Chinook rolls past Box Elder to advance to the District 9C title game

As they have done all season long, the Chinook Sugarbeeters looked like the team to beat in the District 9C Girls Basketball Tournament Thursday night at Havre High Gymnasium. In their semifinal game against the Box Elder Bears, they pulled away to win, 68-27, to stay undefeated and advance to the championship game.

"I thought we played great defense. It was a fun, energetic environment and our girls responded pretty well," Chinook head coach Mike Jones said. "We came out in the third quarter a little low but we played great defensively I think and the girls were amped and excited for this."

As a team, the Sugarbeeters shot 34.8 percent from the field, 40 percent from the 3-point line and 70 percent from the free-throw line. Alexus Seymour led Chinook with 18 points on 5-for-16 shooting from the field and 6-for-6 shooting from the free-throw line. Hallie Neibauer and Bree Swanson also got going with a combined 25 points.

The Chinook defense limited the Bears to only shooting 17 percent from the field. The Bears did well at the free-throw line where they went 11-for-14, but their leading scorer, Martay Rosette, only had 10 points in the contest.

The Sugarbeeters jumped out to a 6-0 lead thanks to a bucket from Swanson and several free throws. The Bears responded with a 12-8 run to cut their deficit to 14-12 late in the quarter. But the Sugarbeeters got rolling again with a 6-0 run to stretch their lead to 20-12. After some free throws from Box Elder's Tayleigh Sunchild, Seymour knocked down a three to give Chinook a 23-14 lead to end the frame.

After a Chinook free throw and Box Elder score to make it a 24-16 game early in the second, the Sugarbeeters got on a roll to take firm control of the game. Over the rest of the half, the Sugarbeeters went on a 16-3 run to take a 40-19 lead into halftime. Many Sugarbeeters scored during this stretch, demonstrating how well they play together.

"We have a lot of team chemistry together and it's just really built up over the years because I've been playing with some of these girls since second grade," Seymour said. "It's just great to be back here again."

It was a struggle for both teams through most of the third quarter, but the Sugarbeeters maintained momentum to take a 52-26 lead into the fourth quarter. The Sugarbeeters continued to roll in the fourth to pull away for the win.

With their loss, the Box Elder Bears had to play in a loser-out game against Hays-Lodgepole today to stay alive in the tournament. The winner of that game would advance to the consolation game tonight at 7 p.m. at HHS Gymnasium.

The Chinook Sugarbeeters clinched their spot in next week's Northern C Divisional as they advanced to the District 9C championship game tonight. As they get ready to face the North Star Knights, Jones knows they will need to pressure the Knights into missed shots and mistakes.

"It's going to start with our defense. We're going to have to keep it rolling defensively," Jones said. "We'll make a game plan and get ready. It's going to be a fun atmosphere."

In girls loser-out action Thursday morning, the Big Sandy Pioneers stayed alive with a 44-33 win over Turner. Eva Yeadon scored 19 points and Angie Sant added 15 for the Pioneers, who played another loser-out game this morning.

Hays-Lodge Pole edged Chester-Joplin-Inverness 50-41 in another loser-out game Thursday morning. The Thunderbirds got 14 points from Alliya Pretty Paint and three 3-pointers by Imagin Fox in the win. Jayla Ramberg scored 12 and Brynn Kamerzell added 11 for the Hawks.

Hays-Lodge Pole 50, CJI 41, LO

CJI 8 8 12 13 - 50

HLP 12 17 9 12 - 41

HLP - Nashone Shambo 2, Alliyah Pretty Paint 14, Shaydyn Blount 4, Imagin Fox 11, Angelina Blackcrow 9, Kelcie Mount 3, Gabriel Walker 2.

CJI - Sydney Hawks 3, Brie Mattson 6, Jayla Ramberg 12, Brynn Kammerzell 11.

3-pointers: Mattson 1, Pretty Paint 2, Fox 3; Fouls: CJIO 14, HLP 22; Fouled out: Shambo, Walker.

Big Sandy 44, Turner 33, LO

Big Sandy 10 19 10 5 - 44

Turner 9 9 10 5 - 33

Turner - Dakota Krass 5, Abby Grabofsky 2, Ali Doyle 4, Meridian Snider 5, Bridget Reed 8, Cassidy Grabofsky 6, Natalie Richman 2.

Big Sandy - Jaihaven Baumann 9, Mattie Gasvoda 3, Alex Worte 2, Eva Yaedon 18, Angie Sant 15, Brianna Terry 3, Keira Galbavy 6.

Chinook 68, Box Elder 27, Semifinal

BE - 14 5 7 1 - 27

CHI - 23 17 12 16 - 68

BE - Martay Rosette 10, Tayleigh Sunchild 8, Meiyah Oats 5, Ariel Gopher 3, Dalelyn Henderson 1.

CHI - Alexus Seymour 18, Hallie Neibauer 13, Bree Swanson 12, Mya Berreth 8, Torin Cecrle 5, Jenna Liddle 4, Hannah Schoen 4, Sami Malsam 2, Falyn Cecrle.

3-pointers: Bree Swanson 3, Alexus Seymour 2, Torin Cecrle. Fouls: BE 14, CHI 13. Fouled Out: None.