Fort Benton stuns Box Elder, finishes third at Northern C

GREAT FALLS — After losing to Belt in an epic semifinal matchup Thursday at the Northern C girls basketball tournament, the Box Elder Bears still had a chance to make it to the Class C state tournament.

The Bears needed to finish third and then with a Belt win, Box Elder could have challenged. However, they first needed to beat Fort Benton in a loser-out game Friday morning in Great Falls at the Four Seasons Arena, a team they had beaten three times previously, including in the 9C championship game last weekend.

Yet the Bears, who played late Friday, were spent, physically and emotionally and, ultimately, fell short against the scrappy Longhorns, who pulled off the 36-32 upset.

Box Elder led 13-11 at the end of the first quarter, but trailed by one at halftime, 19-18. The Bears reclaimed the lead at the end of the third quarter, but a late run in the final stanza sealed things for the Longhorns, who got 12 point from McKenzie Clark and eight from Coya Nack. Box Elder was led by Lily Gopher and Kiya Morsette, who each finished with seven.

With the win, Fort Benton advanced to the consolation game to face Winnett-Grass Range, which knocked off North Star 60-26 Friday morning. The Knights, who were without Paij Peterson, failed to build on the two wins they notched at the tournament Thursday and were eliminated. Chelsea Donaldson scored eight points for North Star, while Sheridan Spicher added seven.

The Longhorns, who entered the third-place game with hopes of challenging Belt, if the Huskies lost in the championship game to Roy-Winifred, held off a late rally from Winnett-Grass Range to win the consolation game 50-46. Leah Gannon, a sophomore, was stellar for the Longhorns, knocking down two 3-pointers and scoring a team-high 17 points. Nack added 13 and Alia Evans pitched in with 12.

However, despite the win and taking home the third-place trophy, Fort Benton’s season officially ended late Friday night, as Belt won the Northern C championship. Roy-Winifred beat Fort Benton in the opening round Wednesday, so the Longhorns were unable to challenge for a berth in the Class C state tournament.

Fort Benton 36, Box Elder 32 (lo)

Fort Benton 11 8 5 12 - 36

Box Elder 13 5 7 7 - 32

Fort Benton: Kaitlyn Bird 3, Madison Thompson 3, Coya Nack 8, Alia Evans 3, Leah Gannon 5, McKenzie Clark 12, McKenna Hanford 2. Totals: 14 3-9.

Box Elder: Minnie The Boy 4, Kiya Morsette 7, Nikayla Anderson 2, Eve The Boy 3, Maddie Wolf Chief 2, Lillian Gopher 7, Tia Russell 2, Joelnell Momberg 5. Totals: 11 6-12.

3-pointers: Thompson, Bird, Evans, Clark 2, The Boy, Morsette, Gopher, Momberg

WGR 60, North Star 26 (lo)

WGR 18 17 11 14 – 60

NS 4 4 12 6 – 26

WGR – Hanna Matovich 4, Sydney Browning 8, Kita Weingart 13, Brynn Jolma 2, Mattea Tucek 1, Piper Johnson 10, Taylor Stahl 2, Kendra Murnion 7, Zoe Delaney 6, Katie Zimmerman 7. Totals 19 21-35 60.

NS – Katelyn Hansen 4, Hali Kapperud 1, Katelin Harvey 2, Sheridan Spicher 7, Chelsea Donaldson 8, Peytan King 4. Totals 9 8-18 26.

3-pointers – Johnson.

Fort Benton 50, Winnett-Grass Range 46, 3rd

WGR 11 8 10 17 – 46

FB 11 14 16 9 – 50

WGR – Sydney Browning 18, Kita Weingart 8, Brynn Jolma 3, Piper Johnson 8, Taylor Stahl 9. Totals 16 7-9 46.

FB – Kaitlyn Bird 3, Madison Thompson 2, Coya Nack 13, Alia Evans 12, Leah Gannon 17, McKenzie Clark 3. Totals 16 13-17 50.

3-point – Browning 3, Weingart 2, Johnson 2; Bird, Evans 2, Gannon 2.