Hawks sweep; Morning Stars win twice

The race is on. It's now just one month from postseason basketball play, and things are going to get interesting in girls hoops along the Hi-Line. This past week started with the Rocky Boy Morning Stars picking up a nonconference win over Box Elder on Thursday night in Box Elder. The Morning Stars edged the Bears 47-36 behind solid defense a strong second half. Falene Russette scored 13 points and Jordan Big Knife had 100 11 for Rocky Boy. In the loss, Box Elder got 12 points from Aricka Wolfcheif. Thursday night also saw the powerhouse Malta Mustangs down the Harlem Wildcats 66-54. Despite the loss, Jasmine Dumas scored a game-high 22 points for the Wildcats. Thursday was also a difficult night for the Hays-Lodge Pole Thunderbirds. The T-Birds lost at home to the Hobson Tigers 52-48. HLP trailed 30-29 heading into a wild fourth quarter which saw the Tigers ice the game in the final seconds. Lexi Kirkaldie had a double-double for the T-Birds, scoring 17 points and grabbing 15 rebounds. In a big District 9C contest on Friday night, the league's top two teams squared off in Big Sandy and it was the Pioneers who ran away from the Chinook Sugarbeeters 55-42. The Pioneers used a 15-4 run in the second quarter to overtake the Beeters, who never led again. Big Sandy had four players score in double figures, with Hannah Williams leading the way with 13 points. Suzy Faber scored 12 points, while Amber Amsbaugh and Mackenzie Jenkins each had 11. Chinook was paced by Kayla Hanson's 12 points, while Taryn Norby chipped in with nine. Meanwhile, the Chester/J-I Hawks continued their impressive turnaround on Friday night with a 71-40 drubbing of Power. Jessica VanDyke continued her outstanding start to her senior season by scoring 33 points for the Hawks, while Larisa Lybeck added 10 points and Kylie Richter and Stina Haaland each had nine. In other Class C action, the North Star Knights cruised to an easy win over the Sunburst Refiners Friday night. The Knights went on a 21-2 run in the second quarter to bust the game wide open and they wound up winning 59-19. Shelby Lipp scored a game-high 17 points for the Knights, while Britnee Dyrland added 14 points and Bridjour Han chipped in with 11. Friday night also saw Rocky Boy win on back-t0-back days. The Morning Stars grabbed a huge District 1B win by beating the Shelby Coyotes 44-41. Rocky Boy led 25-19 at halftime, but the Coyotes clamped down on defense, and outscored the Morning Stars 22-19 the rest of the way. But Rocky Boy had just enough on offense to hold on the for the win. Falene Russette again paced the Morning Stars with 11 points, while Shawna Small added nine. Rocky Boy couldn't, however, keep its momentum going against 1B powerhouse Fairfield on Saturday night. The Morning Stars played well, but the Eagles were too tough on defense and they beat the Morning Stars 47-32. Russette was again the high scorer, putting in eight points in the loss. In 9C action Saturday night, Chinook rebounded from its loss to Big Sandy by thrashing HLP 59-39. The Beeters led 34-20 at halftime and got 14 points from Haley Swank, as well as 13 points from Taryn Norby in the win. Alyssa Brown added 10 points and seven boards for Chinook. HLP was paced by Kristie Runs Above and Kayla Shambo with 10 points a piece. In a nonconference Class C rivalry game Saturday night, the C/J-I Hawks flexed their might in a 62-38 win over North Star. Jessica Van Dyke poured in 25 points for the Hawks, who also got 13 points by Jenni Ghekiere and nine from Kate Graff. North Star was led by Britnee Dyrland's nine points and 11 rebounds. Saturday night also saw the Box Elder Bears pick up a non-league win over the Heart Butte Warriors. The Bears went on a 27-0 run in the second stanza and were never challenged in a 62-15 victory. Box Elder got 19 points by Aricka Wolfchief, while Rylin Burns chipped in with 11 points in the easy win.