Vikes and Vals take down St. Ignatius, head to championships

Both of Bigfork High School's basketball teams faced St. Ignatius in the their first games of the District 7B Tournament in Libby on Friday afternoon, and the Vikings and Valkyries prevailed in each matchup.

VALS

The Vals were up first and used a 31-9 first-half lead to show exactly why they were the regular season district champions. Their 19-4 performance in the second quarter, led by Mallery Knoll who scored nine, helped continue that lead.

A well-rounded team effort in the second half allowed the Vals to continue to dominate and finish with a 60-25 victory.

Knoll had a game-high 15 points, which included two 3-pointers, and she was 3-for-3 from the free-throw line. Caitlin Charlebois and Taylor Peck backed her up with 14 points and 13 points, respectively. Charlebois scored 10 of her points in the first half, including a 3-pointer, and she made three of her four foul shots during the game. Peck had a pair of threes as well, one in the opening quarter and one in the fourth.

VIKES

The Vikings weren't able to stay in the winner's bracket quite as easily. For them, it was a back-and-forth battle until midway through the third quarter. Bigfork held a slim 24-22 lead at the end of the first half, but extended that lead by four more points in the third quarter by outscoring the Bulldogs 16-12.

However, it was a big offensive effort by Keenan Evans in the final period that sealed the 56-40 win for the Bigfork boys, as he sunk nine of the team's 14 fourth-quarter points. The Vikes finally broke out defensively, as well, in the fourth quarter and held St. Ignatius to just six points.

Christian Ker, who was responsible for eight of Bigfork's 10 first-quarter points, led the Vikes with 16. He put in four 3-pointers and two from inside the paint. Evans had 11 points and Travis Knoll contributed 10, eight of which he put in during the decisive second half.

The Vikes struggled from the free-throw line and made just four of their 14 shots. Knoll was the only one who didn't miss a foul shot. He was 2-for-2.

The Bigfork boys were without guard Evan Jordt on Friday, who sat out due to a groin injury. He is expected to be back on the court for the championship game Saturday night.

Championship

The Vals will again go first in the championship games as they face Eureka at 6:30 p.m. Saturday. Immediately following the girls championship game, at 8:15 p.m. the Bigfork boys will take on the winner of the Plains vs. Troy Friday night game.