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Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week: Beau McGree, flag football seniors
Butte Central freshman Beau McGree and Butte High’s four senior flag football players are this week’s Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week.
McGree takes home the boys’ honor after hitting a hole-in-one at the Polson Invitational golf tournament. McGree used an 8-iron to ace the 145-yard hole No. 4 at the Polson Bay Golf Course.
McGree fired an 80 on the par-72 course to lead the Maroons. He placed 17th overall in a field of 79 golfers. The ace is the second in the McGree family in 2024. Beau’s brother Will, a junior on the BC team, hit an ace at the Butte Country Club in April.
Beau McGree’s strong freshman golf season comes on the heels of an outstanding American Legion Baseball season. He plays catcher and second base, and he played games for the Butte Motormen and Butte Muckers in 2024. He was also a standout for the BC varsity baseball team in the spring.
Butte High seniors Karsyn Lambrecht, Kaylee Hoar, Hailey Hotalen and Sophie Radcliffe share the girls’ honor after playing in the Bulldogs’ first Senior Night in flag football. The Bulldogs fell 20-12 to East Helena at Naranche Stadium, but Butte High coaches called it a good night.
Lambrecht played two seasons for the Bulldogs, while Hoar, Hotalen and Radcliffe each played three. All four attended a flag football camp in Missoula put on by the Atlanta Falcons.
“Each girl really focused on building the team and building the sport,” Butte High assistant coach Amy Schulte said. “All the underlayment mentioned their leadership, kindness and willingness to help in their letters to the seniors that we gave them last night. Karsyn is the fun and energy booster. Sophie is the calm pillar that’s keeps us on track. Hailey is also quiet but very much a lead by example girl. She does everything crisp and clean even in practice and many girls talked about being inspired by her that way. Kaylee is quiet but also one to always lend a helping hand.”
For the second year, Leskovar Honda, home of the 20-year, 200,000-mile warranty, is teaming up with the ButteCast to honor the finest student-athletes from the Mining City in an effort to encourage more children to get up, get out and try all kinds of sports and activities.
The flag football seniors pictured above are, from left, Karsyn Lambrecht, Kaylee Hoar, Hailey Hotalen and Sophie Radcliffe. Photo of courtesy Alycia Holland Photography.
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KC basketball schedule
Following is the Knights of Columbus Athletic Club’s four-man basketball schedule for the week of Sept. 16.
Monday
7 p.m. — Poi Time vs. BigCat
8 p.m. — Washington Generals vs. ParishTuesday
7 p.m. — Jellyfam vs. Hoopin Heathens
8 p.m. — Someday Starters vs. BigCatWednesday
7 p.m. — Butte Sports vs. Cook
8 p.m. — Cook vs. Jellyfam
9 p.m. — Poi Time vs. ParishThursday
7 p.m. — Butte Sports vs. Thunder
8 p.m. — Thunder vs. Hoopin Heathens
9 p.m. — Washington Generals vs. Someday Starters
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Barkley, Duclos, Rigby post 50s
Rod Barkley, Seth Duclos and Riley Rigby each posted a perfect score of 50 to lead individual standings during Week 5 of the Butte Trap Club’s Fall League.
The perfect mark was the first of the season for Barkley and Duclos. Rigby shot a 50 for the third time this season. It was his second time reaching perfection in as many weeks.
Timmy Schrapps, Dave Vicevich, Josh Bridgeman and Jake Taverna each shot a 49, while Mark Hislop and Craig Durkin shot 48. Rayelynn Brandl shot a 47 to lead women shooters. Gillian Clark was next at 45. Kevin Zimpel shot a 43 to lead wabble scores.
Through five weeks, Granite Amusement/Oasis leads team scratch standings a 944. Wolverine Systems is just three back at 941, and Arc Electric is third at 905.
Butte Trap Club – 2024 Fall League – Week 5 Standings
Team Scratch Standings
Granite Amusement/Oasis – 944
Wolverine Systems – 941
Arc Electric – 905
Baker Auto – 899
Cooneys Locksmith – 888
St James Hospital – 877
S&S Plumbing – 873
CF Plumbing & Heating – 870
FJBCHO – 863
WET1 – 853
KR Contracting – 847
Archibald Co. – 842
Lockmer Plumbing – 830
Pro Inspection – 823
Randy’s Boys – 801
D-M Ranch – 786
Clay Howery Construction – 781
Cooney’s/Vicevich – 749
Superior Title – 726
Doodlebobs – 721
J3 Construction – 707
Hazlett’s Heroes – 704
WET 2 – 646
Sundance Plumbing – 640
12G Girls – 637
Maloney’s – 637
Daddy’s Girls – 620
Vicevich Law Girls – 506High Individual Scores
Rod Barkley – 50×50
Seth Duclos – 50×50
Riley Rigby – 50×50
Timmy Schrapps – 49×50
Dave Vicevich – 49×50
Josh Bridgeman – 49×50
Jake Taverna – 49×50
Mark Hislop – 48×50
Craig Durkin – 48×50High Lady Scores
Rayelynn Brandl – 47×50
Gillian Clark – 45×50
Colleen Fink – 41×50
Mindy McClernan – 38×50
Anna Leddan – 31×50
Denise Andersen – 31×50High Wobble Trap Scores
Kevin Zimpel – 43×50
Steve Powley – 41×50
Tim Cassidy – 41×50 -
Silver B’s will honor 20th Diamond B
The Butte High Silver B Football Organization will have a chance to honor a living local legend Sept. 20 when Mr. Lee Whitmore Smith will be recognized for having lettered for the Bulldogs 75 years ago.
Smith will be only the 20th Diamond B in the group’s 85-year history. He first lettered for Butte High during the 1949 season and played Fullback for Coach Harry “Swede” Dahlberg’s squad. Smith is being celebrated this year along with the 1999 letterwinners going in as Silver B’s and the 1974 lettermen heading in as Golden B’s.
The 85th Annual Meeting and Induction Ceremony (1940 – 2024) will take place Friday September 20, 2024, at The Butte High School Gymnasium with doors opening at 4 p.m. The meeting and dinner will start at 5:00 p.m. It is a MEMBERS-ONLY meeting and dinner…no guests or alcohol will be permitted. The group will then make its’ way to Naranche Memorial Stadium, to cheer on the 2024 version of the Butte High Bulldogs football team as they play host to the Missoula Big Sky Eagles. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
Banquet tickets are $24 per person, and annual dues are $5 per person. Members are asked to please R.S.V.P. with prepayment as soon as possible. This is critical so that we have an accurate head count to supply to our caterer. Members can fill out and return the top portion of their 2024 brochure via US Mail or they can pay online by accessing our website at buttehighsilverbs.com. All mailings can be returned to Butte High Silver B’s P.O. Box 4655 Butte, MT 59702.
Those participating in the pre-game ceremonies are encouraged to wear their Silver B, Golden B or Diamond B Cap and Pin. Scott Paffhausen is the Historian, Dean Ericson is the Past-President, Matt Pelletier is the Treasurer and Northey Tretheway is the Secretary of the organization.
85th Annual Meeting and Induction Ceremony September 20, 2024
SILVER B INDUCTEES (1999 Squad) – The 1999 squad was coached by Steve Schulte. This was Schulte’s 3rd year as the Head Coach at Butte High School.
Jake Alt, Curtis Cooney, Mac Coyne, Pat Crossman, Corey Cutler, Travis DeMers, Bryan Edwards, Chad Erwin, Kiel Ferko, Shawn Fredrickson, Eric Halvorsen, Dan Hayes, Justin Powers, Shane Reilly, Chad Rogers, Dave Solan, Kyle Thomas and John Watts.
GOLDEN B INDUCTEES (1974 Squad) – The 1974 squad was coached by Dan Peters. This was Peter’s 2nd season as the Head Bulldog Mentor.
Dan Bersanti, Bill Boehmer, Wade Bristol, Pat Burt, Don Clark, John Coyne, Kirk DeVore, Jim Fortune, Glen Granger, Doug Gronvold, Steve Kambich, Bill Kraus, Tom Krueger, Dick LeCoure, Matt Lind, John Lowney, Dale McLaughlin, Bob Milodragovich, Russ Mitchell, Bob Nebres, Pat Ogrin, Kevin Pelletier, Jim Peltomaa (DECEASED), Bill Peterson, Paul Riley, Bill Riordan, Tim Schmidt, Rick Sholey and Don Warner.
DIAMOND B INDUCTEES (1949 Squad) – The 1949 squad was coached by the legendary Harry “Swede” Dahlberg who was in his 28th year as the Head Football Coach at Butte High School.
This year we are honoring a gentleman who will become our 20th Diamond B in the 85-year history of the organization. We are truly honored to be inducting Mr. Lee Whitmore Smith.
The remaining first year lettermen from the 1949 squad are now deceased. The Silver B’s would still like to honor the following gentlemen from the 1949 team:
Bob Bennie, Bob Butorovich, Gerald Dougherty, John Edgar, Don Galpin, Jim Garrett, Tom Grady, Jack Harrington, Alan Jackson, Jim “Gus” Janhunen, Jim Johnson, Wayne Kelly, Maurice LaPier, Richard “Gitch” Leppanen, Fred Moodry, Jim Moran, Don Puich, Jim Sevores, Glenn Shurtz, Mark Snow, John Stajcar, George Twardus and Ralph Worthem.
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Copper Queen League 3-on-3 hoops registration now open
Registration for the Copper Queen League is now open. The 3-on- league will play games Sundays from Oct. 27 through Nov. 10.
The league will feature divisions in 3rd and 4th grade, 5th and 6th grade, and 7th and 8th grade. The main goal for the league is to teach fundamentals of the game and provide opportunity to young female athletes.
Registration is limited to 8 teams per league. Teams are required to have a coach and four players.
Cost is $200 per team. All athletes will receive a Copper Queen League t-shirt for team jersey. Follow the registration link or scan the QR code to complete registration.
The registration deadline is Oct. 14.
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Podcast No. 212: Dark Sevier
No, Dark is not his real name. But it sure seems to fit him.
Dark Sevier has been in Butte for about a decade now, and he is one interesting guy. Sure, anyone with his own IMDB page is going to seem pretty cool on the surface. But the 6-foot-9 Dark lives up to the part.
One entry on Dark’s IMDB page jumps out to anyone who watched television in the 1980s and 1990s. Dark played a part in “Saved by the Bell.”
He also appeared on Love Connection, but that does not show up on the IMDB page because he appeared on the show under a stage name.
Today, Dark is a man who wears many hats in the Mining City. At his core, though, he is an artist. That was the reason behind the Okie from Muskogee moving to Los Angeles to try his hand in standup comedy. That is why he is still in Butte.
Listen in to this podcast to hear how he was raised in family that joined a religious cult, and the long process to de-condition himself from that.
Listen in to hear his take on the Los Angeles standup scene in the early 1990s. Listen as he talks about his part on Saved by the Bell, and how it actually led to him leaving La La Land. Listen as he talks about how he came out the good guy on a bad Love Connection date, even though he did all he could to be the bad guy.
Listen in to hear what Dark is up to today, but don’t expect to find out his real name.
Today’s podcast is brought to you by Casagranda’s Steakhouse. Eat where the locals eat.
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Friday nights are for the high schools
God, family and the Green Bay Packers.
That is what Bernie Boyle says is his life’s motto. I’m not sure that is 100 percent accurate, though.
Bernie, the man we call “Saint Bernard” without a hint of irony, always puts the wants and the needs of his fellow man high on his list. You see that when he devotes an average of 28 hours each day to the Knights of Columbus Hall and its good deeds.
Recently, I even saw him wear a Chicago Bears shirt while playing cribbage at the KC. He didn’t lose a bet. Rather, he said he was doing it to support his Bears fans friends like me.
Bernie asked me when I was going to do the same for him and wear a Packers shirt. There is only one day a year I will wear anything Packers — Feb. 31 — so he won’t be holding his breath.
I would cheer for Bozeman before I would cheer for the Packers.
Yes, Bernie is way more supportive of his friends than I am.
I also suspect there is one sports team Bernie loves more than the Packers. That would be the Butte Central Maroons.
You can see that in the millions of videos of Dougie Peoples’ game-winning shot in the championship game of the 2022 Class A State boys’ basketball tournament in Missoula. While he did not lose his mind like BC assistant coach Renzy Kelly, Bernie was clearly one of the happiest guys on the planet that night.
Check out one of the videos to see what I mean. You can spot Bernie by his yellow BC hat.
Perhaps Bernie is counting his Central fandom in the “God” part of his motto since BC is a Catholic school. But I don’t think so.
If he were asked if to choose between one Butte Central state championship in football or 10 straight Super Bowl wins by the Packers, I know without a hint of doubt that Bernie would choose the Maroons.
He would not even hesitate.
Still, last Friday night must have been a bit difficult for Bernie. The Maroons and Packers were playing at the same time.
Butte Central played its home opener on the Bob Green Field at Montana Tech, and the Maroons beat Hamilton 22-21 in an overtime thriller.
Central overcame a 15-0 deficit, and took a 22-15 lead when Justus McGee scored on a 5-yard run in overtime. Hamilton answered, but the Broncs were stopped on their 2-point conversion.
The late Pat Kearney would have gone full Kermit The Frog on his radio call if he were still around to see one of the best Central wins in the last decade.
I was in Bozeman watching my son and the Butte High Bulldogs play the Hawks, so I did not get to watch the Maroons pull out the win live. But I would bet that Bernie was one of the happiest guys on the planet that night.
At least he was until he saw that his Packers lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in Brazil and Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love suffered a knee injury. So, the night was probably bitter sweet for Bernie. But it had to be way more sweet than bitter.
It is puzzling why the NFL would have teams open their season in Brazil. It is even more puzzling why the NFL would open the season on a Friday night.
When forced to choose between the NFL or their high school team, most of us are going to pick the kids. That goes double if you have a relative on the team. But it is not an easy decision.
Friday night lights have always been for the high school players. The NFL in all its sell-out glory should never even attempt to step on that.
For years, we have followed the pattern. Fridays are from high school games, Saturdays are for college, and Sunday and Mondays are from the NFL. That should never be messed with.
Over the last few years, the NFL decided to take over Thursdays — the safety of its players be dammed.
The sporting world adjusted to that, but I have yet to meet a person who likes NFL games on Thursdays that are not Thanksgiving.
Last year, the NFL decided to offer a day full of games on Christmas Day, thumbing its nose at the long tradition of the NBA owning that holiday.
While that was disrespectful to the NBA, those of us who never watch the NBA did not care.
Dissing the high school teams around the country, though, is a totally different story.
That is exactly what the NFL is doing with its Friday night season opener, too. It is telling the high school teams that they don’t matter.
While I assume Bernie was at the BC-Hamilton game, he probably had his attention diverted a bit by watching the Packers play on his phone. I would have to image a lot of phones were broadcasting the game in the stands of high school games around the country.
Many fans probably even stayed home from supporting their local teams to watch the NFL, taking away money and enthusiasm from their schools.
Friday nights in the fall are magical — even if your team does not pull out a thrilling overtime victory. That goes double for the Friday nights when the weather is still good.
As a player, band member, cheerleader, parent or fan, it just doesn’t get any better than a high school football game on a Friday night. Nothing says “welcome to the weekend” like high school football.
That is why people pack the stadiums — big and small — around the state and country every Friday night. Those huge stadiums in Texas are full, and so are the small sets of bleachers in every small town in between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
Football is king in America, and the NFL is the top of the sport. It’s ratings long since passed up baseball and basketball, and every owner of an NFL team is a billionaire.
Part of that reason is just about every boy — and a whole lot of girls — grow up cheering for an NFL team. So many of us identify with our NFL teams as if we were part owners. We also judge others by the team they root for.
If I wear my Bears hat to a store in the fall, I will have several people talk to me about the latest games. Then they will inevitably tell me about their NFL teams. Or they will tell me about their fantasy football teams.
That doesn’t happen when I wear my Red Sox hat — even if Boston is currently playing in the World Series.
(Note for Yankees fans out there: The World Series is when the National League champion plays the American League champion every October.)
A World Series game being played on a Friday night in the high school football season will not hurt the high school game much.
Also, fans have the choice to stay home and watch the NFL or go to the high school game. The players do not. So, the NFL is only hurting itself by competing against the kids. Those players can’t watch the game because the NFL is pandering to try to get some more foreign fans.
The NFL is, as they say, cutting off its nose to spite its face by alienating thousands and thousands of potential viewers to instead woo people who would rather watch soccer.
It just might go down as one of the worst moves the league has ever made.
Hopefully, going up against so many high school games severely hurt the ratings for the Packers-Eagles game. Maybe that way, the NFL will leave the Friday nights to the high school players.
Then Bernie and the rest of us will never be faced with such a tough decision.
— Bill Foley, who also breaks out Yankee colors on Feb. 31, can be reached at foles74@gmail.com. Follow him at twitter.com/Foles74. 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: Lincoln Zell, Bulldog freshman girls
Butte High junior Lincoln Zell and the Butte High freshman girls’ cross country runners are this week’s Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week.
The honors come after the Bulldogs put on a strong performance at the Belgrade Invitational Friday at the Gallatin County Regional Park in Bozeman.
Zell placed 30th with a time of 19 minutes, 2 seconds in the meet to take home the boys’ honor. That strong run came on the heels of him setting a personal record with a time of 18:50 the week before at the Coaches Invitational meet in Missoula.
Bulldog coaches say Lincoln worked hard all summer to be one of the leaders of the Bulldogs. Fellow Junior Camden Houchin led the Bulldogs placing seventh with a time of 17:17 at the Belgrade meet. Other Bulldogs scoring points for the team points in the varsity meet were junior Ryan Hanson, 20:34; senior Blair Hamry, 21:22; and Junior Nathan Stone, 21:55. Lincoln’s brother Isaac Zell led the freshman boys with a time of 21:21. Click here for complete results.
The Bulldog freshman girls share the girls’ award after winning the Freshman meet at the Belgrade race. Sophia Houchin and Evie Smith led the Bulldogs. Houchin placed second in 21:44, and Smith took third in 22:18. Other runners on the freshman team were Penelope Luebke ninth in 24:10, Addie Thomas in 25:32, Cambria Zahn in 34:37, Avery Blue in 35:06 and Lainee Walsh-Hill in 42:21. The Bulldogs scored 30 points to claim the title, followed by Billings West with 43 and Helena Capital with 49.
For the second year, Leskovar Honda, home of the 20-year, 200,000-mile warranty, is teaming up with the ButteCast to honor the finest student-athletes from the Mining City in an effort to encourage more children to get up, get out and try all kinds of sports and activities.
Photo of the freshman girls courtesy Ashley Choquette.
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KC basketball schedule
Following is the Knights of Columbus Athletic Club’s four-man basketball schedule for the Week of Sept. 9. Teams can still sign up at the bar or by contacting Dan Boyle at (406) 491-2529.
Monday
7 p.m. — Poi Time vs. Hoopin Heathens
8 p.m. — Cook vs. Jellyfam
9 p.m. — Cook vs. ParishTuesday
7 p.m. — Butte Sports vs. Jellyfam
8 p.m. — Hoopin Heathens vs. BigCatWednesday
7 p.m. — Butte Sports vs. Washington Generals
8 p.m. — Poi Time vs. Someday StartersThursday
7 p.m. — Washington Generals vs. BigCat
8 p.m. — Thunder vs. Someday Starters
9 p.m. — Thunder vs. Parish -
Rigby, Miller perfect in Week 4
Riley Rigby and Ryan Miller each posted perfect scores to lead Week 4 of the Butte Trap Club’s Fall League.
The 50 out of 50 was the second time this season that Rigby posted a perfect mark. He also accomplished that feat in Week 1. Miller was perfect for the first time this season.
Rayelynn Brandl, Kevin Zimpel, Mark Moline and Josh Bridgeman each missed perfection by one shot, while Tim Schrapps, Timmy Schrapps and Justin Lerum shot a 48.
Brandl’s 49 topped the women’s field. Ciana Dale was second at 36, followed by Anna Ledden at 33 and Colleen Fink and Tammy Gordon at 31.
Rigby also posted a 44 in wobble shooting. Chris Anderson was next at 41, and Roger Terry shot a 39.
Through four weeks, Wolverine Systems leads team scratch standings at 751. Granite Amusement/Oasis is next at 749. Arc Electric is third at 721.
Butte Trap Club – 2024 Fall League – Week 4 Standings
Team Scratch Standings
Wolverine Systems – 751
Granite Amusement/Oasis – 749
Arc Electric – 721
Baker Auto – 709
Cooneys Locksmith – 704
St James Hospital – 699
S&S Plumbing – 688
CF Plumbing & Heating – 685
FJBCHO – 679
KR Contracting – 677
Archibald Co. – 670
Lockmer Plumbing – 663
Pro Inspection – 641
D-M Ranch – 622
Doodlebobs – 576
Superior Title – 553
J3 Construction – 552
Hazlett’s Heroes – 537
WET 2 – 515
Maloney’s – 509
WET1 – 508
Vicevich Law Girls – 506
Randy’s Boys – 479
Sundance Plumbing – 477
Clay Howery Construction – 465
12G Girls – 407
Daddy’s Girls – 370
Cooney’s/Vicevich – 184High Individual Scores
Ryan Miller – 50×50
Riley Rigby – 50×50
Rayelynn Brandl – 49×50
Kevin Zimpel – 49×50
Mark Moline – 49×50
Josh Bridgeman – 49×50
Tim Schrapps – 48×50
Timmy Schrapps – 48×50
Justin Lerum – 48×50
Jake Dennehy – 47×50
Bob Grambel – 47×50
Craig Durkin – 47×50
Anthony Moritz – 47×50
Perry Miller – 47×50
Scott White – 47×50High Lady Scores
Rayelynn Brandl – 49×50
Ciana Dale – 36×50
Anna Ledden – 33×50
Colleen Fink – 31×50
Tammy Gordon – 31×50High Wobble Trap Scores
Riley Rigby – 44×50
Chris Andersen – 41×50
Roger Terry – 39×50
The ButteCast with Bill Foley 