Bigfork Basketball Vikings, Valkyries awash with postseason honors
The Daily Inter Lake
Bigfork dominated the District 7 postseason honors just as it did most of Class B this season.
The Bigfork boys, who captured the school’s second basketball state title with a win over Shelby last Saturday, placed six players on the all-conference teams. Three of those players — Beau Santistevan, Anders Epperly and Logan Gilliard — were also all-state.
Santistevan, Epperly and Gilliard all averaged double figures to lead the Vikings to an undefeated season.
Bigfork’s other two starters, brothers Clayton and Colton Reichenbach, joined sixth man Chase Chappuis on the all-conference second team.
Five Bigfork girls were selected to the all-conference team, and two of them — Jaime Berg and Shae Anderson — made the all-state team.
Rakiah Grende joined Berg, a Montana Tech commit, and Anderson on the all-conference first team a year after overcoming cancer. Abby Ellison and Ellie Berreth were second-team all-conference.
The quintuple of Bigfork honorees led the Valkyries to a fourth-place finish in the state tournament. Bigfork lost just one game in the regular season against Class A foe Columbia Falls.
Eureka claimed five representatives on the all-conference teams. Sienna Utter was named all-state for the girls.
Allie Coldwell (first team) and AJ Faur (second team) garnered all-conference honors for Troy.
District 7B Honors
Boys
All-state
Beau Santistevan, Bigfork
Anders Epperly, Bigfork
Logan Gilliard, Bigfork
Danny Hoisington, Thompson Falls
All-District 7B
First team
Beau Santistevan, Bigfork
Anders Epperly, Bigfork
Logan Gilliard, Bigfork
Danny Hoisington, Thompson Falls
Payton Frields, Thompson Falls
Nate Thibeault, Thompson Falls
Second team
Clayton Reichenbach, Bigfork
Colton Reichenbach, Bigfork
Chase Chappuis, Bigfork
Colton Cooper, Eureka
Dylan Beckman, Thompson Falls
AJ Faur, Troy
Girls
All-state
Jaime Berg, Bigfork
Sienna Utter, Eureka
Shae Anderson, Bigfork
All-District 7B
First team
Jaime Berg, Bigfork
Sienna Utter, Eureka
Shae Anderson, Bigfork
Allie Coldwell, Troy
Rakiah Grende, Bigfork
Erynn Thier, Eureka
Second team
Megan Baxter, Thompson Falls
Abby Ellison, Bigfork
Ellie Berreth, Bigfork
Maggie Graves, Eureka
Liz Pacella, Eureka
Haley Morgan, Thompson Falls