Wildkats punch ticket to state tourney

The Columbia Falls girls basketball team is bound for Billings and the state A tournament by virtue of a fourth-place finish in the Western A Divisional tournament in Whitefish last week.

The Wildkats opened the tourney with a 51-37 win over Hamilton Thursday, but lost to Frenchtown in the semifinals 49-37 Friday in a game where they had the lead the third quarter.

In Saturday morning loser-out play, they topped Ronan 69-65 to put them into the consolation final against Bigfork, which had been toppled by Dillon in the semis.

The Kats took an 8-0 lead in the first against Ronan, but the Maidens battled back to make it 30-29 at the break. But in the second half the Kats made some clutch shots down the stretch.

“Luckily we hit some big shots in the fourth,” coach Jeremy Grilley said. “We made our free throws down the stretch which was huge.”

The win assured them a fourth-place finish and a trip to state.

In the consolation final, Bigfork jumped out to a 12-0 lead and won the game 52-32 in a game that saw two Columbia Falls players – Maddy Barker and Emalee Alton, go out with injuries. Taryn Borgen was already beat up as well after a taking a fall late in the fourth against Frenchtown, where she got above her eye and had to be helped off the court.

Grilley was pleased with the way the team played this season, with a new coaching staff and system and all. The girls got tougher, both mentally and physically as the season went on. They tightened up the defense dramatically, rebounded better and reduced the turnovers.

Just getting to state, the first time in three years, was an accomplishment for first-year coach Grilley and his staff.

“It was huge for this program, with a new start,” he said.

Seniors Taryn Borgen, Kierra Kemppainen, Emalee Alton and Maddy Barker really stepped up. Kemppainen had 20 against Ronan; Borgen had 16 against Hamilton and 14 against Frenchtown. She got into foul trouble in the fourth against Frenchtown and if she hadn’t, that game likely would have come down to the wire, as the team was really clicking up until then.

The Kats open the tourney against Billings Central. The No. 1 seed in the East has been pounding its opponents and winning by double digits all year long. It will take some magic for the Kats to pull out a victory. They’re going down there to have fun, compete and enjoy the experience, Grilley said.

They have a host of young talent ready to play even bigger roles next season. Rylee Sweeney, Onnikka Lawrence and Alexa Friske, all of whom started this year, are just sophomores.

Game time against Billings is 5 p.m. Thursday.