Dogs take third at divisional

The Bulldogs took the hard road in the Northwestern A divisional basketball tournament and ended up paying the price.

Whitefish was bumped to the loser-bracket and lost control of their own playoff destiny after a tough loss Friday to Frenchtown. Although they regrouped impressively and rattled off two big wins the next day, it was only good enough for third place — just short of a trip to the Class A state tourney.

Columbia Falls blew past Frenchtown in the finals, eliminating Whitefish’s chance of scoring a challenge game. The Wildcats 64-54 win marked their seventh consecutive divisional title.

Frenchtown got the best of Whitefish on Friday 57-53 in a battle that went to down to the final frame. Whitefish was up by one, 45-44, heading into the fourth quarter, but were outscored by the Broncs 13-8 in the fourth.

Whitefish coach Mark Casazza said Frenchtown beat them in transition and that the Dogs had an off night offensively, shooting just 36 percent from the field.

Logan Harwood led the Dogs with 14 point. E.J. Havens and Cooper Olson each added nine.

Whitefish came out on fire in the loser-out game against Libby on Saturday morning.

Olson made a nice steal at half-court early in the third quarter and converted the turnover into an easy layup to make it 44-32. Harwood then put in a pair of smooth jumpers to make it 48-36 going into the fourth.

Art Doorn assisted Keaton Nicholson on a cut to the hoop to make it 50-39. E.J. Havens then knocked down a 3-pointer to put the Dogs up by 14 and comfortably in the lead as Whitefish moved on with a 65-41 victory.

Later in the afternoon, Whitefish scorched Polson 59-40 in the third-place game. Three Whitefish players scored in double figures, led by 13 from Nicholson.

Casazza said despite not reaching the state tourney, it was a mostly successful season. He praised the seniors for their leadership.

“These seniors set the bar for next year,” he said. “They left the program in a better place.”

He said an athletic group of underclassmen will keep the team competitive going forward.

“We’ve got some players who are improving and that are willing to put the time in,” Casazza said.

Whitefish finished the season 13-8 overall.

Whitefish 14 8 20 17 – 59

Polson 9 4 15 12 – 40

WHITEFISH – Keaton Nicholson 13, Logan Harwood 11, Cooper Olson 10, Jace Kalbfleisch 9, Art Doorn 8, EJ Havens 4, Jake May 2, Brandon Maassau 2. Totals 20 14-16 59.

3-point goals – Whitefish 5, Polson 3. Total fouls – Whitefish 9, Polson 10. Fouled out – none. Rebounds – Whitefish 16, Polson 24. Turnovers – Whitefish 6, Polson 14.

Libby 12 13 11 5 – 41

Whitefish 29 9 10 17 – 65

WHITEFISH – Cooper Olson 23, Jace Kalbfleisch 9, E.J. Havens 8, Logan Harwood 7, Keaton Nicholson 7, Art Doorn 4, Brandon Maassen 3, Jake May 2, Cody Olson 2.

3-point goals – Libby 2, Whitefish 11. Total fouls – Libby 8, Whitefish 8. Fouled out – none. Rebounds – Libby 16 (jared Winslow 7), Whitefish 22 (Kalbfleisch 6). Turnovers – Libby 21, Whitefish 12.