Our little enterprise took a huge step during the 2024-2025 school calendar sports year, in rolling out our commercial website on Zenfolio. Our photography outings and our related coverage on Facebook increased twofold, particularly for western Montana high schools. Memories from our sports coverage stops across western Montana during the last year are plentiful and forever captured with our digital photography. As we archive most of those galleries, we thought it would be fun to look back at the most important, most memorable, most exciting, and most enjoyable photography outings we’ve done in the last year. We start, though, with our second biggest shoot of the year, at the season opener on the road with the Montana State University Bobcats football team.
In Albuquerque, New Mexico, our photographers were on the sidelines for the first major college football game of the Fall 2024 season to be conducted on US soil. August 24, the Bobcats and our staff were in Lobo Stadium, where the temperature at the 2 PM kickoff hovered around 100 degrees on the artificial turf playing surface. ArtwestimageSports.com staff came prepared, with cooling towels, and dressed in wide brim hats, short sleeves and shorts. Sans flip flops, we were dressed for the beach!
Early on, it looked like the heat was going to shrivel the Bobcats, who fell behind 17-0 after Lobo quarterback Devon Dampier hit Trace Bruckler for a 12-yard touchdown early in the second quarter. Montana State, with 10:36 left in the stanza, finally got on the board with a 5-yard pass from quarterback Tommy Mellott to tight end Rylan Schlepp. The six-play drive, highlighted by three runs totaling 55 yards by Scottre Humphrey, was the first of five 75+ -yard touchdown drives for the Bobcats.
With five minutes to go in the half, Mellott capped a 10-play drive with a 17-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Ty McCullouch to make it 17-14. Dampier completed five consecutive passes on New Mexico’s next possession and finished a nine-play drive on a 24-yard TD run. With the score at halftime 24-17, everyone, including our team, retreated to the air-conditioned athletic center for a cold drink and an ice bath!
Montana State opened the second half deep in their own territory, after a short kickoff return. On the Bobcat 13 yard line, Lobo defensive end Gabe Lopez sacked Mellott as he rolled out to pass, causing the ball to squirt loose toward the right sideline. The nearest Lobo defender, Noah Avinger, picked it up and sprinted to the end zone for New Mexico’s second defensive score of the game. The PAT kick made it 31-14, and the Bobcat hopes for victory were beginning to dim with the dark clouds that drifted in over the stadium.
Having lived in the Southwest for 15 years, we recognized a brewing monsoon season storm, the sweet, pungent smell of ozone. It wasn’t long before a fierce wind and dust storm blew in, causing many of those in attendance to scurry to the concourse. We pulled down our hats and continued to photograph the teams and officials who remained on the field. Neither offense could get much going in 50-mile-per-hour wind gusts, which blew dust and debris toward the Bobcat sideline. As the third quarter came to an end, it appeared like Mother Nature was against the Blue and Gold with one extreme to another.
However, the skies soon cleared, and cooler air filled the bowl of the stadium in the post-storm vacuum as the fourth quarter opened. It was like a breath of fresh air for all those in attendance. On the New Mexico side of the stadium, the predominantly garnet and silver-clad crowd had returned to their seats to see the Lobos put the finishing touches on a season-opening victory for new coach Bronco Mendenhall. What they actually witnessed was a shocking 21 point Bobcat turnaround that would quickly dash any hopes for big post-game celebrations by the UNM faithful.
Without the withering heat, the Bobcats’ offense opened the final period with a Mellott 15-yard scoring run. The teams exchanged two quick possessions, with New Mexico missing a 42 yard field goal on the first. After a Lobo punt, with 4:46 remaining in the game, the Bobcats were pinned back at their own seven-yard line. On first down, Jones sprinted past a pair of Lobo tacklers and raced down the left sideline for a 97 yard touchdown. Myles Sansted’s PAT kick brought MSU to within three at 31-28.
New Mexico picked up a first down on their next possession, but a critical third-down drop by wideout Caleb Medford, the Bobcats got the ball back at their own 11 with two minutes left in the game.
On second and five, Mellott flipped a short pass over the middle to tight end Rolan Jones, who secured a first down on the 31 yard-line. After two incomplete passes, Mellott threw a deep sideline pass to Lonyetta Alexander, who caught the ball right in front of our photographer. The 37 yard bomb put the Cats on the UNM 32 yard line.
After a couple of clock-saving short passes, Mellott hit Ty McCullouch with a 12 yard strike on the left hash mark to set a first-and-goal at the four yard line. With 13 seconds remaining, running back Humphrey dodged a New Mexico right-side defender to find paydirt. After Sansted’s PAT, the scorebook read Bobcats 35, and the Lobos 31. The magical 2024 MSU football season, with a Big Sky championship and berth in the Natty, had begun!
Our early season high school football action officially started on Saturday, September 7. We were at Legends Stadium in Kalispell for sub-varsity action between the Belgrade and Flathead Frosh. After a hotly contested first three quarters, Flathead rallied on a late scoring pass to win 31-27 with less than a minute left. The young Braves led at halftime 16-14, with the teams exchanging touchdowns off turnovers in the third period. The Panthers took their first lead of the game at 27-24 midway through the fourth quarter, which set the stage for the Brave’s winning score.
September 13, Whitefish quarterback Carson Gulick scored two touchdowns and had 275 yards of total offense to lead his Bulldogs’ second-half rally over visiting Corvallis. The Blue Devils scored two touchdowns in the first quarter, taking a 12-0 lead after a Bulldog turnover and a blocked punt. CJ Thew scored the Bulldog's lone first-half touchdown late in the first period on a 49-yard catch and run to close the gap to 12-7. Hunter Loesch caught an eight-yard scoring pass from Corvallis quarterback Ayden Spencer to put the Devils up 20-7 at the half. The Bulldog defense shut out the Devils in the second half, setting the stage for two Gulick rushing scores. The second was on a 66-yard gallop past several Devil defenders with ten minutes to go to put Whitefish up 21-20. The Bulldogs held on in the final minutes to secure an exciting win.
On September 24, we caught the best volleyball match of the month, when the Whitefish Bulldogs, the defending Northwest A volleyball champions, took on the Polson Pirates in the Dawg Pound. The Bulldogs featured a talented core of returning starters, along with four freshmen, who contributed in key roles throughout the lineup. Seniors Isabella Hartwig and classmate Myli Ridgeway, who was a 2023 all-conference player, led the way for the powerful Dawgs offense. Polson was led by all-conference all-around player Samantha Rensvold and featured a 6-2 Ronan transfer in McKenna Corley, who was an all-league middle in 2023. The two talented teams battled through a five-set masterpiece, with the Pirates getting the upset by scores of 22-25, 25-23, 17-25, 25-23, and 15-13. Corley dominated the late going and tallied 22 kills, with Rensvold getting 17. Freshman setter Rylee Taylor-Jefferson totaled 36 assists in quarterbacking the Pirate offense to the win.
In an exciting five-game affair at Flathead High on October 3, the Bravettes defeated arch-rival Glacier 22-25, 25-21, 19-25, 25-23, 16-14 in Crosstown volleyball. It was pink night at FHS, and the match was well attended by loudly exuberant, pink-clad student sections from both schools. The two teams traded set wins, and Glacier was on the verge of winning the final game, but the Bravettes came back to get the upset. Flathead’s Emma Eve and Addison Smith both knocked down 12 kills to lead their squad, with Cassidy Daniels pacing the Wolfpack with 11. Flathead’s Anna Bain and the Pack’s Stella Bayard, both primary setters, had 36 and 24 assists, respectively.
In high school soccer action on Tuesday, October 8, the Columbia Falls Wildcats soccer squad hosted the Whitefish Bulldogs in a match that would determine the Class A North Division regular season title. The Wildcats, the top-ranked Class A team in Montana, came into the match with a perfect 11-0 mark in season play. Fourth-ranked Whitefish had hopes of gaining the division title with a record of 9-2, but needed a win over the Wildcats to clinch their second league title in a row. With the stage set, Whitefish scored early, but the Wildcats responded with a goal of their own to knot the score at 1-1. Neither team could get a goal in the second half, which clinched the conference crown for the Wildcats.
On the same day, at the Flip Darling pitch in Columbia Falls, Isla Alexander’s goal in the ninth minute was the difference in Columbia Falls’ 1-0 win over Whitefish in a game that determined the North A champion. With the win, the 9-2-1 Wildkats advanced to the first round of the Class A playoffs, at home against Missoula Loyola.
On Saturday, October 19, ArtwestimageSports.com’s Bozeman area staffer John Nelson was in Big Sky, where the Whitefish Bulldogs tangled with Lone Peak Bighorns in a Class A soccer quarterfinal. In a physical battle, the two teams parlayed much of a scoreless half before Kyler Jonson ripped a scoring shot by the Bighorn's goalie to give the Dawgs a 1-0 lead at intermission. The Bulldogs dominated the second half, taking a total of 19 shots to the Horns' five in a 3-1 victory to advance to the semifinals.
On the same afternoon, we were back at Flip Darling Stadium, where the Columbia Falls Wildcats men's and women's soccer teams both won quarterfinal matches. The men outlasted a very game Polson Pirates side, scoring three goals in the last ten minutes of the match. Bruno Vazquez, Jackson Scholz, and Max Everett all got goals in the Wildcats' tough 3-0 victory. The women got off to a fast start against Missoula Loyola, on a Riley Byrd penalty kick eight minutes into the match, the first of her hat trick markers during the game. Teammate Onnika Lawrence, not to be outdone, scored five times against the Breakers, as the Kats posted a 10-0 shutout over the Breakers.
On Tuesday, October 22, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was at Legends Stadium in Kalispell for two first round soccer matches featuring the Glacier Wolfpack. In the first contest, the Pack women, boosted by freshman forward Gracie Winkler’s late first half score, secured a grueling 2-0 win over Helena Capital. In the nightcap, Glacier’s Liam Ells had a hat trick in a relatively easy 3-0 win over Helena High. Both Wolfpack teams soccer seasons ended in defeats in quarterfinal matches in Bozeman the following weekend.
On Thursday, October 24, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was at Larry Schmaltz Court in Columbia Falls for the Wildkats’ Senior Night matchup with the Bigfork Valkyries volleyball team. In a five-set thriller, the Valkyries came from behind to beat the Kats in a battle for the 3rd seed in the Northwest A conference standings. Bigfork took the match 25-22, 22-25, 17-25, 27-25, and 17-15 in one of the most well-played and exciting volleyball matches of the regular season. The match was a revelation for us, as we noted the outstanding play of several young players. Led by junior setter Taylor Howlett and the hitting of freshman Maddie Corona and Raegan Waller, the Valkyries look formidable going into the Western A Divisional Tourney.
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On November 1, in the first round of the Class A state football playoffs, Whitefish was down 21-17 to Bigfork with 55 seconds left on the clock. The Bulldogs were in a fourth-and-goal situation on the Vikings’ two-yard line, and had no time-outs remaining. After taking the shotgun snap, Gulick rolled right behind running back Riley Zetooney with Viking lineman converging in hot pursuit. Seeing an opening in the Bigfork line, Gulick rushed forward and vaulted over two Viking defenders. Bigfork’s Treker Hickey and Dane Carlsen both hit him below the waist at the goal line, and Gulick flipped head-over-heels into the endzone. John Elway couldn’t have done it better! Patrick Orme’s successful PAT gave Whitefish a 24-21 comeback win that will likely be remembered by Bulldog players for a lifetime.
On Thursday, November 7, Bigfork came into the Western A divisional volleyball tourney battle-tested, after a tourney play-in nail-biter over Ronan. That showed up in first-round action against top-seeded Southwest A champion Frenchtown, where the Broncs had to earn a 25-15, 26-24, 21-25, and 25-20 victory over the seventh-seeded Val's. Friday afternoon, Bigfork rebounded with a 21-25, 25-20, 25-21, 26-24 conquest over a good Hamilton side in loser-out action. The Valkyries then clashed with conference foe Whitefish, who had lost a heartbreaker against a hot Dillon squad on Thursday night. The reeling Bulldogs never could get into a rhythm against the surging Valkyries, led by junior setter Taylor Howlett. Bigfork convincingly won 25-19, 25-23, 25-21, and earned a trip to the state tournament.
On Friday evening, November 8, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was at Frenchtown High School for a Class A quarterfinal game between the Broncs and the Havre Blue Ponies. We had covered the Western A volleyball tournament earlier in the day and had to drive to Frenchtown to make the football game. The game was a back-and-forth affair with both teams getting ten-point leads during the first three periods. Down 23-19 at the beginning of the fourth quarter, Havre took advantage of two Frenchtown turnovers and outscored the Broncs 28-7 in the final stanza to secure a big playoff upset. Blue Pony quarterback Griffin Terry had a hand in five touchdowns, and running back Tate Nelson ran for 229 yards and scored three touchdowns to help Havre hand Frenchtown a heartbreaking 47-30 defeat.
On Friday, November 8, at the Western Divisional volleyball tournament in Corvallis, the Columbia Falls Wildkats staged a dramatic comeback win over the Polson Pirates. After falling to a 2-0 deficit, the Kats earned three set victories, in what could be described as a magical performance. Every player was in sync, every movement precise, and every succession of contest happenings seemingly to fall in place as if preordained. During a stretch of 11 straight points during Set Four, no ball touched the floor on the Wildkat’s side of the net. Columbia Fall’s mojo continued in the tiebreaker, as a Kierra Kamppainen’s ace slammed the floor to give the Kats a 9-6 advantage. Minutes later, a spike kill by Emalee Alton, a block by sophomore Riley Sweeney, and a pair of lob shots from Annika Reed, and voilà, the ecstatic, but teary-eyed Kats were in the tournament trophy round!
The Beaverhead County (Dillon) Beavers entered the Western Divisional volleyball tournament as a favorite to advance to the State All-Class tournament in Bozeman. Dillon secured victories over Columbia Falls, Whitefish, and Frenchtown, with the latter being in the undefeated semifinal on Friday night. In the best game of the tourney, the Beavers came from behind to beat the Broncs 17-25, 12-25, 25-16, 26-24, 15-13 to advance to the West A championship match on Saturday, November 9.
On a snowy, 30-degree night at Van Winkle Stadium in Bozeman on Friday, November 15, Glacier quarterback Jackson Presley totaled six touchdowns, three rushing, and three passing to lead his team to a 46-27 semifinal win over Gallatin.
Jackson found the end zone on a 17-yard touchdown run on the final play of a 90-yard game-opening drive. That lead didn’t last long, however, as Gallatin’s Reese Dahlke scampered 47 yards down the left sideline to put the Raptors ahead 7-6. The Pack answered quickly, with Presley scoring his second rushing touchdown of the quarter, this time from 2 yards out. Presley then zipped a 5-yard touchdown pass to wideout Bridger Smith, who gathered the BB on a slant route to open a 20-7 advantage early in the second quarter.
The Raptors took the ensuing kickoff back to the 50-yard line, and four minutes later, Carter Dahlke broke a Wolfpack tackle and dashed 18 yards to cut the Glacier lead to 20-14 with less than three minutes to go in the half. The Pack quickly went three and out, and Gallatin tied the game 20-20 on Reese Dahlke’s second scoring run of the night. The Wolfpack blocked the PATto maintain the tie at intermission.
With the snow piling up to about two inches by halftime, you’d figure the teams would become a little more conservative in the final 24 minutes. It started that way, as the teams traded punts, but on a short yardage down, Glacier's Presley made a nice play-action fake and then tossed an arcing 30-yard scoring aerial to Easton Kauffman. Kauffman's soft-handed grab over a diving, and snow-sliding Raptor put the Pack ahead 27-20. A 45-yard run by Carter Dahlke and Grant Vigen’s slide on a fourth-down play on the Wolfpack 25 set up Reese Dahlke’s third touchdown of the night on a 2-yard run.
Entering the final quarter with the score knotted at 27-all, Glacier took the ball down the field to take the lead 34-27, as Presley scored for the third time on a short dash up the middle. After forcing a Gallatin four-and-out, Presley’s offense faced a fourth and three from the Raptor 24-yard line. Instead of attempting a long field goal in slick and snowy conditions, Glacier coach Grady Bennett opted for a fourth-down conversion play. Quarterback Presley rewarded Bennett’s confidence with a touchdown pass to sophomore Cooper Pelc, who had gotten behind his defender on a corner route. The Raptors blocked the PAT attempt, but that was about the only play that worked to Gallatin’s advantage for the rest of the contest. Glacier’s defense held the last two drives, which bookended the Pack’s final score on a nine-yard Dorcheus run. Presley had a part in a total of six touchdowns, three passing and three on the ground, and totaled 325 yards in total offense. Dorcheus ran 19 times for 142 yards, while Smith caught 9 balls for 112 yards to help the Wolfpack to a 46-27 semifinal victory!
On November 16, in the Class A championship volleyball match in Bozeman, our friends from Frenchtown battled Billings Central. The powerful Rams defeated the Broncs, in the “if necessary” second go-around by scores of 25-14, 19-25, 20-25, 25-22, 15-3. Billings Central, the preeminent power in Class A volleyball, won its fourth title in the last five years and has played for the championship nine years in a row. The 2024 Broncs won a tough five-set victory over Beaverhead in the third-place match and hoped to carry that momentum into the championship round against Central, but found themselves trailing two sets to one against the Rams in the finale. It was at that point when Frenchtown coach Morgan Job’s charges found new confidence during a 25-18 win in Set Four. In a 15-13 Fifth Set victory, Frenchtown’s 6-2 middle Mason Quinn and the hard-hitting Rachel Walls combined for 22 kills, and five blocks to force a second match. In the second championship contest, the resolute Broncs jumped to a 2-1 set advantage. Central, however, clawed back on the steady frontline play of a trio of six-foot-plus hitters in juniors Camryn Reinker and CC Case to tie the match with a 25-22 win. The Broncs seemed to run out of gas in the fifth game, as the Rams’ stifling defense made for an early 6-0 advantage. The Rams went on to a 15-3 coronation win and celebration of their ninth Class A title.
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On November 24, the MSU Bobcats capped an undefeated 12-0 regular season and the 2024 Big Sky Conference Championship by rolling the University of Montana Grizzlies 34-11 in Bozeman. The MSU defense was the real difference in the contest, holding the Griz to just 234 yards in total offense, in front of over 22,000 at Bobcat Stadium in Bozeman. The win boosted the Cats to the top seed in the FCS playoffs, while Montana fell to 14th.
On December 21, top-seeded Montana State hosted fourth-seeded South Dakota in an FCS semifinal contest at Bobcat Stadium. At stake was a trip to the title game in Frisco, Texas, to take on North Dakota State, who had earlier beaten South Dakota State in the other semifinal. ArtwestimageSports.com staff was on the sidelines for the tenth time as credentialed photographers during the 2024 Bobcat football season. The two talented teams were tied at 14-all early in the second quarter when the Bobcats had consecutive scoring drives to take control of the game. Quarterback Tommy Mellott ran for 125 yards and passed for another 134 to lead the Bobcats to a 31-17 victory.
ArtwestimageSports.com had two photographers attend the FCS title game in Frisco, Texas, on January 6, 2025. The North Dakota State Bison dominated the first half, opening a 21-3 advantage at the intermission. Montana State rallied to within three points twice in the second half, but failed to overtake the powerful Bison in a 35-32 loss. Walter Payton Award winner Tommy Mellott passed for 195 yards and two scores, and added 135 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Mellott sealed his Montana State legacy in leading the Bobcats to a program best 15-1 record in his senior campaign. His storybook career was bookended by trips to the FCS championship game, with both seasons ending in heartbreaking losses to the powerful Bison.
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Thursday, February 6, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was at Flathead High School for the second 2025 Crosstown basketball game between the host Bravettes and the visiting Glacier Wolfpack. A packed house was treated to what likely will be one of the best games of the season, as the teams battled to a 44-all tie at the end of regulation to force overtime.
We didn’t know that Glacier’s senior guard Reese Ramey was about to have what could be remembered as the best five minutes of her senior basketball season, if not her high school hoops career. Ramey drained a total of four three-point shots in overtime to give the Wolfpack a hard-fought 58-55 win over their arch-rivals. Ramey finished with 25 points, added 8 assists, and 12 steals. Grace Gall led the way for the Bravettes with 17 points.
On Saturday, February 8, our staff was at Flathead High School to see the Braves wrestling team score 332.5 points to win the West AA Divisional meet, ahead of Butte who compiled 279.5, and Missoula Sentinel with 236.5. The Glacier Wolfpack finished fifth overall in team standings with 155.5 points. The Flathead Bravettes took the women's title with a huge total of 363.5 points, with Missoula Big Sky finishing a distant second at 184.5. Glacier took fourth, behind Butte with 134.5 points.
Kellen Downing (118 pounds), Diesel Thompson (126), Hunter Arriaga (132), Daniel Evert (138), and Loki Bigras (175) each placed first to lead the Braves. Juliette Cuevas (105 pounds), Kiera Lackey (135), and Aspen Smart (190) took titles for the Bravettes. Winners for Glacier were Aidan Sweat (110), Jerin Coles (150), Nico Coles (165), and in women’s competition, Katelyn Sphuler (100), Brooke Yeadon (110), Kaura Coles (115)
On February 25, ArtwestimageSports.com was at Senior Night at Flathead High, where we saw a great game between the Bravettes and Missoula Sentinel. For those who were there to see a trio of Flathead’s basketball players play their final game on the home court, you know they went out in winning fashion. Four players contributed greatly to the Bravette’s 15-point second-half comeback in a 55-50 win.
Flathead’s 6-1 sophomore, Grace Gall, scored 24 points, including four three-pointers, was 6 for 6 from the charity stripe, and pulled down a total of 8 rebounds. Senior Ava Malmin hit two fourth-quarter three-pointers, made two last-minute free throws, and secured a game-sealing steal in the final seconds. Classmates Mattie Thompson and Sami Dalager both had seven points, with Thompson making two clutch free throws in the final seconds.
ArtwestimageSports.com finished our basketball regular season photography schedule in Bigfork, on Thursday, February 27, at the first-round Class A play-in game between the Vikings and the Whitefish Bulldogs. It appeared that the Bulldogs were motivated to get some revenge against the Viks for the 69-51 home beatdown two days before in Whitefish. The Bulldogs opened up a 27-23 lead by halftime, with sophomore point guard Will Sisson knocking down three 3-pointers and scoring 13 points to provide much of the Dawgs’ early bite. After falling behind by 14 points early in the fourth quarter, the Vikings gradually chipped away at the Whitefish lead. Tamret Savik's layup tied the game at 44-all with less than a minute left, and Viking guard Treker Hickey sank two free throws in front of a crazed “white-out” Bigfork student section to give his team a season-defining 47-45 win.
Next up was a big weekend for ArtwestimageSports.com staff as we covered the Western A Divisional Basketball tournament on March 6-8 at Whitefish High School. Our staff was at the tournament all three days, hustling to get our photography outtakes to the Dillon Tribune-Examiner. Thus, we focused on the teams from Beaverhead County, which was relatively easy to do. Both teams advanced to the finale on Championship Saturday, winning four straight games.
In front of a packed house at the Dawg Pound, by this writer’s estimate, over 2500 fans saw the dominant Beaver men’s team defeat Browning 63-48 in the title game. The Lady Beavs then knocked off their arch-rival, the Frenchtown Broncs 47-40 to take home the first-place trophy.
The Beaver men, the defending Class A state champions, finished the tournament at 20-1, but had a rough start in the title game against Browning. The Indians, playing in front of a wildly enthusiastic and largely partisan crowd, flew to a 15-4 lead in the first five minutes of the game. After two threes by Jude Reevis and another by Roy Madplume, Dillon coach Jeff Edwards took a timeout to quell the Browning momentum. Following the break, the Beavs slowed the pace of the game and went to their post-game using senior workhorses 6-5 Carter Curnow and 6-6 Kyler Engellant. By halftime, Dillon had recovered to take a 30-26 lead and was in complete control after that.
Engellant, with towering corner jumpers and soaring rebound putbacks, led the Beavers with 19 points, while Curnow powered his way to 13. Browning’s Jude Reevis had 16 of his 19 team-leading point total in the first half, including four treys during Browning’s early run.
The triumph in the girls' contest between arch-rivals Dillon and Frenchtown was determined early, as the Beavers used relentless defensive pressure to open a 10-1 first quarter and 23-10 halftime advantage. Dillon, unbeaten this year save for an overtime loss to Frenchtown on January 17, was led by senior Kenleigh Graham, who had a game-high 22 points. The six-foot Black Hills State basketball signee converted on two of her three triples in the first quarter, and spent most of the game at the foul line, in making 9 of 11 charity tosses.
Graham, along with future Montana Tech Oredigger Kylie Konan, continually badgered Frenchtown’s all-state swing player, Mason Quinn, the entire game. A 6-3 junior, Quinn still managed to lead the Broncs with 19 points. Both teams were whistled for 19 personal fouls and combined to make 31 of 41 free throws in a rough-and-tumble affair.
The Bigfork Valkyries placed third overall after losing a Friday night semifinal to Beaverhead. The defending Class A runner ups, defeated Columbia Falls 52-32 in the third-place game to advance to the State A tourney. Senior Keni Wade scored 18 points, including 5 three-pointers, to lead the Valkyries. Bigfork’s Paeten Gunlock had her best game of the tournament against Browning on Saturday morning, scoring 26 points, in their 58-44 consolation semifinal win.
Kenleigh Graham led the Beavers over Bigfork in the undefeated semifinal Friday night, totaling 25 points to boost the Beavers to a 57-49 win. The Black Hills State recruit made five 3-pointers before getting into foul trouble in the final period. Still, Keni Wade and Braeden Gunlock had the Valkyries ahead 49-46 midway through the final quarter. It was at that point when the bigger and more experienced Beaver front court took over in the closing minutes. Graham’s teammates, Kylie Konen 6-0 and Sage Tash 6-1 used their size to overcome the smaller Valkyries in scoring a combined 13 points down the stretch. Konen finished with 13 points while Tash had 12. Wade and Gunlock both had 17 points each for Bigfork.
The Columbia Falls Wildkats’ best game of the tournament came in Saturday morning’s loser-out game. The Kats’ Kierra Kemppainen continued her hot shooting, making five three-pointers in her team’s 69-65 win over Ronan.
Columbia Falls was in control for most of the game, and was up 60-52 with two minutes left. Ronan scored seven points in 20 seconds to draw within two at 61-59. Maiden fouls in the final minute gave the Wildkats a total of ten foul shots, where they made seven. Kemppainen had a team-high 20 points, while Maddy Barker hit on 7 of 8 free throws in the final quarter to finish with 15 points.
The Bigfork Vikings were overwhelmed by the powerful Beaver men 61-38 in the first round, but rebounded the next day to outlast Butte Central 73-71 in Friday loser-out action. Alex Ohs scored 10 points in the first half against the Maroons, as the Vikings jumped out to a 31-20 lead at the intermission. By the end of the third quarter, Central had fought back to within four at 44-40, on the strength of four three-pointers during the period.
The Maroons’ senior captain, Owen McPartland, hit three treys and made a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line to bring his squad to within two with 2:11 remaining in the game. Bigfork held the Maroons at bay, as guards Austin Savek, Treker Hickey, and Alex Ochs combined for 25 points in the final quarter to help earn the Vikings a hard-fought 73-71 victory.
On Saturday morning in Columbia Falls, the Vikings battled Frenchtown for a trip to the State A tourney. After a slow start, Frenchtown fell behind 11-5 midway through the first quarter. The Vikings’ early success came on a flurry of points by Austin and Tamret Savik, as well as Treker Hickey. By halftime, the Broncs had rebounded to take a 23-20 lead, largely on the broad shoulders of 6-5, 240-pound sophomore center Hank Smith. Smith scored 16 points in the first sixteen minutes, including two three-point bombs in the second quarter.
Frenchtown’s Leighton Cyr, the Broncs’ lone senior, largely on acrobatic drives to the basket, scored six of the Broncs’ 11 points in the third stanza. Not to be outdone, Viking guards Austin Savik and Alex Ochs combined for nine of Bigfork’s 14 third-period points to knot the game at 34-all. Frenchtown’s Cooper Michaud provided the most memorable moment of the quarter, however, with the 6-5 sophomore getting a thunderous put-back dunk.
In an exciting fourth quarter, the teams exchanged the lead several times, with Cyr and Austin Savik both getting six points each during the fray. Bigfork took a 47-44 lead when an Ochs’ free throw completed a three-point play with just over a minute left. On their final possession, Frenchtown’s Smith took the inbounds pass, dribbled the length of the court, and nailed a 16-foot jump shot to force extra periods.
In the first overtime, Frenchtown grabbed the early lead on a Smith three-pointer and a Cyr layup, but Austin Savik’s jump shot with 15 seconds to go forced another overtime.
In the second OT, Austin Savik’s three-point bomb was offset by a pair of scores by Michaud and another by Smith to give Frenchtown a 60-57 lead. Bigfork’s Ochs, on a short jumper, brought the Viks to within one at 60-59, and a pair of missed Bronc free throws set up a frenzied final minute. Austin Savik’s shot from the right corner in the final seconds rimmed out, and the ecstatic Broncs held on to clinch a trip to the state tournament.
Frenchtown’s Smith had a team-high 22 points for the Broncs, followed by Michaud with 17, and Cyr with 16. Austin Savik scored 23 points for the Vikings, with Tamret Savik scoring 14, and Ochs getting 12.
On March 13-15, John Nelson represented our staff at the Class AA tournament, held at Montana State University’s Brick Breeden Fieldhouse. The Gallatin Raptors women’s team, led by juniors Jada Davis, Ave Odegard, and Makayla Coleman, finished their season at 21-1. The Raps beat rival Billings West 66-63 in the title game, with Davis and Coleman making pressure-free throws in overtime. Missoula Big Sky, paced by MSU signee Kadynce Couture and Griz recruit Avory DeCoite, held off a late comeback attempt by Brityn Stewart’s Butte High 62-58 in the consolation final.
In the men’s competition, Billings Skyview, led by 6-8 senior Zakai Owens and 6-3 junior Tayshaun Williams, outlasted Billings West 48-46 in another all-East championship matchup. The two teams struggled to establish a lot of offense in the first half, with Skyview holding a 26-20 lead at intermission. West came back in the third period to take a 37-32 lead, but the Falcons outscored the Bears 15-9 in the final stanza to secure the victory. The Helena Bengals, led by seniors Jaxan Lieberg and Tevin Wetzel’s combined 37 points, looked good in a 67-57 win over the Gallatin Raptors.
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Saturday, March 29, ArtwestimageSports.com staff attended our first official 2025 spring season event in Frenchtown, Montana, where the Broncs hosted their annual track and field invitational. The 30-team event was dominated by several of the ten Class A teams on hand, with defending champion Corvallis taking the men’s team title with a two-point victory over division rival Hamilton. The Blue Devil men scored 79 points, followed by Hamilton, Frenchtown, and Polson, with Class B schools taking the next four places.
Corvallis, Hamilton, and Frenchtown all finished within seven points of each other, with the final result coming down to the last event, the 1600-meter relay. Corvallis’s quartet of Solomon Morgan, Ledge Conner, Taggart Jessop, and Carter Koerner finished fourth, eight seconds behind first-place Hamilton, and scored enough points to hold off the Broncs for the meet title. The home-standing Frenchtown Broncs did not field a varsity long relay team Saturday and settled for a respectable 72 points on the day.
Perhaps the best overall performance on the day was had by Polson senior Astin Brown, who won both the shot put and the discus with personal best performances, including a Pirate school record in the shot put. The Montana Grizzly track and field recruit tossed the shot 58’9” to break the oldest mark on the Polson T & F record books. Brown also scored another personal best effort in the discus, as his heave of 159 feet won the event by almost ten feet.
In the women's meet, Beaverhead County outpointed second-place Havre by ten points. Frenchtown was third, followed by Hamilton, Polson, Broadwater, Plains, and Stevensville. The bulk of the Beaver's 92 points came from their superior depth, and three event victories by Riley McCoy in the 100 hurdles, Ava Graham in the 300 hurdles, and Isabella Regan in the shot put.
Havre's Kaydence Reiter had four event wins for the Havre Blue Ponies, taking victories in both the 100 and 200-meter runs, and on both winning relay quartets. Hamilton's Annalise Lewis won the 400 and 800-meter runs, and Reagan Johnstone, a freshman from Stevensville, won the high and triple jumps. Plain's thrower Alexis Deming, whose winning heave of 124 feet qualifies her for the state meet in May, in what will be an attempt to win the Class B discus title for the third time.
On Thursday, April 10, we caught most of the Whitefish’s tennis matches against Libby at Riverside Park in Whitefish. Whitefish comes off a strong state tourney performance from last year, with all but two of the Bulldog participants in the 2024 championship event returning. That experience showed well in the Green and Gold’s 7-0 shutout over the upstart Loggers.
The Top Dawgs’ doubles pairing, consisting of Senior Maggie Mercer and Junior Camry Kelch, both competed on the final day of the state tourney last year, albeit with different partners. The two were dominant in their 6-1, 6-1 victory over the Logger’s A team of Bella Meyer and Aubrey Davis. Top Bulldog singles player Liesl Brust, a 2024 state quarterfinalist, beat a very game Maggie Fantozzi 6-1, 6-2.
The Bulldog’s Number Two singles player, Linsley Grubb, had a grueling match with Libby’s Marissa Hollingsworth in a contest that lasted well over an hour. Grubb won the first set 6-4, and eventually took a 7-6 Set 2 victory. In the second doubles match, Whitefish’s Zoey Martin and Aubrey Talbot beat Shya Huck and Augie Bailey 6-2, 6-1.
On the same day in Kalispell, we crammed in as much action as possible during our two-hour stop at Flathead Community College, where Glacier was taking on Flathead. We saw Glacier’s Leilani Lennarz take on the Bravette’s Elle Westover, in a battle of #1 seeds, with Lennarz getting a 6-0, 6-0 win.
In the best match of our tennis day, the top doubles teams squared off, as Glacier’s Miley Fritz and Claire Ennis battled Flathead’s Nina Parris and Sarah Loran. The pairs parlayed for nearly the entire time we were at the FVCC complex, and were tied after two sets. In the third game, the Bravette’s duo gradually pulled away to a 6-3 match victory.
The Columbia Falls and Ronan high school varsity softball game completed our photography tripleheader on April 10. Ronan jumped out to a 2-0 lead against the Wildkats' pitcher, Ella Branstetter, in the first inning. In the bottom of the third inning, the Columbia Falls offense caught fire for four runs, sparked by shortstop Onnika Lawrence’s single to drive in teammate Chevelle Bedford.
Columbia Falls held a 4-2 lead until the top of the fifth inning, when a walk by Ally Luedtke set up the speedy centerfielder to eventually score after a Kaitlyn Marengo grounder. Shortstop Autumn Lozeau later scored, after a seeing-eye blooper by right fielder Hadassah Reed, to tie the score at 4-4.
In the top of the seventh, the Maidens’ Luedkte scored on a sacrifice fly by Marengo. Infielder S Torgison later scored Ronan’s sixth run.
In the bottom of the inning, the Wildkats’ Addy Bowler singled to give her a chance to successfully steal second to get into scoring position. Representing the tying run, Lawrence stepped to the plate and got under a Marengo pitch to launch a towering shot to left field. Many of the Columbia Falls faithful came to their feet, anticipating a game-tying home run. However, Lawrence’s heroics were dashed as her hit was caught at the outfield fence.
Mann stepped to the dish with two outs and Bowler on third base, who had advanced on Lawrence’s fly ball. Marengo, grinning widely at the encouragement of her fans in attendance and a vocal Maiden bench, proceeded to hurl a wicked fastball past the swinging Mann for a third strike and the final out of the 6-4 Ronan victory.
Two weeks later, on April 24, we were at Kidsports Park, where the Flathead Bravettes hosted the defending Class A champion Columbia Falls. The Wildkats seemingly put the game away with four runs at the top of the seventh inning, to run the score to 8-3. The feisty Bravettes, however, rallied with four runs of their own to make the final score 8-7.
Columbia Falls’ senior left fielder Addy Bowler had three hits and scored twice, including the first run of the ballgame. Wildkat senior Taylor Lingle was two-for-two with an RBI and made several stellar defensive plays from centerfield. Sophomore Onnika Lawrence provided sparkling play in the center of the Kat’s defense and hit a two-run homer.
Flathead’s lineup was sparked by the play of sophomore Danika Hennell, who had two RBIs, one coming on a solo home run in the sixth inning. Seniors MacKenzie Brandt and Reese Conley both had solo home runs, and junior Kinzie Lake had two hits, an RBI, and scored a run. Centerfielder Brandt’s hustling play resulted in six outs while fielding fly balls and contributed to two big double plays.
Whitefish High School hosted its annual ARM Invitational track meet on April 26. The Whitefish men won the 13-team event, and the Columbia Falls women won in hotly contested races between Class A, B, and C competition from across western Montana. The highlight events of the day were the men's shot put and discus throws, which were won by Astin Brown of Polson and Lane Voermans of Columbia Falls, respectively.
The latter event was particularly interesting, being the final competition of the day, it had a majority of the fans and athletes in attendance crowding around the throwing sector. With our photographer setting up in the middle of the throwing sector at about 170 feet, the individual discus title was decided in a showdown between Voermans and Thompson Falls’ hurler Braeden Ferris.
With the heightened attention and enthusiasm, Voermans shattered his school discus record with a mammoth throw of 181' 2", with Ferris’s second-place heave of 166’8.5” the best in Class B at that point in 2025. Both marks turned out to be their best marks of the season.
Whitefish distance runner Simon Douglas won the 1600 and 3200-meter races, with the former being a personal record time. In the women's events, Missoula Loyola's Allison Gama and Sophia Berry combined to win four events for the Breakers, who finished second behind Columbia Falls. The Wildkats got wins from Soli Bullemer in the pole vault and the triple jump.
On Thursday, May 1, we checked out a lacrosse match between Kalispell’s two Avalanche varsity men’s squads. The Avalanche Black took away a contentious 13-7 over the Green team. The following afternoon, we were back at Kidsports, first for the Avs varsity women’s matchup with the Missoula Spartans, where the locals posted a nice 13-6 win. In the nightcap, we were across the parking lot for the Black’s battle with the Missoula Wild, which followed the club's Senior Night celebration. The Blacks were up to the task, as they jumped out to a 6-2 lead and went on to score a hard-fought 13-5 victory.
On May 10, we were on hand to see the Whitefish men’s tennis team take on the Hamilton Broncs at the Grouse Mountain tennis courts in Whitefish. The Bulldogs swept the Broncs, but it wasn’t easy for the Whitefish crew, as a couple of matches came down to the wire. The best match of the day was the Bulldog’s Walt Seigmund and Aaron Anderson’s win in a three-set nail-biter against a very tough duo in the Bronc’s Finn Dufresne and Jason Chaplin.
The Whitefish girls had a big Saturday on May 17 at the Western A Divisional Track and Field meet in Polson, with sprint star Rachael Wilmot leading the way. The Bulldog’s 81 points barely cleared Dillon’s total of 80.5, when the Beavers went 1-2-3 in the day’s final event on the discus circle. Hamilton and Columbia Falls took third and fourth place, with 79 and 75 points, respectively. It was one of the closest team races at the divisional meet in recent years.
The Corvallis Blue Devils won the boys title by a bigger margin, by scoring 107 points, which outdistanced runner-up Columbia Falls. The Wildcats were second with 94, followed by Frenchtown with 70 and Whitefish with 65.
Wilmot’s wins in the 100 and 200 on Saturday, in addition to her 400 title on Friday, were particularly impressive, but didn’t show her true competitive spirit like she exhibited in the 1600-meter relay. Wilmot, running anchor for Whitefish, got the baton with her team sitting in ninth place of their ten-team heat. Just over 58 seconds later, Wilmot had made up six places and put her team on the final podium in bronze medal position.
Her efforts were well rewarded, giving the Bulldogs six precious points in the race, against the Beaver’s none, as their seventh place finish was just out of scoring position. The Dawgs would have finished at second or third in the team race with a lesser effort by Wilmot, considering the Beavers’ 24 points in the discus event.
Also playing a significant part in the Whitefish women’s team title was freshman Grace Sliman, who won the high jump. Sliman and four other athletes got over the bar at 4-10, but she came into the event at that height and had fewer misses than everyone else.
The Corvallis men’s team battled Columbia Falls for the team title throughout the two-day event. With Saturday’s competitions just about over, only the 3200-meter run and the 1600-meter relay remaining, the Wildcats led Corvallis 90-87. With each team having a relay squad and a full complement of five runners each in the two-mile, the stage was set for a thrilling end to the divisional championship fight.
As the 3200-meter race progressed, Corvallis’ senior distance ace Jack Davidson dueled Polson’s David DiGiallonardo for the lead. At the halfway point, those two built a five-second advantage, with two Corvallis runners, Taggart Jessop and Carter Koerner, staying within reach. More importantly, the five Columbia Falls runners were falling off the pace, with Cat junior Aiyers Powell being the closest, nearly 100 meters behind.
As the last Corvallis runner crossed the finish line, all five of the Devil competitors stood in the top ten scoring order, which meant the Blue Devils outscored the Cats 20-0 to take a 107-90 advantage into the 1600 relay. Corvallis, with the Wildcats gaining a maximum of ten points in the relay, was once again the Western A men’s champion!
The most significant Corvallis win of the men’s meet, however, happened during the rainstorm on Friday afternoon in the men’s javelin throw. Corvallis senior hurler Hunter Loesch was on center stage after back-to-back weeks of throwing over the existing state records in the event.
A large crowd assembled on the track perimeter and the hill below it, with all locations in perfect position to see Loesch try to outdo his two-week-old school record, and personal best effort of 214’8”. With the crowd providing an enthusiastic buildup to his first attempt, Loesch responded with a Herculean effort, uncorking a heave that far exceeded the previous 35 competitors.
A quiet came over the crowd and the large contingent of competitors hugging the throwing lane as the tape was unrolled and stretched down the sector to Loesch’s javelin landing place. Once the tape was properly set, the judge leaned over to lightly snap the tape and paused to read the tape to the nearest inch. He paused, recorded the mark on his scorecard, and then slowly turned to face the crowd. In a firm, loud voice, he shouted, “Two-hundred-nineteen feet and eleven inches,” which sent Loesch and many of his teammates jumping with joy.
Although the Columbia Falls men only won three of 17 events, the Cats gave divisional champion Corvallis all they could handle for much of the day. Columbia Falls’ three event winners were Lane Voermans in the discus, Oliver Kress in the pole vault, and Stanley Stremick in the long jump. Sprinter Jack Phelps didn’t win any of his competitions, but he finished as the Wildcat’s leading scorer in taking second in both the 200 and 400-meter runs, and third on both of the Cats’ medal-winning relay squads.
On Thursday, May 22, ArtwestimageSports.com staff and about 500 parents, fans, and athletes were treated to some great pole vault action at the Class AA men’s and Class A championships at Legend’s Stadium in Kalispell. In the men’s vault, Brayden Brisko, a Helena Capital junior, pulled off an upset of Missoula Sentinel’s Geffen Guscio, clearing a 15’6” for the first time in his career.
Flathead area track and field programs have had a lot of success in recent years, with several programs fielding outstanding teams. The Flathead Braves, under veteran coach Dan Hodge, have emerged over the last couple of years on the legs of a trio of strong sprinters and hurdlers in seniors Ben Blivens and Lane Chivers, along with junior Will Hollensteiner, who have piled up state medals and trophies on the track. All three were on center stage on Friday, May 23, in the first full day of action at the Class AA and A Track and Field Championships in Kalispell.
Friday’s Class AA men's 400 final was particularly momentous, as Flathead's William Hollensteiner set a new all-class record with a time of 47.22 seconds. The Braves piled up 20 points in the event, with both Chivers and Blivens placing, to boost their championship trophy hopes going into Saturday.
Like four prize fighters duking it out during championship boxing matches, men’s track and field teams from Flathead and Helena High Schools in Class AA and Corvallis and Frenchtown in Class A dueled on Saturday, May 24, at Legends Stadium in Kalispell. With their respective divisions' state championships at stake, all four squads found opportunities to score points in most events. Still, Flathead in particular proved that a few first-place finishes for the Braves can outdo a lot of third, fourth, fifth, and sixth-place efforts by the Bengals.
Continuing their successes from Friday’s competition, Flathead seniors Ben Bliven and Lane Chivers, along with junior Will Hollensteiner, played major roles in providing the Braves' sprint teams’ punching power against Helena’s jabs in the distance running events. The Bengals’ Elliott Stimpson, Dylan Hill, and Henry Sund failed to win any of the three distance events during the meet, but helped Helena to score 32 of their team's total of 81 points.
Flathead’s Hollensteiner took the 300-meter hurdle title, going the distance in a personal record time of 37.94. Chivers finished second, with his 38.21 clocking also being a career best. The duo scored 18 points for the Braves and secured a knockdown of the Bengals to their credit. Shortly afterwards, Hollensteiner scored another round-house punch in winning the 200-meter run, but was countered with a third and fifth place finish from the Bengals’ Luke Ruch and Travis Ryland-Davis, respectively.
Shortly afterwards, Hollensteiner jumped a career best 46’10.25” in the triple jump to take second, while a trio of Helena jumpers failed to earn at least a top ten finish. The Bengals were down by just three points, 78-75, going into the final event of the day, the long relay.
The Bengals needed to beat the Braves by at least three points in the 4 X 400 meter relay, and after two laps, it looked like they might get them. Helena was in second, and Flathead was lagging in sixth, barely in scoring position following the second leg of the race. Chivers, running the third leg for the Braves, made up three places to move his squad up to third before handing off to Hollensteiner.
In an amazing feat, the Flathead anchor runner proceeded to leg out a 400-meter split time that was faster than his all-class state record in the open race on Friday. Hollensteiner came from five meters back to nip Big Sky’s Adam Guajardo at the tape to give the Braves the 1,600-meter relay title, as well as the Braves' first Class AA state track and field championship since 2015. It was the ninth state championship for our friend Dan Hodge, the Braves' head coach.
In the Class A meet, a similar dual took place between defending state champion Corvallis and a strong Frenchtown side led by sprinter Cole Ziegler and hurdler/pole vaulter Brody Hardy. A pair of Blue Devil sprinters, senior Solomon Morgan and sophomore Ayden Spencer, dueled with the Broncs’ Ziegler in the 100 and 200-meter finals. Ziegler took victories in both races, in career best times of 11.14 and 22.5, respectively, but his 20 points were offset by Morgan and Spencer’s combined total of 21 in the two events.
Corvallis and Frenchtown traded victories in the hurdle races, with the Blue Devils’ Stuart Brennan winning the 110-meter event, with Hardy finishing a close second. In the 300-meter race, Hardy turned the tables on the Blue Devils with a one-second win over Bigfork’s Austin Savik, while Brennan finished in fifth.
Going into the final two events of the day the team score was so close that it came down to the heroics of a pair of Corvallis distance runners, Jack Davidson and Taggart Jessop. Senior Davidson’s third-place and junior Jessop’s sixth-place efforts, both personal bests, scored seven points, which allowed the Blue Devils to eke out a 76-75 win over Southwestern A division foe Frenchtown. It was their third consecutive state championship, and their eighth since 2009.
Helena High's Madi Todorovich, one of the most storied athletes to participate in Montana track and field, earned victories in both the high and triple jumps on Friday. Saturday, she pushed her total of individual state championships to eight (10 with relays), when she won the long jump. After taking second in the 300 hurdles and helping the Bengals to a fourth-place finish in the 1,600 relay, the Baylor University signee finished with a record 27 career Montana state medals. Todorovich’s first three seasons resulted in state championships for the Bengal women’s team, but in 2025, she had to settle for second place, as the Gallatin Raptors used formidable team depth to rack up 100 points, 17 more than Helena’s total of 83.
The Raptors won their first state championship, behind senior distance specialist Isabel Ross, who finished the weekend with three event titles, including a career-best time of 4:53.6 in the 1600 meters. Teammate Hazel Cooper finished just behind Ross, as did Claire Rutherford, who finished fifth to give Gallatin 20 points during the event. Ross also won the 800 on Friday, took third in the 400, and partnered with Cooper to help the Raptors to a second-place finish in the 1600-meter relay.
Speaking of the 1600-meter relay, the Glacier Wolfpack’s long relay quartet qualified for the podium with a fifth-place finish. We were happy to see our friends Emmery Schmidt, Alyssa Vollertsen, and Carmen Eddy complete their high school track careers on the awards stand!
In Class A women’s competition, Whitefish’s Rachel Wilmot was a major contributor to the Bulldogs’ second state title in her career, taking victories in the 100 and 200-meter runs on Saturday, to add to another event win in the 400-meter run on Friday. She also helped the Dawgs to a second-place and fourth-place finish, respectively, in the 4 X 100 and 4 X 400-meter relays. Wilmot’s three individual event championship awards in 2025 join her collection of six gold medals earned on the Bulldogs’ state championship relay teams during her first three years on the Whitefish sprint team.
Stevensville ninth-grader Reagan Johnstone had an outstanding first state meet, winning both Class A hurdle events on Saturday, in addition to earning a silver medal in the long jump on Friday, and a sixth place in the triple jump on Saturday. Her times of 15.17 and 45.01 were personal records and would have placed her second and third, respectively, in the Class AA meet.
Johnstone’s chief competition in such a crossover event with Class AA would have been with Flathead's Alivia Rinehart, who scored three Class AA record-setting performances on Saturday. The fleet Bravette set an all-class record in the 100-meter hurdles, covering the distance in a time of 14.07. She also knocked off defending champion Todorovich in the 300-meter race, with a Class AA record time of 42.07, which beat her rival by over two seconds. She also set a new Class AA event record in the 200 meters, covering the half oval in a career-best time of 24.54.
At the three-day Montana Rumble Softball Tournament in Missoula, on June 27-29, we served as the official tournament photographers and took in action from a total of 66 contests in five different age groups.
Friday, May 27, ArtwestimageSports.com staff attended a total of 17 first round games. The best game of the day came in the U18 division, where the Billings 406 Playmakers and the Kitsap, Washington Osprey played to a 3-3 tie after seven innings. We also enjoyed a pair of contests under the lights, when two of the tourney host teams beat Canadian clubs in the final session. In those matchups, the U18 Missoula Avalanche-Goudette crew beat Calgary’s SBR Rockies 12-3, and the U16 Avalanche-Latrielle outfit downed the Calgary Adrenaline 13-3.
On Saturday, May 28, we focused on six U16 contests between some of the best teams in this incredibly competitive age group. We got to see all ten teams in the division during the day, but four teams stood out and earned the top seeds in the division championship round. The Missoula Avalanche, Kalispell Emeralds, Lake City Thunder, and Calgary Adrenaline all logged two victories on the day, and gave us some of the best softball we saw during the tournament.
We met several up-and-coming softball stars during the tournament, with the most notable being Calgary Adrenaline catcher Devynn Power, who logged a solid performance behind the plate in a 5-4 win over the USA Explosion from Idaho Falls, and then smacked a game-clinching home run in the twilight against the South Dakota United.
We also caught four U18 division games; the quality of play by all eight teams we saw was reflective of the experience and maturity of athletes who have dedicated themselves to playing the game at the highest level. With many high school starters and youthful regulars on U18 rosters, along with recent graduates and first and second-year college players, the competition was keen.
In our final U18 matchup on Saturday, the Billings’ 406 Playmakers got their first victory of the tourney, notching a 3-0 shutout over NW Elite. The Playmakers, who are the defending U18 Montana State JO champions, were led by the 2023 Montana Gatorade Player of the Year, Ella Farrell, who started 0-1-1 in her previous two pool tilts.
On Sunday, the second-seeded U10 Hamilton Hotshots dominated the three games they played in winning the division title. The 6-0 Shots outscored their competition 24-5 during their run, including a 7-3 defeat of the 4-2 Calgary Extreme. Calgary won a tough 3-2 battle over top seed Coeur d’Alene Crush in the semifinal round.
The U12 finals went down similarly, with second seed the second-seeded Lake City Thunder advancing through the championship round convincingly. The Thunder blew out three opponents by a combined score of 56-7, including a 15-5 tourney capper over fourth-seed Billings Force. The 4-2 Force upset the Missoula Avalanche 5-4 in the championship qualifier.
In U14, the WA Avengers, from Buckley, Washington, completed the 2025 Rumble with a 6-0 record, and with 69 runs scored, while allowing just 15. In the championship, the Avengers opened an 8-0 lead in the first inning, and outlasted the seventh-seed Lake City Thunder 15-5 for the championship. The 4-1-1 Thunder dumped the number one-seeded MT Wildfire by a score of 8-4 in the quarterfinals.
In the best game of the day, we saw the fourth-seed Calgary Adrenaline take on the fifth-seeded Idaho Falls-based USA Explosion in a rematch from a tough game on Saturday. Calgary came from behind to beat the Explosion 5-4 in round-robin play. With revenge on their mind, Idaho Falls jumped on the Adrenaline early and used overpowering pitching to make it difficult for Calgary to get anything going in a 5-4 takeback game for the Falls’ crew.
The Explosion then had to return to Field Four for a semifinal with the Avalanche-Latrielle squad. In that game, a defensive pitcher’s duel, the Avalanche scored early to take the lead, but couldn’t shake the scrappy and well-coached Idaho nine. Missoula and the energy-sapping mid-afternoon summer sun eventually wore down a tiring USA pitching staff and won 3-2 in their most difficult test of the tournament.
In the U16 championship game, Missoula would go against the Kalispell Emeralds, who won two close games earlier in the day. The second-seeded Em’s beat PNW Scream 6-4, before beating the South Dakota United 6-5 in their semifinal. The Emeralds played their usual efficient, error-free style, but couldn’t match the Av’s superior hitting power, as the Missoula club took the U16 title in an 8-1 coronation game.
The U16 Avalanche had several outstanding Western Montana athletes contributing to their championship. Missoula Big Sky players included juniors Logan Latrielle and Elise Regas, along with sophomores Hayden Weaver, Sara Bjornson, and Hailey Nicoson. From Class AA state champion Glacier High is Olivia Warriner, and Class A champion Ryan Lucier, from Frenchtown, along with Logan McCrea of Polson and AdaRae Thomas of Manhattan.
In the U18 championship game, the second-seeded Hamilton Hotshots scored first, but the 406 Playmaker’s defense and the pitching of starter Ella Farrell gradually took over the game. Missoula Sentinel buoyed the 406 defense alumni Kennedy Dypwick and Billings West graduates Lileigh Nieto and Mya Boos. Last spring, Dypwick started all 44 games at shortstop for MSU-Billings, earning a .304 batting average, and netting 35 hits, 20 RBIs, and 21 runs in 115 at-bats. Nieto, a three-time Class AA all-state player, started 21 games in the outfield for North Dakota State, while Boos, a shortstop and the 2024 Co-Offensive Player of the Year in the Eastern AA, is at highly touted McNeese State. Farrell, the 2023 Montana Gatorade Player of the Year while competing for Kalispell Glacier, started 14 games for the College of Southern Idaho Golden Eagles this spring. Farrell had a good Freshman campaign, compiling a 7-4 record in 14 starts for CSI, and is currently the 406s' ace in her final summer of JO eligibility.
The Playmakers' bats were not overpowering, but with “small-ball” offensive play, they gradually built a 6-2 lead going into the seventh inning. Hamilton gave 406 some nervous moments with a seventh-inning homer, but the Makers made enough plays to hold on to a 6-3 Rumble championship victory.
Our final summer sports photography event was at the Western Class A American Legion Baseball Tournament from July 24-July 27, in Whitefish. We photographed a total of 12 of the 14 possible games, focusing on several client family athletes. In Thursday’s first round action, we saw four quality contests, beginning with the Bitterroot Bucs taking down the Missoula Mavericks by a score of 7-1. In the second matchup, the Cranbrook Bandits overcame a very tough Mission Valley club, winning by a score of 7-3. Then the Kalispell Lakers outscored the Libby Loggers 7-5, followed by a great game between the host Glacier Twins and the top-seeded Bitterroot Red Sox. After the Twins took a 4-3 lead in the third inning, the favored Sox came back with two runs in the fourth to secure a hard-fought 5-4 victory.
On Day Two of the tournament, we saw three games in which the offenses of the division's best teams got cranked up! In the first outing, the Libby Loggers overcame a 6-4 Glacier lead with a five-run fifth inning to beat the Twins 10-6 in loser-out action. In the afternoon/evening session, both the Bitterroot Bucs and Red Sox got big wins in their quarterfinal outings. The blue-clad Bucs dumped the Cranbrook Bandits 9-1, while the Red Sox shut out the Kalispell Lakers 10-0 in the final game of the day.
On Saturday, July 26, the best game of the day came in Kalispell’s 4-2 morning win over the Missoula Mavericks. The two starting hurlers, Kalispell’s George Schwan and Missoula’s Seamus Kane, battled through the first five innings, giving up a total of just six hits and five runs, all unearned, in the Laker’s win.
Other than the Laker’s three-run fourth inning, Kane kept the lid on Kalispell’s potent offense to keep the Mavericks in the game. Schwan surrendered four walks, but overall pitched a nice game in allowing just one of 29 Mavs’ batters to cross the plate in a 108 pitch outing. Kane, following a similar script, surrendered six base-on-balls, but gave up just two hits by a total of 25 Laker batters.
In the Laker’s decisive fourth inning, Dillon Wink and Miles Arrowsmith, who both reached base on Kane's walks, scored after Wyatt Sharp’s fly ball was dropped on an error by the Mav’s right fielder. Sharp later scored on a sacrifice fly to put Kalispell in control, up 4-1.
Kalispell’s Jake Hale came in in relief for the Lakers at the top of the seventh inning and gave up a single to Missoula’s Trevor Johnson, who later scored on an error. The Mavericks left two runners on base when Laker third baseman Tait Orme threw out Kieran Cooney at first to end the game.
In the American Legion Western A finale on Sunday, it was the Battle of the Bitterroot between the Red Sox, a team largely consisting of players from Hamilton, pitted against the Bucs, a conglomerate of Florence and Stevensville area athletes.
The Red Sox opened a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, when first baseman Cash Lawrence scored from third on an RBI by Reese Earp. In the bottom of the third inning, Lawrence’s fly ball single to centerfield was followed by his stealing second base and later getting a free pass to third on a wild pitch. A sacrifice fly ball to center by shortstop Jackson Lubke scored Lawrence to double the Red Sox's lead.
Not to be outdone, the Bucs scored twice in the top of the fourth inning, when back-to-back walks and a hit batsman by Red Sox pitcher Connor Quinn gave the Bucs a bases-loaded situation with no outs. Trevyn Bakken came in for the Red Sox in relief and was immediately tagged for an RBI bunt single by Cole Germane. Bakken issued a third walk of the inning to score Isaiah Testerman to tie the score at 2-2, but extinguished the Bucs’ rally with a strikeout and a groundout to end the inning.
The Red Sox retook the lead in their half of the inning, when Owen Marston’s two-out single brought in Brady DeMoss from third to go up 3-2. In the top of the sixth, with two outs, the Bucs’ Chase Wagner scored on a line drive single by Wheeler, which knotted the score at 3-3. Then, Red Sox catcher Elijah McNair-Neal scored on a close play at home after Jackson Lubke’s single to third base. Cash Lawrence added another run on a sacrifice hit by Boedy Tadvick, and Lubke made the final score at 6-3 on a fielding error by the Bucs' shortstop.
As we look back on the 2024-2025 sports year, we chronicled a total of 81 events during the period from August 2024 through July 2025. We hope you have enjoyed our highlights from the best of the best of those events, and we look forward to bringing you more history in 2025-26!