmond swam to third place int eh 200 freestyle relay. Trefts, Thurmond and the Grochowski sisters placed fourth in the 200 medley relay.
Junior Gage Plum again led the Butte High boys. He placed eighth in the 500 freestyle while shaving a more than a second off his personal record to place 10th in the 200 freestyle.
Freshman Alex Sonnemann placed ninth in the 100 backstroke and 10th in the 200 individual medley. He beat his PR in the medley by more than 23 seconds.
Senior Nathan Stone took ninth in the 100 butterfly.
Gunnar Benson, Sonneman, Tucker Kissell and Stone took sixth in the 200 freestyle relay. Grayson Lynch, Sonnemann, Ayvahn Mann and Plum swam to seventh in the 400 freestyle A relay. Mason Pullman, Jorden Sonnemann, Nathan Knopp and Rody Johnson took 10t0 in the 409 free B relay.
Plum, Stone, Benson and Kissell took ninth in the 200 medley relay.
Butte High will have a cross-town meet with Butte Central on Monday. That will be the last action for both teams before the State meet, which is Feb. 12-14 in Great Falls.
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Bulldog girls third, boys fifth in pool
Butte High’s girls placed third in the Butte High School Invitational swim meet Friday at the Butte Family YMCA. The Bulldog boys swam to fifth place.
Gallatin’s girls won the team title with 524 points. Billings Central scored 266 points to take second in the 10-team meet. The Bulldogs scored 216.
Bozeman won the boys’ title at 509, which was exactly 100 points better than second-place Billings Central. Helena Capital placed third at 299, and Gallatin finished fourth at 258. The Bulldogs scored 200 points.
“Everyone is working hard,” Butte High coach Lynn Shrader said. “They have had many hard workouts to get to this point.”
Senior Olivia Thurmand and junior Alaina Grochowski led the Bulldog girls. Thurmond placed fifth in the 200-yard individual medley, shaving 5 seconds off her previous best time. She also placed sixth in the 100 freestyle.
Grochowski finished fifth in the 200 freestyle, beating her previous best by 9 seconds. She placed sixth in the 100 breaststroke.
Senior Tatum Trefts had the top individual place of the day for the Bulldog girls. She took third in the 100 breaststroke. Freshman Adalie Grochowski also had a big day. She placed fifth in the 100 backstroke and sixth in the 50 freestyle.
Adalie Grochowski, Trefts, Alaina Grochowski and Thurmond captured second in the 200 medley relay. Alaina Grochowski, Bella Corrales, Thurmond and Adalie Grochowski swan to second in the 200 freestyle relay.
Bryher Fitzpatrick, Trefts, Elly Rumler and Corrales took eighth in the 400 freestyle relay.
Morgan Hardy of Butte Central placed seventh in the 500 freestyle and eighth in the 200 freestyle. Teammate Tessa Ganzenmueller took 10th in the 200 freestyle race.
BC’s 200 medley relay team of Hardy, Tia Tomposn, Ganzenmueller and Arwen Register placed eighth.
Junior Gage Plum posted his best times in the 500 freestyle and 100 backstroke, taking seventh and sixth. Senior Nathon Stone placed fifth in the 100 butterfly.
Sophomore Tucker Kissell took ninth in the 50 freestyle, posting a personal record. Freshman Alex Sonneman placed eighth in the 200 freestyle, and sophomore Gunnar Benson took 10th in the 50 freestyle.
Sonneman, Kissell, Plum and Stone placed fourth in the 200 freestyle relay, and Sonnemann, Stone, Benson and Plum took sixth in the 200 medley relay. Elgin Hoar, Benson, Ayvahn Mann and Kissell teamed to take sixth in the 400 freestyle relay.
Shamus Peck placed ninth in the 100 butterfly for Butte Central. He just missed the top 10 in the backstroke.
Butte High will compete in a meet in Missoula on Saturday. The Bulldogs and Maroons will hold a crosstown meet on Monday at the YMCA. That will be the last action before the State meet, which is Feb. 12-14 in Great Falls.
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Dog girls win at home, boys fall on road
Butte High’s varsity boys’ and girls’ basketball teams split Western AA games against Missoula Sentinel Friday night.
The Bulldog boys ran into a hot-shooting Sentinel team and fell 77-36 in Missoula. Butte High’s girls found their shooting touch in a 72-47 win over the Spartans at the Richardson Gym.
Butte High’s teams will play back-to-back doubleheaders Friday and Saturday when the Kalispell school some to town for Western AA games. The varsity games will be played at the Butte Civic Center.
GIRLS
Butte High 72, Missoula Sentinel 47
Junior Cadence Graham poured in 32 points to lead the Bulldogs to the bounce-back victory. She sank five 3-poitners to lead the way for the Bulldogs, who started fast and heated up.In all, Butte High connected on 12 long balls, three of which came from freshman Elli Graham. The younger Graham, though, went down with a knee injury 5 minutes, 34 seconds into the game. She returned to the bench with ice on her knee, and Bulldog coaches are confident the injury is not serious.
Emma Johnson joined Elli Graham with nine points, while Saege Grey scored seven. The Bulldogs also got five from Franki Salusso, four from Autumn Clary, and three apiece from Alli Becker and Avery Barsness.
Reese Johnson and Stella Callaghan also contributed for the Bulldogs, who improved to 7-5 overall and 5-2 in conference play.
Kaysa Fuller sank four 3-pointers and scored 12 points to lead the Spartans, who fell to 5-7 and 2-5. Avery Ogren and Olivia Reynolds each scored eight, and Andrin Reimers tossed in seven.
MISSOUOLA SENTINEL (5-7, 2-5) — Avery Ogren 3 2-2 8, Andrin Reimers 3 1-4 7, Kenzie Cline 2 0-0 5, Lucy Pfaler 3 0-0 6, Kaysa Fuller 4 0-0 12, Ryen Hobbs 0 1-6 1, Olivia Reynolds 3 0-0 8, Misha Meyer 0 0-0 0, Kaitlyn Stanton 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 4-12 47
BUTTE HIGH (7-5, 5-2) — Allie Becker 0 3-4 3, Cadence Graham 10 7-10 32, Autumn Clary 0 4-4 4, Franki Salusso 2 0-0 5, Emma Johnson 3 2-2 9, Elli Graham 3 0-0 9, Saege Grey 2 2-4 7, Kendallyn Schad 0 0-0 0, Avery Barsness 1 0-0 3, Reese Johnson 0 0-0 0, Stella Callaghan 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 18-24 72.
Sentinel 8 9 15 15 — 47
Butte 24 14 17 17 — 72
3-point goals — Sentinel 7 (Fuller 4, Reynolds 2, Cline), Butte 12 (C. Graham 5, E. Graham 3, Grey, Salusso, Johnson, Barsness). Fouls — Sentinel 19, Butte 13. Fouled out — none. Technicals — none.BOYS
Missoula Sentinel 77, Butte High 36
The Spartans simply shot the lights out, and the Bulldogs did not.Sophomore Beau O’Reilly sank eight 3-pointers on his way to a 36-point game to lead Sentinel to its 10th straight victory. He hit four of those on his way to 20 points in the first half.
Lincoln Rogers added 20 points in the win for Sentinel, which moved the Spartans to 11- overall and 7-0 in conference play.
Hudson Luedtke scored 14 points to lead the Bulldogs. Brady Hanson tossed in nine points for Butte, which got six from Josh Liston, three from Rhett Arntson and two apiece from Cayde Stajcar and Ryan Hanson.
Mitch Verlanic, Kendel Noctor, Kaleb Celli, Brady Walsh, Koda Schleeman and Raeder Grey also contributed for the Bulldogs, who fell to 9-3 and 4-3.
BUTTE HIGH (9-3, 4-3) — Cayde Stajcar 1 0-0 2, Hudson Luedtke 6 1-4 14, Josh Lison 2 0-0 6, Mitch Verlanic 0 0-0 0, Brady Hanson 3 3-5 9, Rhett Arntson 1 0-0 3, Ryan Hanson 1 0-0 2, Kaleb Celli 0 0-0 0, Brady Walsh 0 0-0 0, Koda Schleeman 0 0-0 0, Raeder Grey 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 4-9 35.
MISSOULA SENTINEL (11-1, 7-0) — Gavin O’Reilly 2 0-0 5, Lincoln Rogers 8 2-2 20, Beau O’Reilly 13 2-3 36, Kade Robinson 0 0-0 0, Zeke Glidewell 2 0-0 6, Jaiden Elgin Taylor 0 0-0 0, Kaden Thennis 0 0-0 0, Stellan Ridley 3 0-0 6, Carter Aune 0 0-0 0, Kane Szalay 0 2-2 2, Jayson McLennan 1 0-0 2, Jayce Eby 0 0-0 0. Totals 29 6-7 77.
Butte 7 11 10 8 — 36
Sentinel 21 17 22 14 — 77
3-point goals — Butte 4 (Lison 2, Luedtke, Arntson), Sentinel 13 (B. O’Reilly 8, Glidewell 2, Rogers 2, G. O’Reilly). Fouls — Butte 10, Sentinel 11. Fouled out — none. Technicals — none. -
Podcast No. 321: Tanner Huff
Tanner Huff is one of the best athletes to come out of Butte, America this century.
He was a member of Butte High’s 2019 football team that advanced to the Class AA State championship game as a junior. As a senior, he won four gold medals at the Class AA State track meet in Missoula.
On that beautiful May weekend in Missoula, Tanner won gold in the 100- and 200-meter races. He also ran a leg of Butte High’s championship relays as the Bulldogs captured the state title in the 400- and 1,600-meter relays.
Tanner had committed to play football at Montana Western. After the Montana Grizzlies saw his speed on the track, though, they offered him a chance to join the program as a preferred walk on. Tanner snapped up that opportunity.
This past season, Tanner was a standout on special teams for the Grizzlies, who advanced the semifinals of the NCAA FCS playoffs. Last May, Tanner also finished a degree in business management from the University of Montana.
Now that his career football career is over, he is working on his master’s degree.
Listen in to this episode as Tanner talks about playing for the Bulldogs and his career as a Grizzly. Listen as Tanner talks about the toughness it takes to be a Montana Grizzly.
Listen in to hear why he might have caught some people off guard with his great track season as a senior. Listen to hear some of his plans as he begins life after football.
Today’s episode is brought to you by Leskovar Honda, where their non-commission sales staff always has your back. This episode is also available on YouTube:
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Bulldog wrestlers set to honor seniors
Maroons host Class A Duals, Vincent signs with Diggers
Butte High’s wrestling teams will celebrate Senior Night Thursday night in the Butte High’s old gym.
The ceremony will take place as the Bulldog boys and girls host Missoula Sentinel in duals set to start under the spotlight at 6 p.m. The duals will mark the second-to-last home action of the season for Butte High.
Butte High’s boys advanced to the semifinals of the 17th Class AA Duals at Great Falls High, where the Bulldogs fell 64-8 to Billings West. The Golden Bears, the three-time defending Class AA State champions, defended their title at the Duals with a 47-21 victory over Gallatin in the title dual.
The Bulldogs opened with a 52-26 win over Belgrade before knocking off Billings Senior 48-31 in the quarterfinals. Butte High then beat Great Falls 43-36 in a consolation match and fell to Flathead in a 38-34 thriller. (Click here for results from the AA Duals.)
Butte High will honor their seniors and their parents as part of Senior Night. Those seniors are Bridger Brancamp, Xaiden Daly, Waylond Hicks, Keegan Hunt, Ryder McEwen, Caden Phillips, Darryn Rossiter and Joey Ward.
Butte High boys’ coach Cory Johnston said the Bulldogs are wrestling well heading into crunch time.
“We just have to stay the course and continue to be consistent,” he said.
Butte High’s senior girls are Allie Ballensky, Jessica Blow, Jauclynn Lansing, Peyton Liva and Mattie Stepan.
The Bulldog girls will compete at the Big Sky AA Mixer Saturday in Missoula. They will head to Dillon for a Mixon on Monday.
Gallatin and Bozeman will come to town to take on the Bulldog boys and girls on Tuesday. The divisional qualifying tournaments will be held Feb. 14 in Missoula, and the State meet is Feb. 19-21 in Billings.
Butte Central’s grapplers will compete in the Class A Duals Friday and Saturday at the Butte Civic Center. Action begins at 10 a.m. on Friday and 9 a.m. on Saturday.
The Maroons competed in mixers in Frenchtown and Great Falls last week.
Maroons eye perfect January
Butte Central’s boys’ basketball team has been on fire since the Christmas Break.
After their Dec. 23 loss to Butte High, Butte Central has rolled off six straight victories. The Maroons can close out January at 7-0 with a win over Stevensville Saturday at the Maroon Activities Center.
The Maroons and Yellowjackets will tip off at 3 p.m., the same time the girls will play in Stevensville. BC’s winning streak includes wins over Anaconda, Stevensville, Frenchtown, Hamilton, Dillon and Corvallis.
Central beat Stevensville 74-39 Jan. 10 in the Bitterroot Valley.
Junior Joshua Sutton leads the Maroons into action. He is scoring 20.5 points per game. He has made 35 of 77 3-pointers on the season. That is a clip of 45 percent.
Sophomore Jaxon Hiatt adds 10.7 points per game for BC, which is getting 8.5 points from junior GG Fantini and 8.2 from senior Ryan Peoples. Junior Cade Kelly rounds out the Maroon lineup, with freshmen Noah Sutton and Henly Mansanti coming off the bench along with junior Burkley Lakkala.
At 5-0 in Southwestern A play and 10-1 overall, the Maroons led the conference. They have a looming showdown with Frenchtown on the road next Tuesday. Stevi is 0-5 and 111 heading into Thursday’s home game against Florence.
On the girls’ side, the Maroons are trying to stop a four-game losing streak that came in a tough stretch of games. BC’s last win was a 59-23 beating of Stevensville Jan. 10 at the MAC.
It also came as the Maroons are struggling to stay healthy. They lost sophomore Natalie Osterman to an injury while getting injured classmate Kenzie McQueary back on the court. BC coach Quinn Carter, though, said McQueary is not yet 100 percent.
Eighth grader Jordyn Samson leads BC in scoring with an average of 8.6 points per game, but she missed the last game. Sophomore Zayonna Otherbull adds 8.0 points to the lineup, and junior Rylee Forbes contributes with 5.8 points and 8.4 rebounds per game.
Sophomore Braelynn Schelin and senior Arika Stajcar started last game along with McQueary, Otherbull and Forbes. Sophomores Evny Smith and Jaedyn Maldonado, eighth grader Luci Fantini and senior Caden Tippett contribute off the bench.
The Maroons will be back at home Tuesday against Frenchtown.
Bulldogs face Spartans
Three days after going to Missoula Tuesday to pick up a win over Missoula Big Sky, the Butte High boys’ basketball team will head back to Zootown to take on Missoula Sentinel on Friday.
Butte High’s girls, meanwhile, will be back at the Richardson Gym looking to bounce back from Tuesday’s tough home loss to Big Sky when they take on the Spartans. Both Western AA games tip off at 7 p.m.
On the boys’ side, the Spartans ride into the battle with a nine-game winning streak. Sentinel is 10-1 overall and 6-0 in the Western AA after Tuesday’s 53-43 win at Missoula Hellgate.
Lincoln Rogers, a 6-foot-8 senior, poured in 22 points to lead the Spartans in that win. Classmate Zeke Gildewell added 14 for Sentinel, which has not lost since it fell 49-42 at home to Billings West on Dec. 13.
Each win since that loss has been by double digits. The latest win came over a Hellgate team that beat Butte High 50-38 five days earlier in the Mining City.
The Bulldogs are 9-2 and 4-2 after Tuesday’s 62-54 win at Big Sky. Brady Hanson, a 6-9 sophomore, scored a career-high 19 points to lead the Bulldogs in the win. Senior Hudson Luedtke added 18 points.
Senior Josh Liston had his best game since returning to the lineup after a toe injury. He sank four 3-pointers and scored 12 points. Senior Cayde Stajcar tossed in seven.
Senior Mitch Verlanic joins Hanson, Luedtke, Liston and Stajcar in the starting lineup. Senior Rhett Arntson adds some punch off the bench. James Pearston, Kendel Noctor and Ryan Hanson have appeared in most of Butte High’s game.
Kaleb Celli, Raeder Grey, Koda Schleeman, Brady Walsh, Kodye Kjersten and Noah Powers have also seen varsity time.
Butte High’s girls are still smarting from Tuesday’s rough-and-tumble 61-53 loss to the Eagles.
Butte High fell to 6-5 overall and 4-2 in conference, but the Bulldogs did not go down without a fight.
Junior Cadence Graham scored 15 points, and freshman Elli Graham came off the bench to hit four 3-pointers and scored 14. Junior Allie Becker scored six.
The Butte High starting lineup generally consists of Cadence Graham, Becker, junior Autumn Clary and seniors Franki Salusso and Emma Johnson.
Freshman Saege Grey and junior Kendallyn Schad have contributed in every Bulldog game. Juniors Reese Johnson, Avery Barsness and Ellie Yates and sophomore Stella Callaghan have also seen key time for the Bulldogs.
Sentinel is 5-6 and 2-4 after Tuesday’s 44-39 loss to Hellgate. Lucy Pfahler, a 5-11 senior, scored 12 points to lead the Spartans in that loss. Andrin Reimers, a 6-1 junior, added 10.
The Bulldog boys and girls will be back at home next Friday and Saturday to take on Kalispell Glacier and Flathead in doubleheaders. The varsity games will be played at the Butte Civic Center.
Those games will mark the last scheduled high school varsity games on the new Civic Center floor this season.
YMCA hosts swim meet
Butte High and Butte Central swimmers will be back in action in Butte Friday for a meet at the YMC. Action is set to begin at noon.
It will mark the first of back-to-back meets for the Bulldogs, who are scheduled to head to Missoula for a meet on Saturday.
Butte High’s boys placed fifth and the girls took sixth at Saturday’s Montana Classic at the YMCA.
Nathan Stone, Gage Plum, Tucker Kissell, Ayvahn Mann and Gunnar Benson placed in the top 10 in individual events on the boys’ side. Connor Hardy did the same for Butte Central.
On the girls’ side, the Bulldogs got individual place showings from Olivia Thurmond, Tatum Trefts, Alaina Grochowski, Bryher Fitzpatrick and Bella Corrales. Tessa Ganzenmueller, Morgan Hardy and Tia Thompson placed for the BC girls.
This weekend will provide the final tune up for — and last chance to qualify for — the State meet, which is Feb. 12-14 in Great Falls.
Vincent takes talents to Tech
Montana Tech’s football team will have yet another Vincent on its roster.
Butte High senior Brooks Vincent signed an NAIA National Letter of Intent to play football for the Orediggers during a signing ceremony Tuesday morning at Butte High. He signed while sitting between his mother Janelle and his father Josh.
Josh Vincent was a fullback for the Orediggers when the team advanced to the NAIA national championship game in 1996. He was also a member of Butte High’s 1991 state championship football team.
Vincent’s uncle, Matt Vincent, was also a standout for the Bulldogs and Orediggers.
Brooks Vincent started the season at quarterback for the Bulldogs. He moved to receiver early in the season. He will play tight end for the Orediggers.
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No. 320: Mac Coyne and Adam Haight
Today we are talking unions with Mac Coyne and Adam Haight.
Mac, a Butte native, is a field agent for Laborers Local 1686. Adam is from California originally, but we like him anyway. He is the business manager for the local.
Unions are the backbone of the economy. That probably goes even more for the Laborers Union, which is billed as the most progressive, aggressive and fastest-growing of the unions. It also works hard to protect its members.
The Mining City was built on unions, and Butte is still a union town. Montana is still a strong unition state. But unions and the ideals they represent are constantly under attack. Currently, a push is being made at one of the state’s large employers to decertify the union.
Mac and Adam say that would be disastrous for all working men and women in the state and beyond. So, they are working hard to educate the members and nonmembers alike about the importance of what the union can and does do for them every day.
Listen in to this episode as Mac and Adam at the Carpenters Union Hall for a great conversation. Listen in as Mac and Adam talk about the importance of the Laborers Union and why they want to keep growing its membership.
Listen in to hear why they say the push to decertify would be so harmful.
Today’s podcast is presented by Casagranda’s Steakhouse. Eat where the locals eat.
