Vals lose it in the last second

The Valkyries nearly kept their season alive Friday when they held the lead over Columbus in the loser-out game until the final two seconds when Bigfork fell 61-60.

The Vals were ahead 38-27 at the half and kept a similar lead until the final two minutes of the game. It was then that Columbus sunk a 3-pointer and several free-throws to play catch-up as Bigfork struggled from the field and from the line.

Finally with four seconds left on the clock Mallery Knoll caught an inbounds pass for Bigfork and immediately fell out of bounds with the ball. There was no foul called on the play, but fans on both sides said they saw Knoll get pushed out of bounds.

The ball was turned over to Columbus and their girls used the final two-and-a-half seconds of the game to put in a 3-pointer and take the game.

Quick Paine was Bigfork's high-scorer with 22 points. Caitlin Charlebois contributed 15 and Mallery Knoll added 11.

The Bigfork girls hurt themselves at the free-throw line as they made just 15 of their 33 shots.

The loss ends the Vals' season with a 20-6 record.