Vikings beat Columbia Falls, Valkyries close out regular season

The Bigfork Vikings had a stellar week on the road, defeating Columbia Falls 58-56 on Thursday before downing Troy 71-33 on Friday.

“Beating Columbia Falls was a big turning point in our season,” head coach Sam Tudor said.

Columbia Falls and Bigfork have been holding the top ranking in their classes. At their first matchup last month in Bigfork the reigning Class A state champions put the pressure on Bigfork, and walked away with a 21-point victory.

But on Thursday Bigfork proved to the Wildcats they’re top dogs in Class B for a reason.

The Vikes opened up the first quarter of Thursday night’s game shooting 4 for 5 from behind the arc and jumped out to big lead, up 20-8 at the end of the first quarter. The teams went nearly shot for shot in the second quarter, keeping Bigfork in the lead with an 11-point halftime advantage.

Coming out of the break, Columbia Falls made a run, outscoring Bigfork 19-10 in the third quarter, to cut the deficit to just two.

With 15 seconds remaining and Bigfork clinging to a 57-56 lead, it extended its advantage to a two-point margin after a free throw.

The Wildcats couldn’t convert on their final possession and Bigfork walked away victorious.

Bigfork saw four players reach double figures in scoring: Josh Sandry led with 13, Isaac Martel and Jonathon Landon each finished with 12 points and Ryder Trent had 11.

“It is an exceptional group of seniors that have maintained the focus on this team,” Tudor said. “Against Columbia Falls, whenever they made a run, Isaac Martel would reel us back in and help put us back on track. Ryder Trent would hit the tough shot we needed, Josh Sandry would make a big play or Tyler Piazzola would pull down a much needed rebound.”

Bigfork out-rebounded Columbia falls 38-26.

“I feel like we’re starting to hit our stride,” Tudor said. “We’ve been battling some illness and now hopefully that is behind us. It is exciting. Even though it can be tough to do, we’ve been focusing on taking it one game at a time. This showed when we bounced back and defeated Troy after beating a tough Columbia Falls team.”

Troy hardly gave the Vikings a contest. Bigfork led by 24-2 after the first quarter. Though the Trojans had a bit of a run in the second quarter, the Vikes still led 37-16 at the half.  

Landon and Martel each had 13 points against Troy and Adam Jordt had seven steals.

This week is the last of regular season play for the Vikings. They faced St. Ignatius in a make-up game on Tuesday. Friday they will host Thompson Falls, and travel to Florence on Saturday.

Next weekend is the district tournament.

Bigfork 71, Troy 33

Bigfork 24 13 17 17 — 71

Troy 2 14 11 6 — 33

BIGFORK – Adam Jordt 10, Joseph Potkonjak 8, Isaac Martel 13, Tyler Piazzola 1, Jonathan Landon 13, Josh Sandry 12, Ryder Trent 9, Grant Ozegovich 5. 

TROY – Gage Tallmadge 17, Brennan Olds 3, Mason Chapel 2, Kolten Winebark 2, Sean Opland 9

Bigfork 58, Columbia Falls 56

Bigfork 20 12 10 16 — 58

Columbia Falls 8 13 19 16 — 56

Bigfork — Adam Jordt 4, Joseph Potkonjak 2, Isaac Martel 12, Tyler Piazzola 5, Jonathon Landon 12, Josh Sandry 13, Ryder Trent 11.

Columbia Falls — Ty Morgan 17, Trevor Houston 12, Jayce Fagerland 11, Ty Murhphy 10, Grant Wallace 6.

THE VALKYRIES had a tough week, but are still looking good going into the last week of regular season play.

The Vals fought hard in a rematch against Columbia Falls on Thursday in Bigfork, losing 56-44. They rallied on Friday in Troy where they beat the home team 53-48.

“It was pretty tight the whole game, it really was,” head coach Jami Grende said of the Troy game. “We were finally able to pull ahead in the fourth quarter.”

The Vals out scored Troy 18-9 in the final quarter to secure the win, led by Lana Berg with 20 points.

The win was a tough win after a hard fought game against Columbia Falls.

“They literally played their hearts out against Columbia Falls and gave it everything they had,” Grende said. “They had to come back and fight really hard against Troy, it wasn’t easy for them at all.”

Though the Valkyries lost to the Wildkats they threatened to pull ahead, coming within one point of Columbia Falls with five minutes left in the last quarter.

Freshman Jaime Berg had a stellar game Thursday, sinking four three-pointers and leading the Vals in scoring with 16 points.

“Jaime played the game of her life against Columbia Falls,” Grende said. 

In both games the Valkyries drastically reduced their turnovers with only four in the last half against Columbia Falls and only three in the second half against Troy.

“This whole year we’ve really stressed the importance of defense and playing aggressive,” Grende said. “You’ve really got to hand it to those guards, they work so hard, they may not always put up a point but their defense says a lot.”

Despite a tough week things are looking good for the Vals as they head into the end of the season.

The Valkyries’ only losses this season were to Plains and Columbia Falls. Several athletes have returned to playing after injuries, giving the Vals a deeper and healthier bench for post-season play.

The Vals faced St. Ignatius on Tuesday in a make-up game. Friday they host Thompson Falls and Saturday they host Florence, for the last week of regular season play. 

“This is a big week for everybody to see where we’re playing in districts,” Grende said.

Bigfork 53, Troy 48

Bigfork 15 14 6 18 — 53

Troy 10 14 15 9 — 48

TROY – Aurora Becquart 10, Haley Hickman 2, Taylor Brown 3, Allie Coldwell 29, Allie Brown 4.

BIGFORK – Marissa Hiza 8, Riley Coleman 7, Janie Berg 2, Mattison McAnally 8, Katie Thomas 6, Lana Berg 20, Miranda Campbell 2.

Columbia Falls 56,

Bigfork 44

Columbia Falls 16 13 11 16 — 56

Bigfork 6 10 15 13 — 44

COLUMBIA FALLS — Ciera Finberg 12, Cydney Finberg 7, Ellie Johnson 9, Winter Kemppainen 7, Miranda Livingston 1, Kiara Burlage 17, Sydney Hovdde 3.

BIGFORK — Marissa Hiza 4, Riley Coleman 3, Jaime Berg 16, Katie Thomas 10, Lana Berg 8, Miranda Campbell 3.