Kats exit tourney with great effort against Polson

By JOE SOVA / Hungry Horse News

Columbia Falls' girls team was inches away from perhaps staying alive in the Northwestern A Divisional Basketball Tournament on Saturday morning at Glacier High School.

Sophomore Shay Grilley, who connected on a pair of 3-pointers during a 50-second fourth-quarter span, lofted a 21-footer at the buzzer in a loser-out game against Polson. The shot, which would have tied the game and forced overtime, was JUST off the mark and the Pirates escaped with a 47-44 win.

When you're shooting the basketball well, you can afford some turnovers. But when you're not, possessions are more of a premium. The Wildkats had a tough time shooting against Whitefish in the first round of the Divisional last Thursday. The rival Bulldogs mounted a 22-4 lead early in the second period and cruised to a 52-32 victory.

CFHS girls coach Dan Fairbank was pleased that the Wildkats did not go down without a fight against Polson.

"I'm proud of the girls," Fairbank said. "They worked so hard. They executed the game plan."

Assistant coach Jim Peacock said it well: "That was the team we knew we had all year."

"We saw glimpses of it," Fairbank said, referring to how well the Wildkats were capable of playing. "It was nice that we put a whole game together."

Polson used a 7-0 run to take a 16-9 lead early in the second period, but the Kats made a run of their own — taking a 17-16 lead on a follow shot by Kelsey DeWitt. But Polson senior guard Jessica Buckless hit two 3-pointers as the Pirates built a 32-26 lead midway through the third period.

CFHS got within a point on Kayla DeWitt's follow shot and a 3-pointer by Alyssa Ladenburg. After Polson took a five-point lead, Grilley hit a trey from the left wing with 2:20 remaining, then did the same from the right side, giving the Kats a 42-41 lead with a minute and a half left.

After an exchange of field goals, the Kats bucket by Ladenburg, the Pirates led 47-44 when Merilee Mowbray and Amanda James each sank two free throws, the last charities with just :04 remaining.

Grilley's shot from the right wing was off in time, but rattled off the rim and Polson had the victory.

"Shay Grilley did a great job," Fairbank said.

Grilley led the Kats with 11 points. Another sophomore, Kelsey DeWitt, added nine, and freshman Kayla DeWitt had seven points — all in the third period — and seven rebounds. Ladenburg, a junior, had eight points. Senior Sam Ladenburg collected eight rebounds.

CFHS had 25 turnovers, but it was the best shooting effort of the season for the Kats, who finished at 39 percent from the field.

"It was such a great game to end with," Fairbank said.

Buckless, who had four 3-pointers, scored 10 of her game-high 13 points in the second half. Mowbray added 11.

Free throw shooting was a factor. The Pirates left the door open, converting just 12 of 29 foul shots. The Kats were just 6-for-15.

Whitefish, the No. 3 seed at the Divisional, led the No. 6 Wildkats 13-4 after one period and 29-10 at halftime. The Dogs started the second half with a 10-2 run to virtually put the game away.

Shooting and turnovers told the story. The Kats shot only 15 percent from the field. While Kayla DeWitt shot well, the rest of the team had just a 10-percent mark from the field.

"That's a tough-shooting gym," Fairbank said. "We just didn't have tournament experience."

The Kats had 28 turnovers.

There were 40 fouls whistled in the physical game, leading to a total of 55 free throws. The Dogs were 22-for-34 from the stripe, and the Kats converted 14 of 21 charities. Fairbank said that at one time in the game Whitefish had shot 26 free throws and the Kats only six.

Balanced scoring was a key offensively for Whitefish. Five players had seven or more points, led by Kate Klundt with 12. Ashley Ferda added 11. Chelsea Ray had nine points, and Amanda Ormsby was 8-for-8 from the foul line and had eight points.

Kayla DeWitt led the Kats with 11 points.

The Kats won the board battle, 40-30. Kelsey DeWitt had nine rebounds, and Sam Ladenburg, Grilley and Kayla DeWitt added eight each. Sam Ladenburg and senior Sarah Marcille each had three steals.

The Kats finished with a 3-17 record — in a season with players with limited or no varsity experience.

"I felt we could have had a few more wins," Fairbank said. "If there were any breaks going they were not going for us."

CFHS faced three of the top five class AA teams in the state.

"We had a tough schedule," Fairbank said.

It was a challenging season, but the coach had praise for the efforts of the Kats.

"These girls were very enjoyable to coach," said Fairbank, who was in his first year as varsity head coach after serving in that capacity years ago. "This is a great set of kids to work with."

COLUMBIA FALLS (3-16)

Milliard 0 1-2 1, A. Ladenburg 2 4-5 8, Grilley 1 6-8 8, Westgard 0 2-2 2, S. Ladenburg 0 0-2 0, Kelsey DeWitt 1 0-0 2, Kayla DeWitt 5 1-2 11. Totals 9 14-21 32.

WHITEFISH (12-7)

Slaybaugh 0 1-2 1, Klundt 4 4-8 12, Ferda 3 3-4 11, Clarke 3 1-2 7, Labuda 2 0-0 4, Ray 2 5-6 9, Cullen 0 0-4 0, Ormsby 0 8-8 8. Totals 14 22-34 52.

Columbia Falls 4 6 8 14 — 32

Whitefish 13 16 13 10 — 52

3-point goals: Ferda 2. Team fouls: CF 23, WF 17. Fouled out: Kayla DeWitt.

COLUMBIA FALLS (3-17)

Fields 1 0-0 3, A. Ladenburg 3 1-2 8, Smith 1 0-0 2, Grilley 4 1-2 11, Marcille 0 0-0 0, Westgard 0 0-0 0, S. Ladenburg 1 2-4 4, Hislop 0 0-0 0, Kelsey DeWitt 4 1-5 9, Kayla DeWitt 3 11-2 7. Totals 17 6-15 44.

POLSON

Buckless 4 1-2 13, James 3 2-7 9, Woods 0 2-3 2, Mowbray 3 5-7 11, Davey 2 0-4 4, Newton 3 1-2 7, Hislop 0 1-2 1. Totals 15 12-29 47.

Columbia Falls 9 11 12 12 — 44

Polson 14 5 17 11 — 47

3-point goals: Fields, A. Ladenburg, Grilley 2; Buckless 4, James. Team fouls: CF 19, Polson 15.