Top sports stories for 2011
<p>Hannah Brinton and Ashley Carlson hold up the state championship and divisional championship speech and debate trophies. The team won its sixth consecutive state title in 2011.</p>
Boys basketball
The Wildcats are an established powerhouse in Class A basketball, and they proved it again in 2011 by winning their fourth state title in nine years.
The Cats led from the start in the final game, defeating Dillon 55-43 in a packed Brick Breeden Fieldhouse in Bozeman on March 5. Nick Emerson, who tallied 26 points against the Beavers, scored the first points of the game.
The tournament started tough when Kaleb Johnson injured his knee in the opening game against Belgrade. The Cats went on to easily beat the Panthers 53-36. Johnson returned to the court for the last 13.8 seconds in the game against Dillon.
The Cats continued to overpower their opponents in the second round, downing Laurel 61-38. With Johnson on the sidelines, the Cat's defense shut down the Locomotives' three-point shooters and locked up the rebounding.
Standout performances throughout the tourney were posted by Parker Johnson, Austin Barth, Devyn Rocker, Jacob Calderwood, Chris King and Anthony Correa.
Boys track
The Columbia Falls boys track team got their revenge against Corvallis by winning the state Class A track title in Missoula on May 28. The Blue Devils had defeated the Wildcats in 2010 by 11 points.
Columbia Falls defeated Corvallis 98-72. First-place Cats included Nathan Thompson in the triple jump, Derrick Williams in the 800 and 1,600, and Anthony Correa in the 400.
The Cats' 1,600-meter relay team also took first, with Correa, Williams, Daniel Jones and Justin Whitman carrying the baton. Williams also took second in the 3,200.
Cross-country
Derrick Williams, who dominated the middle distance races in track back in May, claimed the Class A state title in cross-country in Missoula on Oct. 15. He had placed fifth at state as a sophomore and second as a junior.
It was a tough victory, with Corvallis runner Chase Stoker leading him up a hill. Columbia Falls coach Richard Menicke called Williams' run "a perfect race."
Speech and debate
The Columbia Falls speech and debate team continued their winning ways by claiming the state title at the tournament in Laurel on Jan. 29. It was the school's sixth-straight state title. The school's win in 2010 set a record at five straight state titles.
Three Wildcats took first place - Jesse Flickinger, in extemporaneous speaking; Casey Bauer, in expository speaking; and Stephanie Christensen, in memorized public address.
The freshmen policy debate team of Mary Gross and Allison Foust made it to the final rounds, which surprised coaches from other Class A teams. Twenty of the team's 21 competitors made it to the semifinals, and 17 were in the finals.