Bigfork boys, girls basketball teams have big week

EUREKA – A strong defensive effort guided the Bigfork Valkyries to a convincing win in their District 7B girls basketball opener last Tuesday night at Lincoln County High School.

Bigfork (2-1 overall, 1-0 division) held Eureka to just 10 points in the first half.

“I thought our defense did really really well,” said head coach Cortnee Gunlock. She said the team did a great job rebounding and “took care of the ball ... we didn’t have as many turnovers as we usually do.”

The Valkyries had enough offense to maintain a comfortable advantage over the Lions. Ansleigh Edgerton paced Bigfork with 13 points, while Emma Berreth added nine and Merideth Bedford and Isabella Santistevan each had six.

It was “a good overall win,” Gunlock said.

Bigfork 8 12 10 12 – 42

Eureka 3 7 9 10 – 29

BIGFORK – Ansleigh Edgerton 13, Emma Berreth 9, Merideth Bedford 6. Isabella Santistevan 6, Ashton McAnally 4, Audrey Buenz 2, Madison Chappuis 2.

Friday

Bigfork 64, Mission 60

ST. IGNATIUS – Bigfork held on to defeat Mission after a big first quarter in a Distict 7B battle on Friday night at St. Ignatius High School.

The Valkyries (3-1, 2-0) exploded out of the gates with a 23-8 opening period. Mission responded with a 22-point second quarter but Bigfork had too much offense for the Bulldogs.

Ansleigh Edgerton and Isabella Santistevan each had 15 points to lead the Valkyries. Santistevan also knocked down three triples. Emma Berreth added 12 and Ashton McAnally chipped in 10, along with eight boards and six steals.

Bigfork 23 18 7 16 – 64

Mission 8 22 11 19 – 60

BIGFORK – Ansleigh Edgerton 15, Isabella Santistevan 15, Emma Berreth 12, Ashton McAnally 12, Navaeh Carlin 6, Maddison Chappuis 2, Merideth Bedford 2, Scout Nadeau 2.

MISSION – Azia Umphrey 15, Madyson Currie 14, Courtney Mitchell 12, Kooper Page 10, Sydney Brander 5, Olivia Garland 3, Karolyana Buck 1.

Saturday

Bigfork 60, Anaconda 46

Three Valkyries scored in double-digits as Bigfork rolled to a win over Anaconda in Western B action on Saturday night at Bigfork High School.

The Copperheads had a 14-12 lead after the opening quarter, but Bigfork (4-1, 3-0) took over after that, outscoring Anaconda 34-20 over the next two periods.

Ansleigh Edgerton scored a game-high 19 points, Isabella Santistevan had 15 points and three triples and Emma Berreth added 14. Edgerton hauled in 13 rebounds and had two blocks.

The Valkyries will resume play after the holidays on Jan. 2 in a tough battle at Columbia Falls.

Bigfork 12 17 17 14 – 60

Anaconda 14 10 10 12 – 46

BIGFORK – Ansleigh Edgerton 19, Isabella Santistevan 15, Emma Berreth 14, Ashton McAnally 4, Maddison Cappuis 3, Scout Nadeau 2, Zoey Albert 2, Nevaeh Carlin 1.

Boys

Tuesday

Eureka 36, Bigfork 34, OT

EUREKA – The Bigfork boys came agonizingly close to their first win of the season in a low-scoring District 7B clash last Tuesday at Lincoln County High School.

“Eureka was very physical and played great defense. I thought our guys did a great job of matching their physicality and played phenomenal defense,” head coach John Hollow said in an email.

The Vikings (0-3 overall, 0-1 division) were down by four going into the fourth quarter, then outscored the Lions 11-7 to force overtime. But Eureka eked out a tight win in the extra frame.

“We struggled putting the ball in the hole and taking care of the ball. If our kids play with that effort all the time the rest will start taking care of itself,” Hollow said. “The improvement from this last weekend was huge which was great to see.”

Bigfork’s Colt Thorness recorded an unconventional double-double, tallying 10 blocks to go with a team-high 10 points. Eli Hines chipped in eight points.

The Vikings struggled from the charity stripe, going 7-of-15 on free throws.

Bigfork 5 8 6 11 4 – 34

Eureka 6 11 6 7 6 – 36

BIGFORK – Asher VanCampen 2, Colt Thorness 10, Eli Hines 8, Walker Fisher 6, Levi Taylor 2, Wyatt Duke 3, Isak Epperly 3.

EUREKA – Austin Sartori 5, Alex Lowe 3, AJ Pacella 10, Gavin Bates 3, Cory Chaney 6, Joey Kindel 1, Jake Kindel 8.

Friday

Bigfork 55, Mission 52

The Vikings earned their first victory of the season on Friday night on their home floor, dominating the final quarter to defeat their District 7B rivals.

Bigfork (1-3, 1-1) was in a 46-37 hole going into the fourth, but outscored the Bulldogs 18-6 before the final buzzer to earn the win in regulation time.

Bigfork 13 19 5 18 – 55

Mission 14 22 10 6 – 52

BIGFORK – Colt Thorness 18, Wyatt Duke 10, Eli Hines 10, Isak Epperly 5, Walker Fisher 4, Isaac Bjorgie 3, Levi Taylor 3, Asher VanKampen 2.

MISSION – John Komaios 19, Jedi Christy 14.

Saturday

Bigfork 66, Anaconda 62

For the second consecutive evening, Bigfork rallied from behind for a home-court win, taking down Anaconda on Saturday in Western B action.

Bigfork found itself in a 34-23 hole at halftime, but scored 43 points in the second half to take down the Copperheads. The Vikings improved to 2-3 overall and 2-1 in the division. The Vikings will host Columbia Falls on Jan. 3 in their first game after the break.

Bigfork 11 12 23 20 – 66

Anaconda 15 19 12 16 – 62