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Any image on our site available for sale to approved site visitors and registered clients. Start by clicking on the gallery cover photo and begin browsing our photography collections via the grid-based overview screen or click on images to view them singly or in a carousel. You may select your favorites, and save those to a private collection using your email address as you like! Once you have identified all your photo favorites, chose your package pricing option based on the total number of images desired and proceed to checkout using our secure CC/DC payment system. Our packages begin at $16 for three images, extending to our MAXPACK package option to purchase an entire gallery, which usually exceeds 50 quality images. Information provided upon payment, for your protection, is used to verify your payment. Once payment confirmation is received, we'll review your purchase and provide you with download permissions for your purchased digital images! The entire purchase and verification process is usually very quick! Your digital downloads can be just minutes away!
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Private Gallery Details
We specialize in custom, private galleries requested by clients from paid reservations! Clients with reservations are given top priority, and we'll do our best to fulfill your desires with quality photography, within your time requirements! Custom image galleries are generally available for your viewing within three-to-five business days. We'll send you an email notification with an invitation to a passworded gallery for your viewing and image selection processes. For those with a private gallery or an emailed invitation to view a gallery, you may use our People Finder to search for subjects based on face recognition! At the bottom of this screen is our private gallery entry portal. As applicable after receiving notification of your private gallery availability, enter your email address and the password to open your private image gallery! Images can be ordered using any of our package offers. We'll also provide quotes for our MAXPACK whole gallery purchase, based on the number of images and your client purchase history! It is guaranteed to be our best value!
2026 High School Football and Flag Footballl
Our collections of photographs from all the 2026 high school football and flag football action. Beginning in late August and proceeding through the season ending playoffs, see all our public galleries for football in this section. Private galleries for clients are accessed by private link sent by email messaging.
2026 Class AA Football - Glacier Wolfpack vs Billings West Bears
In a rematch of the 2025 state championship game, the West Bears kicked a field goal in overtime to exact a 6-3 victory over the home-standing Wolfpack
Acting Glacier head coach Jareth Wilson, who was filling in for the suspended head coach Grady Bennett, saw his defense dominate the Bears for much of the contest. Other than a 31-yard run by Bear running back Tyreke Jones, Billings West’s rushing attack was held in check at just 2.8 yards per carry. Bear quarterback Seth Williamson had 11 completions for 96 yards, but was under heavy duress by a harassing Wolfpack pass rush throughout much of the game.
Suffering poor field position, Billings West didn't advance the ball to Glacier’s side of the field until midway through the fourth quarter!
The Wolfpack offense, on the other hand, was able to move the ball into Bears territory several times. A stout Bears’ defense, with at least three Division-1 college signees, forced the Wolfpack to turn the ball over on downs and also snared two end zone interceptions of Cash Kiem passes.
After a scoreless first half, Glacier finally got on the board with a 30-yard field goal by Ty Sherrill late in the third period.
The Wolfpack threatened to go up 10-0 in the fourth quarter, following a short West punt from their own end zone.
On first down, Kiem lofted an arching aerial toward 6’3” wide receiver Cooper Pelc, who was sprinting down the right sideline, well ahead of Bear defensive back Caleb Durand.
At the goal line, the 6’0” Durand leapt high to wrestle the ball away from Pelc, which thwarted another Glacier scoring chance.
Starting at their own 20, West finally got a good drive going, as senior Paeten Swain had catches of 20 and 24 yards. The Bears advanced the ball to the Glacier 3-yard line, where the Pack line stuffed Jones for a two-yard loss on first down. A fierce Wolfpack pass rush then forced two errant passes by Williamson, and the Bears settled for a 22-yard field goal by Jaxon King.
After Glacier’s final drive failed to unknot the 3-3 deadlock, the game went into overtime with the Bears getting the ball first.
Glacier’s defense stopped the West offense inside the five, and the Bears had to settle for another short King field goal to go up 6-3.
On Glacier’s opening play in overtime, running back Trey Ramey knifed through a gap in the left side of the West defense to the four-yard line. The ecstatic partisan crowd celebrated as Glacier seemed to be poised for a dramatic season-opening win over the powerful eastern Montana foe.
Following a negative-yardage pass completion to the right sideline, a Keim pass on third down sailed high over receiver Tate Kahler in the back of the Bear end zone.
Coach Wilson could have gone for a game-tying field goal, but after a timeout, he decided to go for the win. On the final play of the game, Keim whipped a quick screen pass to Ramey on the left sideline.
As Ramey churned his way toward the goal line, a swarming Bear defense caused him to fumble the ball inside the one. The ball was recovered by Glacier’s Ryne Gillette, who was immediately covered by a pair of Bear defenders.
Following the play, members of the Wolfpack signaled touchdown, while West defenders were waving the pass incomplete and game over. After a short conference by game officials, the ball was determined to be short of the goal line.
West’s sideline exploded, and the Bears clinched a comeback victory to become the top-ranked team in Class AA.
2026 Class A Football - Columbia Falls vs Frenchtown
In this collection, we’re highlighting Columbia Falls against visiting Frenchtown in a battle of Western A powers.
The squads were scoreless in the first stanza, but Frenchtown scored on back-to-back possessions in the second quarter to take a 14-0 lead into halftime. Wide Receiver Cooper Michaud caught a 30-yard scoring pass from quarterback Cody Forthofer, and following an onside kick, snared a 50-yard touchdown aerial, doubling the Bronc lead.
Columbia Falls’ running back Trip Ross scored on a short run in the third period, but the PAT kick failed, leaving the Cats down 14-6 going into the fourth stanza.
Forthofer found wide-out Brody Hardy for a 14-yard touchdown early in the period to push the Broncs' lead to 21-6. Columbia Falls quarterback Banyan Johnston brought the Wildcats to within one score, tossing a 46-yard TD pass to Jory Hill.
After the Columbia Falls defense forced the Broncs to punt on their next possession, the Wildcats mounted what could have been a tying touchdown. That effort was thwarted, however, by Bronc linebacker Ean Johnson, who scored a 52-yard pick-six touchdown with 1:25 remaining in the game.
The victorious Broncs dominated much of the game with outstanding defense, led by linebackers Brody Reynolds and David Brant, who both totaled 12 tackles. Senior strong safety Cole Pfahler had 11 stops, while senior defensive lineman Colin Finley had two of the Broncs' five quarterback sacks.
The Broncs offense was led by brothers Cody and Jake Forthofer, who combined for 145 yards rushing. Quarterback Cody, just a sophomore, passed for 130 yards on nine completions, with Michaud catching a total of 7 balls for 117 yards.
Columbia Falls’ Johnston completed 19 of 38 passing attempts for 291 yards and a touchdown, and struggled in at least three red-zone trips, in addition to throwing the late-game interception.
The Wildcats' running game netted just 87 yards on 33 carries, with Ross and Johnston splitting the majority of those attempts. Hill caught seven passes for 104 yards to lead the Columbia Falls receiving corps.
Ross, a senior, had an outstanding night on defense, totaling 18 tackles, while fellow linebacker, sophomore Kyler Voermans, added 12. The two combined to sack Johnston for an 8-yard loss.
2026 Class AA Football - Glacier Wolfpack vs Butte Bulldogs
Coming off a staggering 42-0 road shutout over Bozeman on the road in Week 2, the Glacier Wolfpack returned to Legends Stadium on September 11 for their Western AA league home opener. Against Butte High School, ArtwestimageSports.com saw Glacier extend their shutout streak, cruising past the Bulldogs in a decisive 37-0 shutout victory.
The Glacier versus Butte football game was a definitive statement of intent from head coach Grady Bennett’s second-ranked squad, demonstrating that Glacier’s formula of an explosive, balanced offense paired with an unyielding defense makes them a tier-one contender for back-to-back Class AA championships.
From the opening kickoff, Glacier established dominance in the trenches. The tone was dictated primarily by the Wolfpack defense, which consistently collapsed the pocket and eliminated any semblance of a rushing lane for the Bulldogs. This pressure culminated in a nightmare evening for Butte quarterback Raeder Grey, who spent much of his night trying to negotiate Glacier’s pressure.
Offensively, the running game chipped away at the Bulldogs' front seven, while the Wolfpack passing game was opportunistic in “taking what they give you”.
The first score of the game came on a pass from Cash Keim to Kyle West, who scooted 22 yards for a touchdown on the Wolfpack’s first possession. Shortly afterwards, the Bulldog long-snapper zipped a ball over the punter's head, resulting in a safety to give the Pack a 9-0 lead late in the first quarter.
In the second quarter, halfback Trey Ramey extended the Glacier lead with a 32-yard run through the Bulldog secondary. On Glacier’s next possession, the Pack drove to the Bulldog 12, when quarterback Cash Keim threaded a pass over the middle to tight end Hunter Daniels, who evaded a couple of tacklers to find paydirt. Eli Imperato later dashed off right tackle and outran the Butte secondary for a 15-yard score with 2:50 left in the first half.
The Pack went to the locker room at halftime with a 30-0 lead, to plan what effectively was an offensive ground assault and a steady diet of defensive pressure in the second half.
Butte had its best chance to score early in the third quarter, but back-to-back sacks from Lincoln Ledingham and Neil Pepe crushed any chance the Dogs would break the Pack’s scoreless streak.
After an Imperato interception off Grey, he added his second rushing score of the game on a 12-yard run with 1:38 left in the third stanza.
The fourth quarter saw both squads substitute freely, with the second and third unit players see playing time in a scoreless final twelve minutes.
2026 Class AA Football - Flathead Braves vs Helena Bengals
Featuring an astonishing finish in Kalispell on September 18. The No. 5 Kalispell Flathead Braves spent nearly 40 minutes dominating their Homecoming Game, opening up the contest with explosive plays like Leum Saisbury's 28-yard first-quarter touchdown reception.
Shortly after, capitalizing on a Helena High interception, Barker struck again by launching a 43-yard touchdown pass to Kellen Mouat, stunning the Bengals and giving Flathead a quick 14-0 lead.
Flathead kept Helena at arm's length deep into the second half. Trailing 30-17 in the fourth quarter, the Bengals finally found their spark and began their furious rally on the strength of Brave turnovers and a huge fourth-down pass interference call.
Flathead had a successful drive going in Bengal territory when Helena’s Gracen Silvonen intercepted an untimely Barker pass and returned it 40 yards to the Flathead ten-yard line. Running back Brayden Garza then scored on a short run to cut the deficit to 30-24 with six minutes remaining in the contest.
After forcing a Brave punt, Gracen Silvonen hauled in a short pass from his brother Reese and cruised 50 yards to give the Bengals a first down at the Flathead 30.
Facing a fourth and 9 from the Brave 19, Reece Silvonen’s desperation toss to 6’5” tight end Tyse Todorovich near the goal line was whistled for a pass interference call to give the Bengals a fresh set of downs.
With 40 seconds remaining, the Bengals faced another high-stakes fourth down situation from the Flathead 10-yard line. During a timeout, Helena coach Dane Broadhead drew up a trick play, having Todorovich take a jet sweep handoff from Silvonen. Sprinting toward the right sideline, Todorovich pivoted to look upfield, where he spotted wideout Seth Kiser, who was standing uncovered in the end zone. A split second later, Kiser was celebrating a tying touchdown catch with excited teammates.
With the score deadlocked at 30-30, kicker Rex Snezek split the uprights to put his team up by a point with 35 seconds to play in the game.
Benefiting from a good kickoff return, Flathead’s Barker scrambled to advance the ball to the Bengal 37-yard line. With 4 seconds remaining, Flathead passed on a long field goal attempt, opting for a Hail Mary Barker aerial. The play never transpired, however, as Barker was sacked by Kiser to clinch a remarkable Bengals’ comeback victory.
While Billings West endured a gritty defensive battle and CMR displayed a brilliant tactical upset, neither game matched the sheer psychological resilience and execution of Helena High's comeback triumph.
For its drama, its execution, and its electrifying final minutes, the Bengals' 31-30 stunner stands alone as the best Montana Class AA high school football played in the first half of the season.
2026 Class A Football - Columbia Falls Wildcats at Bigfork Vikings
On Friday, September 25, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was in Bigfork working for clients by taking in a rain-drenched Viking Homecoming game against Columbia Falls. The Cats shook off the rust from a bye week to turn a defensive battle into a 45-7 drubbing of their North Valley foes.
The two squads slogged through an early game downpour, where the Wildcats took a 16-7 lead midway through the second quarter. It was then that the rain diminished and gave way to a massive rainbow that arched across Bigfork’s stadium at dusk.
As the weather improved, the potent Wildcats passing attack came to life, scoring 29 unanswered points by the end of the third stanza. Receiver Jory Hill caught two touchdown passes, and Ross scored on a 47-yard jaunt in the third quarter. Johnston completed 13 of 20 passes for 192 yards, and combined with Ross for 176 yards rushing and two scores.
Proving his all-around value, Ross also handled special teams scoring duties, booting a 23-yard field goal, kicking 2 extra points, and punching in two 2-point conversions on the ground.
Ross and Kyler Voermans totaled 13 and 11 tackles, respectively, and defensive end Daniel Contreras had two of the teams 5 quarterback sacks. Linebacker Jaxson Cadwell had two interceptions, with his first resulting in a 60-yard pick-six touchdown early in the third quarter.
Bigfork quarterback Alex Ochs completed just 7 of 23 pass attempts, for 111 yards. Ochs was picked off three times, but did manage a 50-yard scoring pass to wideout Cavin Wiest in the second quarter.
Sophomore Michael Farrier led the Viking ground game with 44 yards on seven carries. Senior Rye Rodriguez, the Homecoming King, caught three passes for 69 yards to lead the receiving corps. The Vikings got 124 yards in kick returns by Wiest and Rodriguez, with each getting highlight returns on the Wildcat kick coverage teams.
2026 High School Soccer Collections
In this section we're featuring our Fall 2026 high school soccer collections. We'll be at several volleyball matches in our near the Flathead Valley beginning in late August, through the playoffs! I you have would like to have a private collection created for your athlete, request a session using our Contact Menu. Private collections are accessed through an emailed link sent directly to the requesting client. They will not appear in this section.
2026 Class A Men's Soccer - Whitefish Soccer Showcase
ArtwestimageSports.com staff, like the area Class A soccer clubs, got their 2026 high school season underway during the final weekend of August, with Whitefish hosting an eight-team invitational at Smith Fields. The men’s and women’s teams from Whitefish, Bigfork, Park (Livingston), and Billings Central each played two matches during an eight-game rotation on Friday and Saturday, August 28 and 29.
Our team attended at least part of all the matches, which was our first high school action on the pitch of the 2026 season. In this collection of our Photographer’s Favorites from the men’s action at the Whitefish soccer showcase, we’ve got highlights of the Bulldogs’ matches with Billings Central and Park, as well as Bigfork’s contest with Billings Central.
The host Bulldogs opened the tourney coming out on the short end of a 1-0 score against Park on Friday, but rebounded to outplay Billings Central for much of a contest that resulted in a 1-1 draw. Bigfork lost both matches, scoring lone goals in 4-1 and 5-1 defeats, at the hands of Billings Central and Park, respectively.
We were impressed with the steady play of 2-0 Park, with their defense doing much of the work in both of their matches.
Billings Central has excellent skill players, including all-stater Cal Weisen up front and brothers Sawyer and Holden Guenthner roving midfield. The Rams' sophomore goalkeeper Colton Tourtlotte was fronted by a trio of defenders that average 6’3” and presented challenges for the much smaller Bulldog front line.
The Dawgs, however, counter with a solid goaltender of their own in junior Ben Nelson, who was solid against both Park on Friday and Central on Saturday.
Although the squad boasts ten seniors, most of them saw their first significant time in the starting lineup last weekend.
As usual, the strength of the Bulldogs was in their overall team speed and tenacity of possession play, particularly on defense.
Three seniors form a sizable and skilled backline and, largely, along with Nelson, are the best unit on the squad. All three are six-footers with athleticism, with Quinn Powers, William Dohman, and Tyler Larkin putting the clamps on one of Class A’s best offenses on Saturday.
The Bulldog offense, led by senior Chance Isles and junior Graysen Rembaugh, along with senior mid-fielders Max Brown, Tristan Irwin, and Luca Duffy, may take some time to gel.
2026 Class A Women's Soccer - Whitefish Showcase
At the Whitefish 2026 soccer season kickoff on August 28-29 sat Smith Fields in Whitefish. On Friday, the Central Rams posted a pair of shutout wins, overwhelming Bigfork 8-0 and shutting down a decent Rangers squad 2-0. Saturday, Park downed the Valkyries 4-1, and in the tourney closer, Billings Central outscored Whitefish 2-1.
Not having the explosive plays the men’s matches offered, the women’s teams rely much more on precision passing and physical play while contesting for possession of the ball. Speed, however, is the common denominator between the two games, and the Bulldogs, Rams, and Rangers seemed to have plenty of it.
Billings Central boasts its leading scorer from their 2025 semifinal team, junior Emerson Dull, who had ten goals for the Rams last year. She scored a hat trick against the Valkyries on Friday and followed that up with both scores against the Bulldogs on Saturday. Dull was supported by three second-team Eastern A middles: seniors Lizzie Rah and Avery Sorenson, as well as junior Maycee Krebs. To us, the Rams looked like the team to beat in the Eastern A.
We liked Park’s Loralei Iversen, who powered the Livingston offense with two goals against Bigfork on Saturday. The Rangers, who lost 1-0 in the semifinals to Bigfork last fall, will likely rely on their defense to challenge for the Eastern A title. Bigfork, with largely a new starting lineup, struggled to get much offense going, with senior forward Kaitlyn Gembala and all-league middle Michaela Anderson leading the way.
Whitefish has just three senior regulars on the squad, with defender Delila Vine and forwards Anna Boyson and Mahala Horton. The Bulldogs rely on a core of junior and sophomore veterans coming off last season’s 9-3-1 squad that finished third in the tough Northern A in 2025.
The Bulldogs have two 2025 all-staters in sophomore middle Atley Bingham and junior defender Sage Ordway, while sophomore middles Neva Sliman and Adelle Flynn were second-team Northern A selections last year.
Sliman, who had a team-leading 16 goals last year, was prominent up front last weekend, scoring the Bulldogs' lone goal against Central on a penalty kick. Also prominent was junior goalkeeper Ginger Bergland, an all-state hurdler on the women’s track team, who was between the pipes for the first time for the Bulldogs.
Bergland posted a shutout in her first outing against Park, and after some early jitters against Billings Central, settled in to shut out the Rams in the second half. With Ordway and sophomore Barrett Clark fronting Bergland this fall, the Bulldogs defense will again be strong in 2026.
2026 Class AA Soccer - Glacier Wolfpack vs Butte High
In our first collection from Class AA soccer matches, we feature Glacier High versus Butte. Glacier’s women are very young, with just one senior on the squad, defender Kylie Shine. A trio of juniors is currently tops in scoring for the Wolfpack, led by Gracie Winkler with six goals, while Lucy Holloway and Addison Brisendine both have three. The Pack defense, led by junior goaltender Aerin Todd, has given up four goals in four matches, with the latest in a 1-0 shutout loss to top-seeded Sentinel.
The Bravettes are also very young, with seniors Azalea Bailey and Adeline Schneider heading a squad that has only scored four goals in six matches. Junior Izzy Amundsen leads the Bravettes in scoring with two goals, with Camas Bushnell and Natalie Smith having one goal apiece.
The Glacier Wolfpack men have a host of goal scorers led by sophomore Zander Schmautz, who has seven goals and four assists in five matches. Senior Madrid Stephan is second with five goals, while junior Brecken Evenson and sophomore Liam Swank have three scores apiece. A total of six team members have a single to their credit. Junior Jack Young is in goal for Glacier and has allowed five goals in five matches. Their lone loss came against Sentinel last week, a 0-2 blanking in Missoula.
2026 Class A Women's Soccer - Columbia Falls vs Bigfork
In this collection, ArtwestimageSports.com staff features the defending Class A state champion Columbia Falls Wildkat women’s soccer squad. The Kats completed an undefeated season last fall with a 4-0 win over Bigfork in the state title match, and are off to an 8-1-1 record thus far this fall.
The Wildkats own three victories over Class A women’s powers Billings Central, Park, and Hamilton, with their lone loss to a very tough Whitefish squad, by a score of 2-1 on September 19.
A week before that match, we were at Flip Darling Stadium in Columbia Falls, where the Wildkats took on 2025 state runner-up Bigfork in their Northwest A Conference season opener.
Columbia Falls returns just five seniors from last season’s championship squad, including 2025 all-state players Riley Byrd, Alexa Friski, Onnikka Lawrence, and Tatiana Raymond.
Against the current Bigfork side, Byrd and Raymond traded assists in the opening 15 minutes, as both scored on rushes to give the Wildkats an early 2-0 lead.
Bigfork responded with a goal by Michaela Anderson at the 30-minute mark, and the game went to intermission with the Wildkats owning a slim 2-1 advantage.
Coach Thomas Clark’s charges came out of the break on fire, with Lawrence taking an assist from Evie Dorr to score four minutes into the second half.
Six minutes later, Wildkat forward June Johnston, a sophomore, scored on a breakaway off a feeding pass by Lawrence.
Ahead 4-1, the Wildkats’ midfield lineup pressed forward, putting heavy pressure on Bigfork goalkeeper Allie Vick. That resulted in two quick goals by Lawrence, giving her a hat trick in the span of just 12 minutes.
The Valkyries took advantage of the advanced formation by the Kats, as forward Tate Welch slipped past the Falls defense to fire a shot past goalie Medora Dahlstrom to make the score 6-2 midway through the second half.
Johnston scored her second goal six minutes later to squelch any hopes of a Bigfork rally. In the final minutes, Byrd and Piper Holm each scored to make the final score 9-2 in a convincing win.
The Wildkats defense, led by captain Friske and junior Ella Robbins, limited the Valkyries to just five shots on goal and yielded just one Bigfork corner kick.
The Kats fired a total of 20 shots against Vick and powered a couple of scores off five corner kicks by Byrd.
The Wildkats currently trail Whitefish in the early Northwest A standings at 5-1, with the Bulldogs still undefeated in league play at 7-0. The teams meet again in Columbia Falls on October 3, in a match that could likely determine the conference championship.
2026 High School Volleyball Collections
In this section we're featuring our Fall 2026 high school volleyball collections. We'll be at several volleyball matches in our near the Flathead Valley beginning in late August, through the playoffs! I you have would like to have a private collection created for your athlete, request a session using our Contact Menu. Private collections are accessed through an emailed link sent directly to the requesting client. They will not appear in this section.
2026 Women's Volleyball Season Opener - Flathead vs Whitefish
ArtwestimageSports.com staff got their 2026 fall volleyball slate underway with the Flathead Bravettes hosting the Whitefish Bulldogs in a rare interclass matchup. The Class A Bulldogs were just two seasons away from their last state tournament berth and have had good teams since. The Bravettes, meanwhile, have not been at the state tournament since 2018, when they placed fourth overall.
In the other match, the Glacier Wolfpack hosted the Bozeman Hawks, who finished third in last season’s Class AA state championship tournament. The Pack were at state the last two seasons, and managed a victory both times before bowing out in the consolation rounds.
In this post, we’re featuring our Photographer’s Favorites from the Flathead/Whitefish contest, which was played before a big crowd of boisterous FHS students.
With the support of their enthusiastic backers, the Bravettes jumped out to a quick 5-0 advantage on the serve of sophomore Addie Oyler. Whitefish, on the strength of service aces by Annabelle Barrile and Edolie Petersen and strong front-line defense, took a 10-7 advantage. From there, the host Bravettes struggled to score, and an inspired Bulldog side went on to win Set 1, 25-15.
In game two, the Bravettes turned the tables, breaking open a tight game with the Bulldogs up 10-9 a third of the way through. Senior setter Anna Bain then stepped to the service line and served six consecutive points to put the Orange and Black up 15-10. In a flurry of kills in quick succession, a trio of Bravette hitters: junior Makenna Aldridge, sophomore Brynn Kossman, and freshman Bridget Ployhar put the finishing touches on a 25-15 rebound win.
In Set 3, the teams battled for the lead as both offenses got cranked up in what was the best game of the match. Whitefish’s 6’0” freshman hitter Abby Brooks and 5’9” sophomore Avery Orme gradually took over, with resounding spikes or off-speed shots that either trickled to the floor or tooled off Flathead’s block.
After the Bulldogs’ 25-15 third-set win, the Bulldogs came out fast in Game 4, opening a 7-1 lead before Flathead’s new coach Carol Asplund called a time-out. The Whitefish scoring train failed to lose momentum, with Brooks, Orme, and junior Annabelle Barrile trading kills to widen their lead to 15-8. After another Flathead timeout, Flathead’s Cheyenne Heino served four consecutive points to bring the Bravette’s within six at 20-14. After consecutive kills by Brooks and Barrile, senior Claire Easterly scored the penultimate point on a block to push Flathead to the edge at 24-16.
Whitefish, quarterbacked by junior setter Allie Shors, now in her third season as the squad’s 5-1 setter, led her squad with a total of 20 assists, 16 digs, and six kills. Her left-handed swipe at the end of the final frame nailed the Flathead coffin shut with a 25-16 match-clinching kill.
Shors’ skill as a setter was reflected in the Bulldogs’ balanced scoring. The Dawgs, who totaled 34 kills, were led by Barrile with 10, while Brooks added 9, and Avery Orme 8.
Sophomore Hannah Szady led the Whitefish defense with 18 digs, and tied Orme in blocks with three apiece. Brooks had two of her team’s total of five aces.
The Bravettes got 14 kills from Aldrich and 10 from Kossman, with both benefiting from Flathead’s 6-2 setting tandem of Anna Bain and Cheyenne Heino. Bain, a senior four-year starter, had 22 of their combined total of 34 assists. The Bravettes totaled 35 kills during the match.
Flathead’s junior libero, Riley Judd, was active on the back line, posting a total of 27 digs, while adding three service aces. Junior Reagan Castillo tallied 15 digs, of a team total of 60 digs.
We were impressed by the overall play of both teams. When their respective offenses stayed in system, both showed significant power, with Whitefish’s Brooks and Flathead’s Aldrich having the ability to hit over the opposition’s block. Barrile’s hitting ability has improved markedly since last season, having developed a top-spin spike. Orme, with her quickness and explosive jumping ability, dominated the middle of the net, while Flathead’s tandem of Kossman and Oyler both showed the ability to score from the outside.
Whitefish’s backline defense was the difference, in our opinion, as junior libero Emy Hanson and senior specialists Meghan Amick and Sofia Christ consistently dug up Flathead’s attack. Although the Bulldogs, other than Brooks, don’t have a lot of size, their lineup produced 10 blocks against the Bravettes.
Flathead, with only three seniors, has a lineup capable of keeping pace in Western AA volleyball competition. As their defense develops behind a front line with five hitters at or over 5’11”, Bain and Heino will excel in setting to what could be a high-powered Bravette offense.
2026 Class A Volleyball - Whitefish Bulldogs vs Frenchtown Broncs
In this collection, we’ve got imagery from Whitefish’s big win over Frenchtown in their home opener in early September. The match could be a preview of a potential divisional rematch early in November, as both squads are clearly in play for seeds at the Class A tournament in Bozeman.
Whitefish defeated the Broncs, who finished in third place in the 2025 state tourney, by scores of 25-22, 27-25, and 25-17 in a very competitive match. The last time a Whitefish volleyball squad defeated Frenchtown was in 2020. That was when the Bulldogs executed a 3-0 sweep over the Broncs in the first round of the Western A divisional tourney.
This year's Bulldog crew, under long-time coach Addy Connelly, was led by setter Allie Shors, who had an outstanding game against the Broncs. The 5'10" junior totaled 20 assists, 15 digs, and 3 service aces. Freshman Abby Brooks and sophomore Avery Orme paced both the Dawgs' offense and defense at the net, combining for 16 kills and 5 blocks. Junior libero Emmy Hanson led the Whitefish backline with 14 digs, while all-around junior Annabelle Barrile knocked down 8 kills and dug up 8 shots.
The Broncs were led by senior hitter Isabelle Madland, who had 9 kills, with Montana Grizzly recruit Rachel Walls knocking down 7. Walls led the Frenchtown defense with 17 digs, and also had a team-high 5 service aces. Junior libero Jezzy Palmer contributed 13 defensive stops. Setters Blake Hardy and Maren Wexler combined for 31 assists.
2026 Class A Volleyball - Bigfork Valkyries vs Polson Pirates
ArtwestimageSports.com staff brings you our Photographer’s Favorites from Polson’s win over Bigfork from earlier this month. The contest, played on the Valkyries home floor, was the best we’ve seen thus far this season, and provided for some exciting imagery from beginning to end.
Polson's success was the result of a potent offensive attack led by Corley, but the defense stood out as the Pirates came back from a 0-2 deficit to win the match. Black led the defensive effort by totaling 27 digs and contributed a team-leading three service aces. McCrea was also instrumental, getting 21 digs and scoring six kills on offense.
Corley was the leader of the Polson attackers, totaling 20 kills, with Todd just behind at 18. Taylor-Jefferson had 27 assists, with Jaeger totaling 13. Polson pounded out 52 kills and a total of 87 digs in the five-set match.
Bigfork setter Payton Despain and all-league returnee Raegan Waller led the Valkyries in assists and kills, respectively. Despain totaled 34 assists, dug up 12 balls, and got seven kills in what was an outstanding match. Waller had 13 kills, totaled 26 digs, and had two service aces.
Bigfork hitters Emily Wisman and Lillia Suffia totaled 10 and 9 kills, respectively. Junior libero Kenley Wheeler played hustling defense on the backline, digging up 24 shots. The Valkyries totaled 46 kills and a resounding 98 digs.
2026 Summer Kalispell Emeralds Softball Tournament
In this collection we've got softball action at the Kalispell Emeralds Softball Tournament held at Kidsports in Kalispell, Montana June 12-14.
2026 Emeralds Smash Girl's Softball Tournament - U16-18 Division
In this collection we've got softball action in the U16-U18 Age Division, including action from the Kalispell Emeralds' U16 squad, as well as the three that traveled from Calgary Alberta. The division was won by the Calgary Adrenaline U18-Johnston club, with the Kaizen U17-Setter nine winning the Silver Bracket.
2026 Emeralds Smash Girl's Softball Tournament - U14 Division
In this collection we've got softball action in the U14 Age Division, including action from the Kalispell Emeralds' U14-Stickney squad, as well as teams from Idaho and the Bitterroot Valley. The division was won by the Mission Valley U14 team, with the North Idaho Chaos-Hemmah nine winning the Silver Bracket.
2026 Emeralds Smash Girl's Softball Tournament - U12 Division
In this collection we've got softball action in the U12 Age Division, including action from the Kalispell Emeralds' U12 Hunter and Waverek squads, as well as the several that came from Spokane, North Idaho, Great Falls, and Missoula. The division was won by the Emeralds-Hunt U12 team overcoming the Spokane Epic-Buscher team in a 13-12 marathon. Mission Valley won the Silver Bracket.
2026 Emeralds Smash Girl's Softball Tournament - U10 Division
In this collection we've got softball action in the U10 Age Division, including action from the Kalispell Emeralds-Spratling squad, as well as two that came from Spokane and North Idaho. The division was won by the Emeralds team, who beat the C-town Rebels for the championship.
2026 High School Softball and Baseball Collections
Our Spring 2026 sports collections for softball and baseball in Western Montana. See highlight games, teams, and athletes in these custom collections.
2026 Class A Baseball - Bigfork Vikings vs Polson Pirates
On Tuesday, May 12, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was back at Beacon Field in Bigfork, covering the Vikings’ baseball Senior Night game with the Polson Pirates.
The Pirates' Cole Wadsworth led off the game with a single, then stole second before being driven in to score on a single by starting pitcher Cody Haggard.
The Vikings secured the third out, and then got a leadoff double from second baseman Rye Rodriguez, but then suffered three consecutive strikeouts on the arm of an overpowering Haggard to finish the first stanza down 1-0.
Viking starting hurler Max Shara and his defense mowed down the next three Pirate batters in the top of the second inning. Then Bigfork shortstop Grady Campbell slammed a one-out double to get into scoring position, but Haggard responded by striking out Bigfork’s Holland Jantzen and getting catcher Wyatt Hickey to pop out to left fielder Hunter Luedtke.
Wadsworth stepped to the plate with one out in the third inning and promptly smacked a Shara fastball over the centerfield fence to double the Pirate lead to 2-0. After a Holden Emerson single, Bigfork responded with a well-executed 4-6-3 double play to end the top half of the inning.
In the Bigfork half of the third stanza, Ryder Hamilton walked, and Rye Rodriguez was hit by a Haggard pitch to get two runners on base. Shara then hit into a 5-4-3 double play, and Hayden Meyer popped out to right field to keep their goose egg on the scoreboard.
The Vikings then gave up a single to Noah Agliano, but took advantage of two deft pickups by Mayer at third base, who threw out Paxson and Brayson Dumont at first.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Thor’s lightening finally struck for the Vikings, as Mason Lewis walked and later scored, as did Cavin Weist after a passed ball by Polson catcher Holden Emerson.
Haggard proceeded to get three Bigfork popouts to end the fourth inning, and after a scoreless fifth inning, the score remained knotted at 2-2 entering the sixth stanza.
Polson’s Haggard opened the inning with a double, and Paxson Dumont singled to set up an RBI situation for teammate Hunter Luedtke. Luedtke popped out, scoring Haggard, and Dumont later scored on a throwing error at first base.
Down 4-2 in the bottom of the sixth, the Vikings took advantage of a wild pitch by Haggard to score Hayden Meyer in a close play at the plate. The Pirates then committed a throwing error at first on a ground ball by first baseman Holland Janzen. Janzen ended up at second base, but Cavin Weist crossed the plate to tie the score at 4-4.
With two Vikings in scoring position, Pirate coach Brad Fisher inserted reliever Liam Jackson, who promptly struck out two batters to end the Bigfork threat.
With the game hanging in the balance at 4-all in the seventh inning, the Pirates came to the plate against a tiring Shara. After singles by Emerson and Jackson, Haggard reached first base on a throwing error to load the bases. Paxson Dumont then walked to bring in a run, and Luedtke then executed a bunt single to score three runs to give the Pirates an 8-4 advantage.
Shara was relieved by Lewis in the middle of the Polson scoring spree, and Luedtke scored on an error to complete a five-run inning for the Pirates, pushing their lead to 9-4.
Pirate reliever Jackson struck out the Viking side in the bottom of the seventh inning to put away Polson’s eleventh win of the season.
Haggard finished the day 2-for-4 at the plate for Polson, with a pair of runs and one RBI. Wadsworth was 2-for-5, with 2 runs and 2 RBI’s. Paxson Dumont was 2-for-3 with 2 runs and an RBI. Emerson contributed three hits, including a double, and scored the first run in the Pirate seventh.
Haggard threw 106 pitches against 25 Viking batters, earning six strikeouts against five walks. He surrendered all three Bigfork hits, but gave up just one earned run in an overall good outing. Jackson was a perfect five-for-five, striking out all five Viking batters faced.
Bigfork’s Shara threw 106 pitches against 31 batters, striking out two, and giving up no walks. Shara was touched for nine hits and seven runs, with three of those earned. Lewis pitched against six batters in relief during the seventh inning, surrendering one hit and two runs on 25 total pitches.
Bigfork had a tough day at the plate, getting just three hits on 30 total at-bats. Weist was 2-for-3 and scored two of the Viking runs. Mayer had one hit and scored a run, with Lewis rounding out the scoring following a walk. The Vikings struck out 11 times and committed 7 errors on defense.
2026 Class AA Crosstown Baseball - Flathead Braves vs Glacier Wolfpack
On one of the most pleasant evenings of the spring, the two teams battled for over three hours in the first, and perhaps one of the best games in the history of the series.
After a scoreless first inning, the Wolfpack pushed across five runs on hits by Teagan Dixon, Beau Schultz, and Max Weber in the top of the second stanza. Glacier, 6-2 overall and 2-1 in Western AA play, jumped out to a 5-0 lead against Flathead’s starting pitcher Eli Coopman.
In the bottom of the inning, Coopman and Miles Arrowsmith hit consecutive doubles to score two runs and bring the Braves within three at 5-2. The Wolfpack, however, quickly regained its five-run advantage with two runs in the top of the third.
In the bottom of the inning, Glacier starter Kaeden Kahler issued a walk, and Liam Rech doubled to put a runner in scoring position. Leum Saisbury’s double drove in two runs, and Micah Engle singled to put Flathead runners on first and third with the score at 7-4.
Arrowsmith blasted his second double later in the inning to tie the game at seven, and the Braves pushed in two more runs before the Pack could extinguish a Braves’ seven-run stanza.
Flathead retained the 9-7 lead through the top of the fourth, as Coopman and the Braves' defense held the Pack scoreless in their half of the inning.
Flathead stayed hot in the bottom half, batting around their lineup, with Dillon Wink getting two base-knock RBIs to help build a 13-7 cushion.
After Glacier scored a run in their half of the fifth, Flathead loaded the bases in front of Arrowsmith, who again doubled to clear the sacks and help build a 16-8 lead.
In the top of the sixth inning, the Wolfpack began taking pitches as the evening darkened with the setting sun. The Braves on queue, obliged with two walks, which triggered a string of Braves relievers. By the game’s end, Brave’s manager, Rich Burland, inserted three relief pitchers: Landon Jacobsen, followed by Liam Rech, and finally Miles Arrowsmith during the marathon session. Before the dust cleared, the Braves' pitching combo had surrendered seven walks and seven runs before getting the third Wolfpack out in the inning.
The Braves, shaken by the Wolfpack rally in the top half of the inning, failed to score against Glacier reliever Max Weber in the bottom of the inning.
With the Braves still up 16-15, Wolfpack catcher Brady Buckmaster led off the seventh by taking yet another walk by Arrowsmith. Pinch runner Zane Huff came in for Buckmaster and immediately stole second and advanced to third on a passed ball. With Huff in scoring position, Arrowsmith was within an out from ending the game when he was called for a balk to hand the Pack a tying run.
In the bottom of the seventh, Weber recorded two outs, and it looked like the game would be headed for extra innings. Coopman came to the plate with bad intentions, having already gone 2 for 2, and promptly doubled to put himself in scoring position.
Rattled, Weber proceeded to give up two walks to Arrowsmith and Fischer Lee to load the bases. With a crowd of around 300 cheering fans cheering for both squads, the game’s outcome came down squarely on the shoulders of Flathead junior Dillon Wink. The Braves' leadoff hitter had already gone 2 for 4 and netted 2 RBIs before that at-bat, so he was more than up to the task.
Wink proceeded to hit a Weber fastball to shallow left field. Coming from third base, Coopman, celebrating the entire 90 feet, culminated his game-winning trot by jump stomping on home plate. He was overrun by his bench teammates as they ran toward Wink, who was mobbed between the pitching mound and first base.
2026 Class A Baseball - Whitefish Bulldogs vs Columbia Falls Wildcats
Wednesday, April 29, at Smith Fields in Whitefish, we took in the Bulldogs Northwest AA league game with Columbia Falls.
The two rivals exchanged excellent defensive plays in the first two innings last week, but the Bulldogs put two runs on the board on a Luke Dalen groundout in the bottom of the third inning.
Before Dalen’s at-bat, Reyd Hobart and Drew Queen drew walks off Wildcat starter Jett Pitts to get into scoring position. Columbia Falls first baseman Zeke Dunn tagged out Dalen and fired the ball across the diamond to third baseman Wyatt Dodson. The ball came in hot just as Queen was arriving from second base. The ball sailed through Dodson's attempted snare, giving Queen a free pass to score.
The Wildcats responded in the top of the fourth inning, when Lincoln Fisher drove in his brother Caden from third base to cut the Bulldog lead in half at 2-1.
Columbia Falls scored the tying run in the top of the fifth inning, and that started a run of six consecutive runs to break open the game. A triple by Jaxson Cadwell drove in two runs, but the cavalcade of runs came following a couple of bunt singles by the Wildcats. Jett Pitts added an RBI double later in the inning to put the Bulldogs down 7-2 at the end of the inning.
Pitts started the game for the Wildcats and pitched the first six innings, walking two and striking out six, while surrendering the two Bulldog runs. Tayvyn Beach pitched the final stanza for the Wildcats, walking one batter and striking out another to finish it. Pitts finished with 88 pitches to 24 batters, including 57 called strikes, while Beach totaled 14 tosses against a trio of Bulldogs.
Whitefish starter Patrick Orme pitched the first four innings for the Bulldogs and gave up seven hits and one run, while walking two. Orme pitched to 23 Wildcat batters on a total of 65 pitches in a very efficient outing. Reed Boyer took over at the top of the fifth inning and was the victim of the Columbia Falls scoring onslaught, giving up three walks, four hits, and all six runs in the inning.
Cullen Wallace took over for Boyer and secured the final out in the fifth, and allowed two hits in a scoreless sixth inning. Closer Gavin Knapp pitched the final frame for the Bulldogs and allowed two hits and the final Columbia Falls run to bring the final score to 8-2.
Columbia Falls had a total of 15 hits in the game, with Pitts, Cadwell, Dodson, and Lincoln Fisher all getting three each. Whitefish totaled just four hits, by Orme, Dalen, Finn Ryan, and Carter Godsey. Orme got the only extra-base hit for the Bulldogs.
2026 Class AA Softball - Glacier Wolfpack vs Big Sky Eagles
Thursday, April 30, the Glacier Wolfpack were at home against the Big Sky Eagles.
We expected to see an offensive shoot-out, as the weather that day was near perfect for mid-season sports in Kalispell. Both the Eagles and the Pack boast high-powered offenses, with accomplished hitters throughout their respective lineups.
The contest quickly evolved into a pitcher’s duel, however, as Wolfpack starter, junior Olivia Warriner, and the Eagles’ freshman hurler, Peyton Walters, were pitching shutouts through four innings. Both worked high fastballs and changeups to get strikeouts and relatively routine outs when the ball was put in play.
When Walters stepped into the circle in the back half of the inning, she was facing the bottom of the Wolfpack’s lineup and figured to have the success she’d had in the first four innings. That expectation would change in a hurry.
Glacier sophomore Sophia Frederick and freshman Tensley Connor secured back-to-back hits, with Connor’s two-bagger pushing Frederick to third base. Addyson Cunningham then smacked a fly ball to right field, and after tagging up, Frederick scored to give the Wolfpack a 1-0 lead at the end of the stanza.
Glacier coach Gary Evans responded with a pitching change, as Warriner took over at shortstop for sophomore reliever Ava Grady.
The left-handed Grady provides a reliable backup to Warriner, offering an off-handed release and an accurate fastball, which often results in a strikeout. In the final two innings of relief against the Eagles, Grady faced a total of nine batters and gave up a couple of singles, but secured four strikeouts to earn a 1-0 save.
Warriner, in her five innings of scoreless work, totaled 72 pitches against 18 batters and allowed just one single, while fanning three and walking three.
Walters pitched a complete game for the Eagles, making just 51 pitches against a total of 23 Wolfpack batters. She gave up three hits and secured two strikeouts and no walks in a very efficient effort against a solid Glacier lineup.
The hitting stats were meager for both squads, particularly for the Eagles, with just three singles combined. Sara Bjornson, Briella Wilson, and Hayden Weaver earned those, with Big Sky combining for three walks and seven strikeouts.
The Wolfpack had a total of five hits, coming off the bats of Taelor Holt, Grady, Warriner, Connor, and Frederick. Glacier batters struck out twice and didn’t get a free trip to first base.
2026 Class AA Softball Crosstown Duel - Glacier Wolfpack vs Flathead Bravettes
Thursday, April 8, ArtwestimageSports.com was at ABS Park in Evergreen, where the Kalispell Class AA squads, Glacier and Flathead, were playing the first of two Crosstown softball games. The top-ranked Glacier Wolfpack scored first, on a run by Karlie Allen, but the Bravettes scored twice in the second inning to go ahead 2-1.
Glacier rebounded in the third inning, when Olivia Warriner’s triple off Flathead pitcher Macey McIlhargey was followed by a Taelor Holt single to tie the game at 2-2. Ava Grady then came to the plate and doubled to drive in Holt to put the Wolfpack up 3-2.
After Glacier starter Warriner shut out the Bravettes in the bottom of the third inning, the Pack added five runs on five singles in the top of the fourth to open a commanding 8-2 lead.
In the top of the fifth inning, Glacier’s Sophia Frederick then blasted an inside-the-park homer to right field, followed by a Warriner RBI to make it 10-2.
In the bottom of the fifth stanza, Ava Grady took over in the circle for Warriner and pitched back-to-back shutout innings, going into the seventh.
Down 11-2, the Bravettes responded with three runs in their final at-bat, with Olivia Nyman blasting a bases-loaded triple to provide some game-ending excitement for the Flathead faithful. It was too little, too late, as the Bravettes fell to 0-4 and 0-3 in Western AA.
The 6-0 and 4-0 Wolfpack were led by Warriner, who had four hits in five plate appearances, two of which were triples. She totaled three RBIs and two hits in the contest. Warriner also pitched four complete innings, surrendering just one hit, and allowed two runs against a total of 17 batters. Grady pitched three innings and recorded eight strikeouts against a total of 14 Bravettes.
Holt also had a fine outing for the Wolfpack, going 4-4 at the plate, while scoring two runs and adding an RBI. The Wolfpack pounded out 15 hits, with five going for extra bases, while stealing a total of five bases during their victory.
The Bravettes totaled just four hits against the stout Wolfpack pitching, with Nyman’s seventh-inning, three RBI triple being the game highlight. McIlhargey pitched the first two innings for the Bravettes and gave up one earned run on two hits. Freshman June Stickney pitched the balance of the game, throwing a total of 110 pitches against 28 Glacier batters. She surrendered a total of 13 hits and 7 earned runs, against four strikeouts in a "growing-pains" outing.
2026 Northwest A.B Baseball - Bigfork Vikings vs Lincoln County Lions
Two talented senior pitchers dominated Lincoln County versus Bigfork baseball game, with the Lions’ Rowan Burow going head-to-head with Viking hurler Max Shara. The two ace starters combined to throw 13 innings and 208 pitches against 50 batters in the contest.
The Lions, at 6-6 and 4-3, are currently in fifth place in the Northwest A/B League. They took advantage of Burows’ outstanding pitching to steal a 2-1 win from the Vikings, who are in second place, behind Columbia Falls, with a 9-3 and 7-2 record.
Lincoln County struck quickly in the first inning, as senior Rogan Lytle singled, then stole second, before advancing to third on a hit by Tyce Van Orden. Lytle then scored on a fielder’s choice after Brody Chapman grounded out to shortstop Grady Campbell. Following the Lion’s initial salvo in the first inning, Bigfork’s Shara settled in and surrendered just one hit for the rest of the game.
Burow, not to be outdone, looked good in pitching six scoreless innings for the Lions, scattering a total of five Viking hits, with four walks, and eight strikeouts against 23 batters. The Lincoln County defense played well behind Burow, securing three tag outs on the basepaths, with two at second and one at third, by our count.
Lincoln County scored again in the bottom of the sixth inning, with Van Orden scoring from third base to put the Lions up 2-0.
Chapman came in in relief for Burow in the bottom of the seventh inning and immediately gave up two hits to give the Vikings a chance to steal the win. To get things started for the Viks’, Campbell walked and advanced to second on a ground ball by Holland Jantzen. Wyatt Hickey then doubled to score Campbell from second, which trimmed the Lion lead to one run with a lone out remaining in the game.
Rye Rodriguez then singled to advance Hickey, the tying run, to third base. Following a Shara walk, the Vikings' Hayden Meyer stepped to the plate with the bases loaded. With the game on the line, Meyer against Chapman, the fans from both teams rose in anticipation of either an out or a game-tying or winning walk-off hit.
The Lions would get the out.
2026 Class AA Softball - Flathead Bravettes vs Big Sky Eagles
ArtwestimageSports.com staff was at ABS Park in Kalispell, on April 1, to see the Missoula Big Sky Eagles softball team take on the Flathead Bravettes in the Western AA division opener for both clubs.
Flathead’s freshman pitcher June Stickney got her first start of her high school career, and looked great in circle for the first three innings, holding a potent Eagle offense to just one run.
Flathead, buoyed by Stickney’s strong pitching, played their best ball of the new season in the early going, particularly on offense. In the Bravette’s half of the first inning, Stickney was thrown out at home on a close play after a ground out by Olivia Nyman. Later in the inning, the Bravettes took a 1-0 lead after a bases loaded walk.
In the second stanza, Flathead’s Sophia Torgison scored from third base on a passed ball by Eagle catcher Hayden Weaver.
Briella Wilson, who got the start for the Eagles, and kept the Bravettes from adding any crooked numbers to the scoreboard until the fourth inning. Wilson scattered three hits, and struck out three while throwing 72 pitches against the first 19 Flathead batters.
After the Eagles scored a single in the third, the Flathead bats were going again, as single by Kinsey Lake pushed Reese Rosenberg and Danica Hennell across the plate to open a 4-1 Bravettes’ advantage going into the fifth inning.
Midway into the fifth inning, Stickney gave up a run on a pair of hits and a walk, and looked a little gassed after 85 pitches. Before being relieved by senior Macey McIlhargey, Stickney’s stats were fairly impressive, 8 strikeouts, offset by 3 hits, 2 earned-runs, and two walks.
Against McIlhargey, Weaver got an RBI single, and a Sara Bjornson followed with an RBI double to score Weaver. The Eagle bats stayed hot, with seven consecutive singles, aided by several Bravette errors, to push the Big Sky lead to 12-4. Logan Latrielle was called out after trying to extend a double on the Eagles final out of the inning, but not before 15 Eagle batters came to the plate during the inning,
Big Sky’s Kalin Merritt bashed a liner to left field that went all the way to the fence. Merritt scampered around the basepaths to score on an inside-the-park home run, picking up three RBI’s to make the final score 15-4.
2026 Class A Softball - Columbia Falls Wildkats vs Frenchtown Broncs
In a Class A softball matchup on April 18, the Frenchtown Broncs beat Columbia Falls 12-7.
Frenchtown was led by senior Brooklyn Smith, who drove in five runs on two hits, including a grand slam home run in the second inning. Smith also accounted for four runs and contributed a sacrifice fly in the deciding seventh inning, adding another RBI.
The Broncs opened the scoring in the first inning, as Jezzy Palmer singled and later scored on an Makenzie Brush groundout. Smith’s grand slam in the second extended the Broncs' lead to 6-0 going into the third inning.
The Kats came back with six runs of their own, which brought the score to 8-7 going into the final frame. A Kate Lewellyn double scored three RBIs to highlight the Wildkats ' attempted comeback.
Junior Katie Bulawsky, starting in the circle for Columbia Falls, pitched all but two batters in the seventh inning. Bulawsky allowed 10 earned runs and surrendered 16 hits, 5 walks, against 4 strikeouts. She pitched to a total of 40 Bronc batters, throwing 77 strikes on 118 total pitches.
Smith pitched the first five and two-thirds innings for Frenchtown, and up eight hits, seven earned runs, and seven walks while striking out three Columbia Falls batters. Dizzle Smith came into the game for the Broncs with two outs in the sixth inning and recorded a strikeout and issued a walk in getting the save.
Palmer and Abbie Edwards both had three hits for the Broncs, while Kate Lewellen led the Kats with two runs, two hits, and three RBIs. The Wildkat’s Dayvian Edwards had three hits in four at-bats and crossed home plate twice for two runs. Columbia Falls drew a total of eight walks, with Alexa Friske, Onni Lawrence, and Ella Timlick each getting two. The latter scored both times she was on the base paths.
2026 Western Montana High School Track and Field
Our Spring 2026 sports collections for track and field
in Western Montana. See highlight games, teams, and athletes in these custom collections.
2026 Class AA State Track and Field Meet - Missoula, Montana
Our highlights from the Class AA State Track and Field Meet in Missoula, Montana.
2026 Class B State Track and Field Meet - Missoula, Montana
Our highlights from the Class B State Track and Field Meet in Missoula, Montana.
2026 Class A Western Divisional Track and Field Meet
May 22-23, an ArtwestimageSports.com staff member was in Frenchtown, where we saw the Bigfork Vikings win the men’s competition at the Western Class A Divisional Track and Field meet. The Vikis scored points with a vengeance in the sprints, hurdles, jumps, and in the relays to win by 21 points over second-place Corvallis.
Bigfork’s largest point totals came on the legs of two talented senior athletes in jumper Tamret Savik and speedster Robert Merchant, who combined to score 63 of the Vikings’ 114 points.
Savik went big in the triple jump, when he leapt a personal best 48’3” on his last attempt in the finals. In addition to being a meet record, it is currently the longest high school effort in Montana high school track, and would be a Class A record if equaled this weekend. Savik’s outstanding effort surpassed the Western A record by almost two feet, with Whitefish’s Chris Hicks distance of 46’4.6” lasting for twenty years.
Savik also set a personal best in the high jump, clearing 6’5”, beating the second-place opponent, Dylan Owens of Columbia Falls, by five inches. Beaverhead’s Canin Christiansen won the long jump, setting his career best mark of 22’1”, which was over a foot better than Savik’s 20’10”.
Though Savik’s magnificent day contributed 28 points to the Vikings’ championship effort, it was exceeded by senior classmate Robert Merchant, who took all three sprint races and was the anchor on both of the Vikings’ victorious relay squads.
Merchant started by winning the 400-meter run, covering the oval in a career best 48.78. Merchant followed that race by helping teammates Quinn Kerr, Austin Savik, and Tayden West run a team best 42.77 in the short relay. The time set a new meet record, surpassing the old standard of 43.21, which was held by Corvallis and Columbia Falls.
Saturday, Merchant opened his day by racing to win the 100-meter finals, going the distance in 10.9 seconds. Later in the day, Merchant blitzed his competition in the 200 -meter run, legging out a 21.88 clocking, which set a new meet standard. After his 200 win, Merchant joined his relay teammates to run a team best 3:26.82 clocking in the 1600-meter relay.
In addition to his contribution on the Bigfork relays, Viking senior Austin Savik outclassed the field in the 110-meter hurdles, running the distance in a personal best time of 15.23. Savik also overcame a slow start to finish third in the 300 hurdles.
Frenchtown ninth-grader Jared Nygard got an upset victory in running a personal record 40.42 to beat Browning’s Robert Miller by eight hundredths of a second.
Another Frenchtown athlete, senior Henry Griffin, continued to dominate the shot and discus throw competitions in western Montana. The Montana State track and field commit tossed the shot a career-best 59’10” on Friday, and followed that mark by winning the discus on Saturday. In that event, he beat Hamilton’s Taylor Doleac by twelve feet, with his longest effort of 180’8”.
In the only distance race on Friday, Polson’s David DiGiallonardo put up a time of 4:23.76, which was almost six seconds faster than Corvallis runner Taggart Jessop.
The best race on Saturday was in the 800-meter run, where Browning’s River Racine edged Hamilton’s Brayden Lanser at the tape to win with a career best 1:56.56.
Columbia Falls senior Joe West defeated Libby’s Tristan Andersen in the javelin, where the familiar Northwest A division foes went head-to-head. West heave of 168’ was a career best, surpassing Anderson’s 164’8” to set up another good competition at this weekend’s state meet in Billings.
Polson’s Isaac Kinnick cleared 12’6” to win the pole vault, beating Columbia Falls’ Tristian Archuletta, Frenchtown’s Ryder Haskins, and Libby’s Gabe Kosters, who all managed twelve feet.
Men’s runner-up, Corvallis, won just one of seventeen events, which was Taggart Jessop’s victory in the 3,200-meter race. The Blue Devil’s junior speedster Ayden Spencer placed second in both the 100 and 200-meter races, and finished third in the discus with a personal best toss of 164’9”.
Third-place Columbia Falls finished with 73 points, which was 20 fewer than Corvallis. Host team Frenchtown scored 61 points to round out the top four in the team race.
2026 Northwest Montana Track and Field - Flathead Invitational Women's Meet
Tuesday, April 7, we were at Legends Stadium in Kalispell for Flathead High School’s Mini-Invitational.
In the nine-team women’s race, the Glacier Wolfpack took the team title, narrowly beating the Crosstown foe Bravettes’ 171.5-164. Whitefish, coming off their state championship season, posted 106 points to earn third, with Polson and Columbia Falls coming in at a distant fourth and fifth, with 53.5 and 50.75 points, respectively.
Glacier won a total of five events and piled up points in the distance races and the throwing competitions. Those included first-place finishes by Dacia Benkelman, who ran to a 2:22.28 in the 800-meter run, as well as Lauren Bissen’s 5:15.98 timing in the 1600-meters. Addison Brisendine’s 47.55 clocking in the 300-meter hurdles was three seconds faster than teammate Clara Ahner to go 1-2 in the race. Junior Allie Krueger’s 35’10” heave in the shot put beat Bigfork’s Millie Hall by over two feet. Finally, the 1600-meter relay squad’s 4:10.41 timing (Benkelman, Bissen, Ada Theil, Kaitryn Vander Vloedt) beat second-place Flathead by almost ten seconds to help the Wolfpack secure their winning total.
The Bravette’s got victories in three events, led by seniors Julie Kay and Bristal Lenz, along with freshman Addison Oyler. Kay won the 200-meter race with a 26.83 clocking, while Lenz legged out a time of 15.84 in the 100-meter hurdle race to beat Whitefish’s Ginger Bergland by three-hundredths of a second. Oyler cleared 5’ to win the high jump.
The Class A Bulldogs were led by freshman sprinter Avery Orme, whose winning 12.84 clocking in the 100-meter race came in the first meet of her varsity career. Orme also ran the anchor leg of Whitefish’s victorious 400-meter relay quartet. With Mila Maddock, Ginger Bergland, and Anna Boyson, Orme outpaced the Bravettes by two-tenths of a second, winning with a time of 50.41. Senior Sol Holmquist tossed the javelin 109’10”, a foot better than Glacier’s runner-up Remi Osler.
Lincoln County senior Kricket Bridges cleared a personal best 9’ to win the pole vault. Libby’s sophomore distance ace, Capri Farmer, ran a career best 11:14.54 to take the 3200-meter race. Columbia Falls sophomore Peyton Ross jumped a career-best 16’10.5” to win the long jump, while our friend Teslin Trombley of Browning leapt 35’9” to take the triple jump.
2026 Class A.B.C Track and Field - Bigfork Invitational
Saturday, May 2, we were in Bigfork, working for clients at the Vikings annual invitational track and field meet. Held in near perfect spring weather conditions, including a lot of brilliant sunshine, we saw squads from Bigfork and Whitefish win the team titles in the 14-team event.
In yesterday’s post, we presented our Photographer’s Favorites in the men’s division, and today we’re presenting our imagery from the women’s meet.
The Whitefish women used superior team depth to cruise past Columbia Falls 112-70. Whitefish’s Ginger Bergland and Hailey Reardon both set personal bests in the 400-meters, with Bergland’s 1:01.37 beating Readon by nine-tenths of a second. Bulldog freshman Kendall Dye won the 1600-meter race with a PR clocking of 5:30.06
Both of Whitefish’s relay quartets took top honors, including freshman runners Reardon, Stella Grubb, and Neva Sliman in the quarter mile event, and Sliman, Millie Meyer, and Olympia Sarraille on the mile quartet. Senior Arnica Beale and sophomore Liesel Klein also ran on the 400 and 1600-meter squads, respectively. The Bulldog’s Avery Orme, another freshman, jumped a personal best 16’6.5” to win the long jump.
Area event winners who set personal bests in the women’s events included Libby sprinter Haily Misner, who took the 200-meters with a time of 26.97. Logger teammate Capri Farmer also legged-out a PR clocking in the 800-meter run, going the distance in 2:21.04. Bigfork’s Millie Hall won the shot put with a personal record distance of 36’3”.
Viking sprinter Robert Merchant was the top athlete on the men’s side, helping his squad to outscore second-place Whitefish 115-83.5.
Merchant won the 100 in 11.03 seconds before posting a personal-best 49.75 in the 400. Merchant, along with teammates Quinn Kerr and Tayden West, went 1-2-3 in the 100-meters. Kerr won the 200, and West finished second behind Merchant in the 400-meters.
Kerr also won the long jump, while teammate Tamrit Savik took the triple jump.
Athletes from other teams set their personal best efforts in winning events for their respective schools. Whitefish’s Colby Minton won the 200 meters in a time of 22.76. Whitefish teammate Braylon Dunn tossed the shot put 47’2.75”, while winning the discus throw with a throw of 144’.05”. Superior senior George Hanson won the pole vault with a record of 14’3”.
2026 Northwest Montana Track and Field - Flathead Invitational Men's Meet
Tuesday, April 7, we were at Legends Stadium in Kalispell for Flathead’s annual track and field season kickoff. The Kalispell Mini-Invite was far from mini, with almost 1,000 athletes from ten teams in attendance. Mother Nature, for April, was kind to all in attendance, as the forecasted high winds didn’t affect the meet for the most part.
Flathead’s Carson Thorne, a sophomore, won the men’s 800-meters, running a personal best time of 2:08.25. Glacier’s Beau Carroll, another sophomore, won the javelin event with a personal record of 158’5”. Junior Jesse Bain took the shot put with a personal best heave of 46’2.5”, just ahead of sophomore teammate Hudsen Kastelitz at 45’7”.
Flathead’s star senior sprinter and jumper, Will Hollensteiner, won the 200, 400, and long jump to lead the Braves to the men’s team title with 187.75 points. Glacier, with all its team depth, finished in second at 180.25, and a strong Bigfork squad took third with 101.5 points.
Hollensteiner’s best performance came in the long jump, where he sailed 23’8” in the best effort of his career. The Purdue track and field recruit won the 200 with a 21.92 clocking, and the 400-meter race in 47.72 seconds.
Bigfork’s Tamrit Savik jumped 47’4” in the triple jump, beating his previous best jump by nearly two feet. Savik also was the only jumper to clear 6’0” in winning the high jump. Eureka senior Josh Lambertsen won the pole vault, clearing a career best 13’0”, beating the second-place finisher by over two feet.
Bigfork’s Robert Merchant won the 100-meter race with a personal best of 11.02, while teammates Quinn Kerr and Tayden West took second and third, piling up 24 points for the Vikings. The three combined with senior Austin Savik to win the 400-meter relay with a time of 43.05.
Glacier’s Owen Thiel won in 4:25.95, while Browning’s River Racine took top honors in the 3200-meter race, with a time of 10:39.98.
The final event of the day was the 1600-meter relay, which required two heats, with Flathead’s A squad winning with a time of 3:35.93. That quartet was made up of Carter Leonard, Brett Chivers, Aidan Fredenberg, and Myles Zimmerman.
Class B and C Track and Field - Hot Springs' Dave Tripp Invitational Women's Meet
Friday, April 10, ArtwestimageSports.com staff trekked down the west shore of Flathead Lake to Polson, where Hot Springs High School was hosting its 54th annual Dave Tripp Track and Field Meet. The Hot Springs school community sponsors the meet to honor namesake David Tripp, a 1970 HSHS graduate and athlete, who died in a boating accident a year later.
The 18-team meet, largely attended by teams from Districts 6B and 7B, as well as Class C schools from Districts 13 and 14, provides an early-season competition for over 500 athletes to hone their skills. For us, we enjoy the opportunity to reconnect with Class B and C coaches, athletes, and parents we’ve met before, as well as creating new relationships.
It was a pleasure to see our Hot Springs’ friend Kara Christiansen compete again, particularly in seeing her win the discus competition with a state-qualifying throw of 115’9”. We also saw Thompson Falls’ Addi Deal, the defending Class C champion in the javelin, get second in that event, with a state-qualifying toss of 116’9”. We were surprised to see her win the pole vault, as the only vaulter to clear 8 feet. Another Blue Hawk friend, Aubrey Baxter, finished as the runner-up in the 400-meter run,
We met Granite High's Addi Lilyquist last year at the Flathead Invitational Cross-country meet at Rebecca Farms. It was fun to see her compete against the men in the 3200-meter run at the Tripp Meet. Addi used that motivation to up her game, and she ran a career-best clocking of 11:27.31. That time is almost a minute faster than the Class C state-qualifying mark for the event.
Among our new acquaintances was Valley Christian’s Shiloh Fisher, a state medal winner in the 200-meter run and 1600-meter relay last spring. Friday, the fleet Eagle sophomore won both the 100 and 200-meter races, placed third in the 400, and anchored the first-place 400-meter relay team. On the victorious Plains squad, we met sophomore Hayden Rice, who took third in the 200, second in the 300-meter hurdles, and won the javelin with a career-best, state standard beating heave of 118’6”. She also ran the second leg of the Trotter’s victorious 1600-meter relay quartet. We also met Charlo freshman Brooke Cahoon, who took second in the high jump, and ran the anchor leg for the Vikings’ runner-up 400-meter relay squad. Cahoon had already cleared 5’2” to prequalify for state in the high jump.
Our goal for the day was to capture the meet activity of the host, Hot Springs, which had 14 athletes, including 8 women, in the competition. We also wanted to get action in as many events as possible over the six-hour meet, and managed to photograph part of 29 of 34 events. For the women, we featured the sprints, relays, jumps, and the discus event, with the latter having finals after the rest of the track meet was in the books.
A total of 38 throwers went through the trial round in the discus competition, with ten qualifying for the finals. Ten advanced to the finals, and many were juniors and seniors getting their first taste of competition this season. An exception was Lincoln eighth grader Preslie Vogl, who placed sixth with a throw of 83’3”. Teammate Makena Copenhaver-Clark was the runner-up to Christensen, with a career best toss of 93’4”.
The Plains Trotters used their depth to outscore second-place Superior in the women’s meet. The Trotters piled up 64 points, while second-place Superior nipped Valley Christian 50.5 to 50. Charlo and Noxon placed fourth and fifth, respectively, with 47 and 41 points.
2026 Class B and C Track and Field - Dave Tripp Invitational - Men's Meet
We present our custom gallery of Photographer's Favorites from the Dave Tripp Track and Field meet in Polson, Friday, April 10.
With near-perfect weather for a track meet, athletes on all 18 teams got a chance to work on the technical aspects of their respective events, with lots of teaching opportunities by coaches in either their first or second meet of the season. With nearly 400 Class C and B athletes participating, most events provided a lot of great competition, which brought out the personal-best efforts of many athletes.
Like in the women’s meet, Plains High School, from District 7B, used its team depth to run up a big score in winning the men’s event with 92.5 points, almost 30 more than second-place Arlee with 64.5. Third-place Superior, from District 14C, was the top-scoring Class C squad with 50 points, followed closely by Drummond with 48.5, Hot Springs with 45.5, and Lincoln with 42.
Plains was led by junior Matthew Thurston, who won both the 100 and 200-meter races, while finishing third in the 400-meter run. He also anchored the second-place Horseman 400-meter relay quartet. Thurston achieved personal-best times in both the sprint events, clocking a 12.22 in the 100 and a 24.73 in the 200.
Plains sophomore Cord Greer won the 1600-meter run with a career-best 4:35.98, while teammate John Jermyn ran a 10:01.96 to take the 3200-meter event. Junior Cooper Meredith won the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 16.8, and teammate Greg Tatum finished second in the shot put with a throw of 38 feet.
The Class B Arlee Warriors were led by Trevor Van Maanen, who won the 800, and finished second in the 1600-meter race. Warrior shot putter Eli O’Neall won the event with a 42’2” effort, and finished second in the discus with a throw of 130’11”. Triple Jumper Dean Moran took the triple jump with a personal-best leap of 37’10”. Orrin Johnson took second in the high jump, clearing 5’10”.
Superior was led by the defending Class C state champion in the high jump, Landon Richards, who cleared 6’4” to beat our friend Lex LaFrombois by six inches. Pole vaulter George Hanson cleared 13’ to defeat Lincoln’s Kayden Riddle’s 12’2”. We enjoyed our discussion with both the Bobcat’s event winners, and we look forward to seeing them compete again. LaFrombois, a junior from St. Ignatius and a friend of ours, rebounded to win the long jump with a season-best leap of 19’7”.
We met several Hot Springs’ athletes during the day, including one of their leading scorers, junior Ben Aldridge. The multi-talented athlete legged out a personal-best time of 42.69 in winning the 300-meter hurdles. Aldridge took third in both the 110-meter hurdles and the long jump, as well as a fifth place in the javelin.
Charlo senior Karson Cox achieved a career-best throw in the javelin, winning the event with a mark of 156’9”. Drummond junior Javier Ostler took first in the discus with a PR toss of 131’3”.
Per our usual routine, we were sure to get to both the men’s relay races, where we caught members of the winning squads from Valley Christian in the 400, and Lincoln in the 1600-meter race. We also spent time at a very exciting men's long jump finals near the end of the meet. The top five jumpers finished within six inches of each other, with LaFrombois getting the win.
2026 Class A Track and Field - Columbia Falls Iceberg Invitational
Saturday, April 25, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was in Columbia Falls for their annual Iceberg Invitational. The ten-team meet featured most of the Northwest A squads, the excellent programs from Corvallis and Hamilton, and 7B powers Lincoln County and Thompson Falls.
Held at the Mike Nicosia Track and Field Complex, the meet was conducted in 100% better weather than our previous track outing in Kalispell, but more than lived up to its “Iceberg” moniker with temperatures in the mid-40s. The real blessing last Saturday was that the infamous Bad Rock Canyon wind was not We picked up a few of their events in our Photographer’s Favorites in this post, so please feel free to let them know that they got some pub!
In the varsity meets, the Bigfork men and Columbia Falls women came away with the team titles. The Vikings scored 108 points to best Columbia Falls with 96, followed by Hamilton’s 84 and Whitefish's 52. Columbia Falls eked out a 107.5 – 103 win over Hamilton in the women’s competition, with Polson’s total of 75 coming in third, just ahead of Corvallis with 70.25.
Although we missed both his marquee performances, Bigfork senior, Tamrit Savik, had a memorable day, winning the triple jump with a personal-best distance of 47’ 8”, as well as the high jump, by clearing 6’2”. The former is the longest jump in Montana thus far in 2026, regardless of school classification.
Viking long jumper, Quinn Kerr, a junior, won the event with a career best effort of 21’6.5”. Bigfork also got individual wins by Tayden West in the 100-meter race, and Austin Savik took the 110-meter hurdles. The Vikings also got victories from both relay quartets, which consist of Austin Savik, Kerr, West, and Robert Merchant. That foursome has posted the fastest time in Class A in both events thus far in 2026!
In the women’s competition, the victorious Wildkats were led by wins by freshman Hazel Matson in the 100-meter hurdles, Ashley Andrews in the 800 meters, and Soli Bullemer in the pole vault.
The Wildkats forged their winning margin largely by the efforts of three top places in the 3200-meter run, as Mila Johns, Findley Dezzani, and Noelle Svennungsen took second, third, and fourth place, respectively. The Wildkat trio accounted for 18 points in the team race.
Distance runner/sprinter Annalise Lewis paced Hamilton by winning both the 400 and 1600-meter races, as well as anchoring the Broncs’ winning 1600-meter relay squad. Bronc Sophomore Kassidee McKern leapt a personal best 5’2” to win the high jump.
Whitefish freshman Avery Orme won two events, in the 100-meter run and in the triple jump. Her distance of 36’4” in triple was a personal best, and beat her nearest competition by over two feet.
Polson’s Olivia Cottet, another freshman, won the discus throw with a personal best heave of 120’5”, while teammate Piper Adams, a sophomore, tossed the shot put a winning distance of 34’.
2026 Archie Roe Men's Track and Field Meet - Legends Stadium, Kalispell
Glacier High School dominated all three of the men’s competitions at the 47th Archie Roe Track Meet on May, 9, but especially in the varsity division, where the Pack ruled both the Legend's oval and the field.
The Blue and Green first-teamers used their team depth and a bevy of outstanding athletes to nearly double second-place Bigfork’s total of 77.5 points. The Wolfpack’s total score of 147 points came on the strength of seven event wins out of the 17 competitions, and a host of placers in almost every speciality.
Leading Glacier was freshman speedster Kyle West, who had a breakout performance in winning the 100-meter race, while anchoring both first-place 4 X 100 and 4 X 400-meter Wolfpack relay quartets.
West’s 4 X 100 relay team overcame a slow final handoff, due to the fleet sprinter almost outrunning teammate Liam Palmer in the third exchange zone. West narrowly avoided disqualification, getting the baton late, and then overtook Bigfork's anchor Robert Merchant at the tape to steal victory with a 42.61 clocking. The Vikings’ second-place time of 42.67 was the fifth-fastest quarter-mile time in the state and best of all Class A teams thus far in 2026!
Two other Glacier athletes won two events, with senior Owen Theil showing his versatility in winning both the 800 and 3200-meter runs, while sophomore Palmer swept the hurdle events.
West added a second place in the 200-meter race, while senior Will Astle finished second and third in the shot put and discus events, respectively. Junior Cooper Pelc was the runner-up in the triple jump, as was junior Dan Peterson in the javelin.
Bigfork’s runner-up finish in the varsity team race came on the strength of a core of talented sprinters and jumpers, led by senior Tamrit Savik, who likely could have had his best overall performance of his career. Savik’s victories in all three of the jumping events were highlighted by a leap of 6’4” in the high jump, a career best height.
Savik’s victory in the high jump likely was inspired by the competition with Choteau’s Rusch Yeager, who came into the meet with a personal best effort of 6’7” and at the top of the Class B event rankings. Both athletes tied at the winning height at Roe, but Savik had fewer misses to earn 10 points toward the team total.
Bigfork’s Tayden West won the 200-meter run, while senior teammate Merchant was victorious in the 400 meters. Merchant’s time of 48.82 was his best in circumventing the oval in 2026. His time is currently second only to Flathead’s Will Hollensteiner statewide, regardless of division, and ranks as the fastest in Class A.
Senior hurdler Austin Savik also contributed to the Vikings’ total, taking second and fourth place, respectively, in the 100 and 300-meter hurdle races. Bigfork’s 400 Meter relay squad of Quinn Kerr, West, Savik, and Merchant finished second in that event.
Other event winners were Harlem’s Ethan Walker, a talented sophomore, who set a personal best in taking the 1600-meter run with a time of 4:23.86. Two Flathead distance runners set personal best times in the race, with Christopher Holland 4:30.13 and Brodyn DeShaw 4:33.23 finishing just behind Walker.
The shot put competition was won by senior Evan Pyron, of Missoula Hellgate. Pyron’s 50’6.75” beat Glacier’s Astle and Chester-Joplin-Invernesses’ Dane Grammar by less than six inches.
Grammer came back to beat Pyron in the discus throw, tossing the disc a career best 167’10”. Grammer’s heave beat Pyron’s personal best effort of 156’5” in what was an outstanding competition between two competitors that have never met head-to-head before.
Another hotly contested battle was waged in the javelin, with Choteau’s Kesston Thomas throwing 195’8” to overcome Glacier's strong hurlers. The Pack's Peterson had a toss measuring 186’1”, while teammate Vaughn Ronakov placed third with a 168’6” marking.
The pole vault was won by Hellgate’s Kaden Manraska, who leapt a personal best 13 feet to beat Columbia Falls’ Tristan Archuletta by a foot.
Finishing behind the Wolfpack and the Vikings was the Missoula Hellgate Knights, who finished third with 59 points. Columbia Falls had 56.5 to place fourth, and host Flathead, minus star Hollensteiner, had 44.5 points to round out the top five.
2026 Archie Roe Women's Track and Field Meet - Legends Stadium, Kalispell
Like the Wolfpack men’s team, the Glacier women put up 110 points to outdistance host Flathead, who finished with 77.5 points in the 2026 Archie Roe women's track meet at Legends Stadium on May 9. Columbia Falls finished with the highest total from the Class A schools, finishing third with 57.5 points, with Missoula Hellgate and Fort Benton finishing at fourth and fifth, with 57.5 and 44 points, respectively.
The Wolfpack won just four of 17 events, which were all posted by Glacier freshman and sophomores. Freshman Clara Ahner won the 400-meter run, while classmate Ada Thiel ran a personal best 2:17.98 to win the 800. Sophomore Addison Brisendine placed first in the 100-meter hurdles, and Remi Osler tossed the javelin 119’6” to win that event.
Senior Dacia Benkelman ran a season best 2:18.58 to finish second behind Thiel in the 800, and junior Riley Bigelow finished second in the shot put with a personal best heave of 36’8.5”. Riley also earned fourth-place efforts in both the discus and the javelin competitions.
One of the best competitions of the day came in the 1600-meter run, where two milers dueled for the lead well ahead of the rest of the pack. Glacier junior Lauren Bissen led much of the race, with Libby sophomore Capri Farmer on her shoulder. With 300 meters to go in the race, Farmer bolted past Bissen and outraced the fleet junior to cross the finish line with a personal best time of 5:07.24. Farmer’s clocking ranks fourth in Class A, while Bissen’s time of 5:11.4 was her season best and currently third overall in Class AA.
Flathead earned second in the team race, mainly on the strength of team depth, with junior Anna Bain as the lone Bravette to win an event. Bain jumped a personal best 34’4” in the triple jump, and also took second in the long jump. Senior teammate Alice Dolezal finished second behind Bain in the triple jump and placed third in the high jump competition.
Senior Bristol Lenz placed second in the 100-meter hurdles and added a fourth in both the 300-meter hurdles and the long jump events. Freshman Brynn Kossman placed third in the shot put.
Columbia Falls athletes won three events, with seniors Soli Bullemer and Mila Johns winning the pole vault and 3200-meter run, respectively. The Wildkats mile relay team of Johns, Cora Hannan, Ashley Andrews, and Peyton Ross ran a team best 4:18.29, to take first in that event. The Wildkats’ 400-meter relay quartet of Andrews, Ross, Lucianna Kress, and Evelyn Heitz took third place in the race.
Peyton Ross finished in second in the long jump, as did Finley Dezzani in the 3200-meter run.
Hellgate was led by seniors Elly Reed and Brooklyn Kopp, who won the high jump and shot put, respectively. The Knights' highest scoring competitor was junior Paisley Johnson, who finished as Reed’s runner-up in the high jump. She also took third place in both the 100 and 300-meter hurdle races.
Fort Benton’s Etta Wicks was chosen as the Female Track Athlete of the Meet, as the fleet senior took first in the 200-meter run, won the long jump, and anchored the Longhorns' victorious quarter-mile relay. She also took third in the 100-meter run.
Men and Women's Tennis and Lacrosse
Our Spring 2026 sports collections for tennis and lacrosse in Western Montana. See highlight games, teams, and athletes in these custom collections.
2026 Northwest Avalanche Women's Lacrosse - Senior Night vs. Jackson Hole
This collection features almost 250 photographs from the Avalanche women’s Senior Night game against the Jackson Hole B team. Six graduating Av’s seniors and their families, along with coaches Joni Petro and Janie Toren, were honored just before the game.
Hannah-Gray Petro and Brynnlea Toren both scored four goals in their Senior Night win, with Bailey Lowell chipping in two goals and two assists. The Av’s took a 15-3 victory, as the offense peppered Jackson Hole’s goalie Calliope Cavallaro with 24 shots. The Northwest defense dominated the game and allowed only four shots on goal against Av’s goalkeeper, Chelsie Hart.
The Avalanche finished the 2026 regular season with an 11-3 record, and in second-place behind Jackson Hole’s 14-0 championship squad. Petro has committed to play lacrosse at the University of Vermont, while Toren will play lacrosse at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. We’re looking for other current players to follow the senior pairs leadership and talent development to earn similar post-secondary lacrosse opportunities.
2026 Class AA State Tennis Tournament - First Round Highlights
On Thursday, May 28, ArtwestimageSports.com staff had the pleasure of photographing the entire first round of the State AA Tennis Tournament at Flathead Valley Community College. The twelve court tennis facility, on hill above the Stillwater River, and behind the college’s Wacholz Center is certainly one of the best in Montana and is a convenient location to take in many games at one time.
With a total of 16 men’s and women’s matches, as well as 16 doubles matches played during the four hour session, we had the opportunity to sample as many matches as possible, being played by many of the finest high school players in Montana.
First up were the women’s singles and doubles matches, and we were certain to take in the best matches played by area singles players, including the four division champions in Anna Beacham of Billings West, Georgia Pike of CMR, Elliotte Banziger of Missoula Hellgate, and Gallatin’s Darta Egle who was top’s in the South AA. We also got to see Glacier’s Leilani Lennarz, and Autumn Bashara, who were Number Two and Three seeds out of the North.
In the women’s doubles we saw Glacier’s Cadence and Cassidy Daniels, who won the North A, as well as Kennedy Miller and Taylor Schmitt of Skyview, Weslley Banziger and Emma Duman of Missoula Hellgate, and Alex Mansour and Raena Wilson of Gallatin High. We also took in Glacier’s Quinn Berkram and Rowyn Speer, who qualified for the state meet as the 4th Seed from the North.
In the men’s single competition, we saw defending state champion Mason McCarty who was the East AA top-seed. We also watched Connor Shea of Billings Skyview, Brady McInnis of Missoula Big Sky, and CMR’s Daniel Fleming. We caught Glacier’s Colton Mantovani the 3rd Seed from the North, but missed Flathead’s Rowan Alexander.
The men’s double matches were the last to take the field, and had two of the eight matches go three sets, including the last contest of our photography day. That was when Caden McCullough and Levi Adkins of Helena Capital beat Missoula Hellgate’s Aiden LaTrielle-Marsh and Gabe Hammitt 6-3, 0-6, and 6-4 in a battle of Two-Three Seeds.
We also saw Skyview’s top-seeded team from the East, Karsh Wohler and Isaac Mosser, as well as the North’s Number One in Eli Crist and Howard Daniel of CMR, Harrison Rotar and Collin Gross of Bozeman who won the South, and Hellgate’s Jack Currie-Welch and Andrew Duman, who won the West.
Finally we got to see two teams from Glacier High, the North’s 3rd Seeded Ethan Ronngren and Karson Stafford, in addition to Josh Klippenstein and Axel Rauscher, the North’s 4th Seed.
2006 Class AA & A Men's Tennis - Whitefish vs Flathead
On Tuesday, May 12, the Whitefish Bulldogs traveled to Flathead Valley Community College where they took on the Class AA Flathead Braves. The Bulldogs came away with seven wins over the Braves. Scores were as follows:
SINGLES - Jack Oehlerich, Whitefish def. Rowen Alexander 6-0, 6-1; Owen Erickson, Whitefish def. Badge Busse 6-0. 6-0; Eli Erickson, Whitefish def. Storm Lister 6-2, 6-0; Ben Nelson, Whitefish def. Joel Jones 6-1, 6-1.
DOUBLES — Aaron Anderson and Marcus Mercer, Whitefish def. Sunny Miller and Kolbe Gherkiere 6-0, 6-0; Cole Moses and Jake Shors, Whitefish def. Alex Miller and Daniel Busse 6-0, 6-0; Charlie Oehlerich and Finn Hobart, Whitefish def. Isaac Bertram and Brooks Munday, 6-0, 6-2; Beck Moses and Isaac Rudolph, Whitefish def. Logan Allery and Oliver Eklund 6-1, 6-0.
2026 North Class AA Divisional Tennis Tournament
May 21, we were at FVCC for the North AA Divisional tennis tourney, which brought the four Class AA schools from both Kalispell and Great Falls together to contest for spots at this week’s state meet. Four singles players and four doubles teams in both the men’s and women’s competitions qualified for the state event.
As expected, the CMR men outdueled Glacier 49-35 in their competition, with the Rustlers battling the evenly matched Wolfpack women’s team for the North AA title. Glacier, on the strength of two talented singles players and a surprisingly good pair of doubles teams, outscored CMR 48-45 to claim the divisional championship.
Fleming Daniel beat Flathead’s Rowan Alexander in straight sets to win the men’s singles competition. Glacier’s Colton Mantovani took down CMR’s Wiwo Batungbacal 6-3, 6-1 in the third/fourth place matchup.
CMR’s Eli Crist and Howard Daniel beat another CMR duo, Conner Sherman and Nick Stimack, 6-1, 6-0 to clinch the men’s doubles competition. Glacier’s Ethan Ronngren and Karson Stafford took third with a hard-fought 6-7, 7-5, 6-1 comeback win over Wolfpack teammates Josh Klippenstein and Axel Rauscher.
On the women’s side, CMR’s talented young singles player, Georgia Pike, cruised through four matches without surrendering a single game. The diminutive Pike overwhelmed Glacier’s Leilani Lennarz to take the women’s title with a barrage of fastball serves and sweeping forehand shots. Glacier’s Autumn Bashara outlasted CMR’s Carys Habel 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 to take the third-place seed.
The Wolfpack’s twin sister tandem of Cadence and Cassidy Daniels outpointed CMR’s Quincy Weymouth and Lola Habel 6-2, 2-6, and 6-1 for the women's doubles title. The senior duo both overcame knee injuries that occurred during basketball season in 2025 and have played well through the season, winning 18 of 21 matches. After missing last year’s state event, they’ll return to the state competition for the third time as a doubles tandem.
CMR rebounded in the consolation final, as the Rustlers’ Kenzie Engel and Chloe Wasilewski outlasted an upstart Glacier pair in Quinn Berkram and Rowyn Speer, by scores of 4-6, 7-5, and 7-5.
The Glacier duo were playing together for the first time, with Berkram’s previous partner suffering a season-ending injury just before the divisional tournament.
To get to the third-place match, the Berkram/Speer tandem had to overcome Glacier’s top-seeded pair in Miley Fritz and Reid Sanders in Round 7. In a hard-fought matchup between the familiar foes, the new partnered pair earned a 3-6, 7-6, and 6-4 upset win.
2026 Northwest Avalanche Lacrosse Highlights - Mt. Spokane and Beartooth
Last Saturday evening, May 16, the Northwest Avalanche men’s varsity lacrosse team, based in Kalispell, Montana, defeated the Jackson Hole Black’s 5-3 in the Great Western Lacrosse League title game in Pocatello, Idaho.
The two teams advanced through three rounds of competition at the GWLL league tourney, held May 15-16 at Pocatello’s Century High School. Northwest was the top seed in the leagues’ North Division, and was in their first year of league affiliation. Jackson Hole, the top seed from the GWLL’s East Division, was the runner-up in the 2025 tournament, losing to Mt. Spokane last May.
The Av’s defeated Ammon, Idaho 9-4 in the tournament’s first round, and then Bozeman by a score of 9-6 in the semifinal Friday night. Jackson beat Mt. Spokane 7-6 and Spokane Valley 10-4 on Friday to qualify for the championship game for the fifth straight year.
The championship contest Saturday evening was tied 2-2 at halftime, but the Avalanche seized control in the third quarter to take a 5-3 advantage. The Av’s dropped back into a tight defensive front and held on for the victory against a very strong Black’s offense. No stats were posted for the game.
Several Avalanche players were selected to the All-tournament Team, including attackers Grady Robinson and Caleb Holland, midfielders Grady Robinson and Tucker Roberts, Defenseman Robert McKay, goalkeeper Connor Gall, and faceoff specialist Cruz Grace.
In this post we bring you a presentation of our Photographer’s Favorites from our final two games we photographed for Avalanche client families in early May. Featured here are our highlight selections from Northwest’s 7-4 victory over Mount Spokane on Friday, May 1, and an 8-3 win over the Billings Beartooth on Saturday May 2.
The games began late in 6 PM, which meant we got to take advantage of Golden Hour light conditions throughout the second half of both contests. You’ll see the golden highlights of the sun’s approach to the Western horizon made for some dramatic effects.
2026 Class A Tennis - Whitefish Bulldogs vs Columbia Falls Wildkat Women
Photographing tennis at Riverside might be one of our favorite area settings, with the courts snuggled into the trees, about 100 feet from the Whitefish River. If you listen carefully between the echoes of forehands, backhands, and serves, you might hear the quacking of ducks on the river, or the cackling of one of those pesky magpies that hang around waiting for a dropped Cheese-It. Once in a while, we’ll hear the chatter of one of the park squirrels, who seemingly are doing their best to scold these noisy humans who’ve interrupted their peace and quiet.
Technically, we were there to focus on the Wildkats, as we had already seen the Bulldogs the previous week against Glacier High. We also hadn’t seen Whitefish’s Number One and Three singles players, Liesl Brust and Allie Shors, respectively, against the Wolfpack. Out of town that day, both had just one tennis match each in the first three weeks of the season.
The Wildkats had a major turnover on both their tennis teams last spring, with Alanis Peterson as the only women's player to compete in the 2025 State A meet. Peterson, along with senior Aliyah Arends, upset the Southwest’s top-seed from Dillon in the first round, which was their only score at the state championships.
Whitefish, coming off its third-place finish at the Class A state tournament last May, returns an accomplished and experienced squad.
Junior Liesl Brust, Whitefish’s top singles player, lost two of six matches at the 2025 Class A event. Both were to top players, including eventual state champion Ciera Henley of Hamilton and Miles City’s Kinzie Brimmer, who took third.
Brust earned fifth at the 2025 Class A tourney and remains unbeaten this season, by downing Wildkat Bailey Windauer 6-0, 6-0 last Tuesday. Bulldog Emy Hansen, who went 2-2 at the 2025 Class A championships, outlasted Columbia Falls’ Ella Hepner 6-3 and 6-2 in the two-seed contest. Bulldog sophomore Allie Shors, another 2025 Class A state participant, defeated Fiona Bryant 6-1, 6-0, while teammate Ainsley Grubb overcame a strong challenge in outlasting Columbia Falls’ Campbell LaCasse 6-4, 6-4.
We saw two doubles matches on Tuesday, with Whitefish’s Camry Kelch and Lucy Marzo outplaying Alanis Peterson and Madi Yerian by scores of 6-3 and 6-1. Kelch and senior teammate Maggie Mercer led the 2025 Bulldogs to their state trophy-winning performance, placing third in the doubles competition at Pioneer Park in Billings.
We also got time to take in a bit of Bulldog Delila Vine and Aubrey Talbot’s 6-4, 6-2 win over Ava Scholz and Ashlyn Dunham. Due to our commitment to the Flathead Crosstown baseball game, we missed the Bulldogs' victories in the No. 3 and 4 doubles matches. Those two wins gave the Dawgs an 8-0 sweep of the Wildkats.
2026 Class A Men's Tennis - Whitefish Bulldogs vs Bigfork Vikings
From May 7, at Riverside Park, in Whitefish, the Bulldogs downed the Bigfork men 7-0 in singles and doubles matches. Scores were as follows:
Owen Erickson, Whitefish def. Dane Carlson 6-1, 6-1; Jack Oehlerich, Whitefish def. Jimmy Schlicht 6-0, 6-0; Marcus Mercer, Whitefish def. Rye Peterson 6-0, 6-0; Ben Nelson, Whitefish def. Graham Munson 6-1, 6-2.
DOUBLES — Cole Moses and Jake Shors, Whitefish def. Curtis Scherfenberg and Graham Munson 6-2, 6-2; Charlie Oehlerich and Finn Hobart, Whitefish def. Parker Bach and Conner Riska; Beck Moses and Eli Erickson, Whitefish def. Dane Carlson and Jimmy Schlicht 6-3, 6-2.
2026 Northwest Avalanche vs Spokane Valley Lacrosse
Highlighted in this gallery collection is the Northwest Avalanche men’s varsity contest with league-leading North Spokane Valley on April 26 at Kidsports.
In that game, the home squad jumped out to a 4-0 lead at halftime and held off a Titan comeback to win going away by the score of 8-3.
As it was our first time seeing the 2026 Avalanche team, we were impressed by the quality of play exhibited by both teams. The game is extremely fast, with lightning-quick movement of the ball, which includes playing behind the goal areas. Both squads utilized a fast-break offensive attack and used set plays to create scoring opportunities for their best attackers.
The Avs’ biggest advantage overall during the contest was in the quality of the play of goaltender Connor Gall, who repeatedly thwarted shots by the Titans throughout the first half. The 5’10” 165-pound senior has excellent quickness and outstanding ball-handling skills, seemingly to be in position to block shots from all angles. Team statistics have Gall starting all ten games for the Av’s in 2026, with a total of 86 saves on a total of 132 shot attempts.
The Avalanche attack is led by senior Grady Robinson, who has scored 21 goals, followed by Tucker Roberts with 17, Weston Robinson with 12, Caleb Holland with 11, and Cruz Grace with 10.
Weston Robinson had an outstanding offensive game against the Titans, scoring a total of four goals, with brother Grady picking up two. Grace and Holland scored the other two goals, while Gall stopped 11 of 14 shots on goal.
Gall was fronted by a formidable defense with defenders Cash McKay, LJ Alton, and Elijah Copping, as well as midfielders Cash Keim, Boston Stimac, and Zander McLaughlin, causing havoc with the Titan offense.
Leading the Titans were Caden Shutz, Paxton Patrick, and Will Devenish, who all scored a goal apiece. Carson Kelly had a tough outing in goal, stopping 12 of 20 Avalanche shots in the loss.
2026 Class A Men's Tennis - Whitefish Bulldogs vs Columbia Falls Wildcats
On May 2, the Whitefish Bulldogs men's varsity tennis team defeated Columbia Falls 7-0 with singles and doubles scores as follows: SINGLES — Jack Oehlerich, Whitefish def. Jackson Scholz 6-0, 6-1; Owen Erickson, Whitefish def. Sol Masters 6-1, 6-2; Eli Erickson, Whitefish def. Pablo Perles 6-4, 6-7 (3-7), 6-1; Ben Nelson, Whitefish def. Scout Love 6-1, 6-0.
DOUBLES — Aaron Anderson and Marcus Mercer, Whitefish def. William Oberholtzer and Jack Austin 3-6, 6-3, 6-1; Cole Moses and Jake Shors, Whitefish def. Blake Perry and Jackson Bowler 6-1, 6-2; Charlie Oehlerich and Finn Hobart, Whitefish def. Gabe Plevel and Taiven Combs, 6-0, 6-2.
2026 Class AA Tennis - Glacier & Flathead vs. Helena Capital
As it was the first meet of the season for both Kalispell outfits, play was a bit ragged and a little slower, but it was perfect for us to get our shot timing and camera settings dialed in. We are also ragged and a little slow, so a day like Friday was an enjoyable way to get in some early-season tennis work!
For the Wolfpack, returners are all over the women's roster, led by junior Leilani Lennarz, who took sixth place at the State AA tennis meet last spring. Lennarz is about 5’5” and is of slight build, but packs a wallop in a variety of forehand and backhand shots that keep her opponents off-balance. Her experience and consistency stand out, and certainly make her one of the top women’s high school players in Western Montana.
Ava Meldrum, of Helena Capital, provided Lennarz a stiff challenge in the match we took in, but eventually Leilani secured a 6-3, 6-3 win. We also got to see our friends, Cassidy and Candence Daniels, and Miley Fritz and Reid Sanders take on their counterparts from Capital High. Both squads got easy victories over the young Bruin pairs.
We also got to see the very last portion of Colton Mantovani’s match against Capital’s Caden McCollough. Glacier's Mantovani, a recent transfer from Texas, won 6-3, 6-1. We also took in portions of several other matches, but didn’t get time to check out the results board for names and scores. We were up against it to get to the track meet!
2026 Class AA and A Tennis - Glacier Wolfpack vs Whitefish
On April, 17 we made the trip to Flathead Community College in Kalispell for a highly anticipated tennis dual between Class A Whitefish and Class AA Glacier.
Under threatening skies and with a cool and steady breeze off the mountains to the West, twelve of the sixteen planned matches got underway, albeit encumbered by sweatsuits and a few stocking caps.
From the get-go, Whitefish, the defending Class A men’s tennis team champion, looked the part. Led by senior Jack Oehlerich, the Class A state runner-up in men’s singles in 2025, the Dawgs won all eight matches against the Wolfpack.
With his usual calm and cool demeanor, the sandy-haired Oehlerich won the battle of top seeds, beating Glacier’s Colton Mantovani 6-1, 6-4.
It didn’t get much better for the Wolfpack in the other singles head-to-heads, with #2 Owen Erickson cruising past Glacier’s Weston Heller 6-3, 6-0. The Bulldogs #3, Finn Hobart, struggled to get by the Wolfpacks’ Ty Rogers, but took a hard-fought, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (6) win. The Bulldogs’ #4 Ben Nelson defeated Glacier’s Ty Sherrill by scores of 6-2 and 6-2.
In men’s doubles, Aaron Anderson and Cole Moses, Whitefish’s top seeds, played Glacier’s Ethan Ronngren and Karson Stafford. The Whitefish pair won a fierce first set by a score of 7-5. In the middle of Set Two, with the score tied at 3-3, one of the Wolfpack pair injured his knee and had to concede the match. Marcus Mercer and Charlie Oehlerich, Whitefish’s #2 team, took down Glacier’s Conner Salmonsen and Axel Rauscher by scores of 6-3 and 6-0.
In the matchup of three-seeds, the Bulldog duo of Jake Shors and Eli Erickson rolled over Glacier’s Brandtly Kelsey and Isaac Weaks 6-0, 6-1. Finally, Whitefish’s Landon McGavin and Isaac Rudolph outplayed the Wolfpack duo of Cole Pelucca and Gavin Pyron by scores of 6-4 and 6-2.
On the women’s side, Whitefish’s third-place team from the State A meet last May ran up against a talented Wolfpack squad. The Pack women came into last Friday’s duel with a combined 27-4 match record so far in 2026. Still, the Wolfpack side, as talented as it was, struggled with the Bulldogs, particularly in the lower seeds.
In the singles, Leiliani Lennarz of Glacier won by default with the Whitefish #1 out of town. She did play a friendly with Bulldog Emy Hansen, which was hotly contested when we departed for a baseball game.
The Wolfpack’s Autumn Bashara remained undefeated on the season, beating Ainsley Grubb 6-1, 6-1 in the battle of the two-seeds. Hansen, in her #3 singles match, defeated Glacier’s Avery Bender 6-2, 6-1. Glacier’s Clara Norick downed Bulldog Daisy Lusko 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 in an evenly matched battle of #4 seeds.
In women’s #1 doubles, Glacier’s sister combo of Cadence and Cassidy Daniels won their first set 6-3 over Whitefish’s Camry Kelch and Lucy Marzo. The Bulldog pair then rebounded to blast the Daniels’ 6-1 in Set 2. In the tiebreaker, the Daniels’ duo recovered to win 6-3, and ran their season record to a perfect 6-0.
Glacier’s #2 team of Miley Fritz and Reid Sanders dumped Aubrey Talbot and Delila Vine 6-4, 6-2. Annebelle Barrile and Sammie Shors, Whitefish’s #3, won a hotly contested match against the Wolfpack’s Quinn Berkram and Parker Speer by scores of 2-6; 7-6, and 6-1. In the fourth and final pairing, Glacier’s Adilynn Lister and Rowyn Speer beat Vivian Trieweiler-Schmidt and Sophia Cook 6-0, 4-6, and 6-2.
2026 Class AA Tennis - Glacier Wolfpack vs Flathead Braves.Bravettes
Thursday, August 9, we had the opportunity to take advantage of ideal weather at the FVCC tennis complex, where Glacier and Flathead’s squads squared off in a Crosstown matchup. A total of sixteen varsity matches were conducted, and we made the best of about two hours to try to get to as many of them as possible.
Even though the Wolfpack squads dominated much of the action, getting 7-1 victories for both the men’s and women’s teams, we tried to balance our photography efforts for both teams as much as possible.
As up to 12 matches were conducted at one time, we were on the move about every ten minutes or so, and managed to see at least a few minutes of almost all of the varsity matches.
In the women’s competition, we saw Glacier’s top-seed Leilani Lennarz outpoint Flathead’s top singles player in Sara Loran, by scores of 6-2 and 6-3.
Flathead’s third-seeded Allie Goff remained undefeated in early-season action, beating Glacier’s Clara Norick 6-2, and 6-3. Goff is currently 3-0 against her second and third-seeded opponents so far in 2026.
Flathead’s Azala Bailey lost her first match of the season to Glacier’s Autumn Bashara 6-3, 6-0 in the two-seed contest.
By far the longest and best match of the day was between Glacier’s Colton Mantovani and Flathead’s Rowan Alexander, which went to Mantovani in three sets, 6-3, 2-6, and 6-1. That match lasted over an hour, and we took in much of the final set.
The lone win for the Brave men’s squad came when Flathead’s Storm Lister outpointed Gavin Pyron 6-4, 6-4 in another hotly contested match. It was Flathead’s first match win of the season in men’s competition.
2026 MAHA U19 Women's Hockey Championships
We attended the 2026 U19 women’s state championship hockey tournament held on February 20-22 at the Stumptown Ice Den. The six-team event featured teams from across Montana, including two Flathead-area teams: the Glacier Avalanche and the Flathead Fusion. Also participating were the Havre Ice Hawks, the Helena Bighorns, the Bozeman Icedogs, and the Missoula Bruins. See highlight games, teams, and athletes in these custom collections.
Montana Amateur Hockey Association U19 Women's Hockey - State Tournament Trophy Matches
On Sunday, February 22, we were on hand for the MAHA U19 Women’s State Hockey championship game, as well as the consolation final. The Missoula Bruins, at 17-1-1, took on the 14-3-2 Glacier Avalanche, who were the tournament host team for the women’s championship. The two teams had advanced through the tourney with perfect 3-0 records going into the championship game.
In the first six minutes of the match, the two talented sides exchanged possessions in a high-energy and intense flurry of action. At 11:24, Missoula’s all-state defender Skyler Knapp drew a two-minute tripping penalty, and it didn’t take Glacier long to take advantage of it.
The Avs, just eight seconds into the power play, struck first after Grace Wentzel found Marlis Nargi at the front of a congested goal crease around Molina. Nargi’s point-blank shot slipped through the block of a diving Morina, and Glacier celebrated a 1-0 lead.
The Avs' advantage lasted almost eight minutes, with the teams relying on their steady goaltending and strong checking between the blue lines.
Missoula’s Bykari finally broke the ice for the Bruins, taking a pass from teammate Kaelyn Keating, and deftly avoiding an overcommitted Sylvester to slip the puck into an open Avs’ net. The first session ended with the score tied at 1-1.
The second period started quickly for the Bruins, as Knapp scored a go-ahead goal at 16:48, off an assist from Bykari. The rest of the second period was a back-and-forth affair with neither team finding the back of the net after a series of power play opportunities.
The Bruins’ Richmond scored three minutes into the third stanza, to give Missoula a 3-1 lead. Glacier began pressing their backline to mid-ice, and with two minutes to go, Glacier’s Kyndle DeMarco scored to bring her team within one.
After a quick timeout by Glacier coach Bobee Hyland, the Avs began an all-out assault on Morina and her defense, but failed to get the game-tying marker as the game clock expired. Glacier outshot Missoula 11-4 in the final stanza, and for the game at 31-26, but the young Morina held strong.
In the Consolation Final, Bozeman defeated the Flathead Fusion 3-2 in a another tight contest.
Montana Amateur Hockey Association U19 Women's Hockey - Semifinal Games
Stumptown Ice Den was packed on Saturday afternoon, with both Flathead area teams in action against semifinal opponents Missoula and Bozeman.
Up first was the Flathead Fusion, based in Kalispell, taking on the tournament’s top seed, Missoula.
The Bruins jumped on the Fusion early in their semifinal, with leading scorers Rose Richmond and Aubrey Bykari combining for three goals in the first ten minutes. Flathead’s Norah Adoretti scored unassisted near the end of the first period to breathe some life into the Fusion faithful.
A comeback was not to be, however, as the Bruins continued their offensive onslaught in the second session. Five minutes into the period, the Fusion’s Lila Zuffelato was sent to the penalty box for a two-minute tripping minor. Less than a minute later, Missoula’s Zoey Moran scored a power play goal on an assist by Bykari to make the score 4-1.
The teams battled for another five minutes before Bykari ripped the nets with her second goal of the game, and her eighth in less than three full tourney contests. Up 5-1, the Bruins wasted little time in burying the Fusion even more, as Elsa Jehle fed senior forward Indyana Geiges for her third goal of the tournament.
Down 6-1, the Fusion showed some life in the third stanza, shutting out the Bruins and scoring two goals. The first was by Adoratti, who knocked in her second goal at 12:22, and nine minutes later, Tesla Liebe-Cohan pushed the puck past the Bruins’ Paylin Morina to make the final score 6-3.
The second semifinal took on an entirely different feel, as the Glacier Avalanche and Bozeman Ice Dogs used a gritty and hard-hitting defensive approach to keep much of the action at mid-ice.
The Avalanche suffered two early penalties in the first period to go short-handed against a talented Bozeman offense. Regardless, the Avs’ Bianca and Heidi Walker teamed up to score a short-handed goal just three minutes into the game to give the host squad a 1-0 lead.
That score held until late in the second period when Bianca Walker scored off of an assist by Kyndle DeMarco to put Glacier up 2-0 just before the Zamboni hit the ice during the second break.
In the final period, the Avalanche defense continued to frustrate the Ice Dogs offense, holding them to just five shots in the final 17 minutes. Bozeman, perhaps running on empty due to having to play their second match of the day, spent much of the period shorthanded after two fouls.
Montana Amateur Hockey Association U19 Women's Championships - Glacier vs Flathead
The first match of the second-round games at the MAHA U19 state hockey tournament featured one of the biggest games of the event, with host Glacier battling arch rival Flathead. The girls from Whitefish, the Avalanche, had played the Kalispell-based Fusion three times during 2025-26, splitting victories and tying the third contest 1-1 way back on December 10.
The state tournament matchup would be a series tiebreaker, and make the winner the home team in the state semifinal game later in the day.
The Avs wasted little time in getting a leg up on their valley foes, scoring three goals in the first period to go up 3-0 after the first session. Bianca Walker scored first, assisted by Kyndle Demarco and Matilda Daniels, four minutes into the game. Three minutes later, Marlis Nargi scored unassisted, with Baylee Hyland adding another on a power play with 5:27 left to go in the period.
Flathead rebounded in the second stanza, getting on the board at 9:28 as all-state forward Tara Herne scored off an assist by Alie Grossman.
For the remainder of the second and third periods, the Avalanche committed to the defensive end, which resulted in a gritty, hard-checking physical affair, with both teams totaling just 24 shots in nearly a half-hour of play. The teams were whistled for seven penalties during that timeframe, with five coming from Glacier.
Avalanche goalie Drew Sylvester fended off a total of 14 shots during the fourth period alone, with Flathead on the power play for most of the final five minutes of the match. When the final buzzer signaled the end of play, the two teams exchanged handshakes, with acknowledgement that the Avs had won the day, a hard-fought 3-1 victory. Sylvester stopped a total of 25 Fusion shots in the win, while Flathead’s Chelsea Hart deflected 29 in the loss.
Montana Amateur Hockey Association U19 Women's Championships - Missoula vs Helena
For the first 17 minutes of the opening round hockey match between top-seeded Missoula and sixth-seeded Helena, the goaltenders reined in every scoring opportunity by both squads. Missoula’s Paylin Morina and the Bighorns’ Natalia Sublette offed a total of 20 shots; 15 coming by Sublette, to keep the score tied at 0-0.
In the second period, and 38 seconds into a Bighorn power play, Helena’s leading scorer, London Elsden (#96), scored on an assist by teammate Maylea Dawson to break the deadlock.
A minute later, with the Bruins short-handed, Missoula’s Rose Richmond (#12) scored on a breakaway rush after taking in a nice pass from teammate Lucia Rosas-Olson.
The 1-1 tie didn’t last long, as Missoula’s Indyana Geiges scored on an assist by Elsa Jehle. At 2:30 remaining in the second stanza, Richmond scored again to give the Bruins a 3-1 advantage.
Just 20 seconds later, Helena’s Ansley Cowen put the puck past Morina to score off an assist by Macy Hedges to bring the Bighorns within one at 3-2 after two periods.
In the third session, the Missoula defense picked up the pace with defender Skylar Knapp (#10) setting the tone in front of the Bruins' crease. Knapp had gotten an unsportsmanlike conduct/slashing penalty just before the end of the second period, and that may have triggered the all-state player’s inspired play.
The defensive intensity by the Bruins also triggered an onslaught of sorts at the other end of the ice, as Missoula’s all-state forward Aubrey Bykari (#5) scored back-to-back unassisted goals in the first three minutes of the period. Not to be outdone, Richmond took a pass from Josephine Winterer and knifed through the Bighorn defense to score a hat-trick goal to put the Bighorns away at 6-2.
Montana Amateur Hockey Association U19 Women's Championships - Glacier vs Havre
In the opening round of the MAHA state tournament, a spirited Havre Ice Hawks squad put up a fight in the first match, with Brooklyn Morse finding the back of the net at 9:22 of the first period to give Havre a 1-0 lead over the two-seed Glacier Avalanche. The Hawks’ advantage did not last long, as first-team all-conference defender Baylee Hyland scored for the Avs a minute later.
The game remained tied at 1-1 until Glacier forwards Matilda Daniels and Natalie Reilly each scored power-play goals a minute apart to make the score 3-1 going into the second period.
The Avs’ offense picked up even more in the second stanza, with Daniels racking up a second goal three minutes into the period. Two minutes later, defender Mackenzie Grant scored unassisted to make the score 5-1, and in the third session, Kyndle Demarco scored a goal to finish off the Ice Hawks 6-1 in convincing fashion.
The Avs outshot the Hawks 33-15, with Glacier’s netminder Drew Sylvester getting the win, and Havre’s Paisley Branden taking the loss.
2025 High School Football
We attended high school football games in Northwest Montana, mostly in Class B, A and AA. Many are included in this section with most recent being presented first. Enjoy our many gridiron collections from under the Friday Night Lights! We'll be attending playoff games toward the end of October, and hopefully into late November.
2025 Class A Championship Football Game - Frenchtown vs Billings Central
In the Class A championship, Frenchtown scored first on a 27-yard field goal by Brett Kleinsmith with 4:30 in the first quarter. The Rams then scored next on a seven-yard run by Layne Alexander. A Brady Martin PAT kick put the Rams up 7-3 with 3:20 left in the first period.
The Broncs took advantage of a long kickoff return, which moved the ball near midfield. Six-foot-five wideout Cooper Michaud caught a 20-yard Forthofer pass over the middle, and the Broncs had a first down inside the Ram 20. After a couple of negative plays, Forthofer scrambled to avoid the Rams' pass rush and threw a lofting pass to the Rams' end zone. It was there that Jordan Warner leapt over the tight coverage of a Ram defensive back and snagged a go-ahead 28-yard touchdown pass. Kleinsmith’s PAT put the Broncs ahead 10-7.
After the teams exchanged punts, the Rams marched down the field to score again, this time on a one-yard run by Michael Thomas, with seven minutes to go in the half. The defenses took control after that point, and the teams went to the locker room with the Rams up 14-10.
In the third period, the Rams struggled against the stout Frenchtown line, and when forced to long-yardage passing plays, quarterback Howie Martin was flushed from the pocket by a fierce Bronc pass rush.
Junior defensive back Cole Pfahler led the way for the Broncs, totaling 11 tackles during the game. Also having a hand in stopping the Rams offense was linebacker Klimple, who had seven stops, and seniors Bailey Corette, Casey Kzaley, and Henry Griffin, who all had six stops apiece. Griffin, at 6-4, 220 lbs., was a force from his defensive tackle position, regularly causing havoc in the Ram backfield.
Bronc offense got things going near the end of the third quarter. After a couple of first downs, Frenchtown moved the ball to the Ram 10, where, with 23 seconds left in the stanza, Forthofer found Corette wide open at the goal line in the left flat. Corette’s TD reception put the Broncs in front 17-14 at the end of the quarter.
On the Rams' next possession, Central quarterback Martin found the edge of the Bronc defense and raced 40 yards past the Frenchtown bench, where he was swarmed by a host of black-clad tacklers. After several attempts to break through the stubborn Bronc defense inside the Frenchtown ten, Martin put the Rams back in the lead at 21-17, scoring on a quarterback sneak five minutes into the final period.
After the ensuing kickoff, Frenchtown, relying on runs by the Forthofer’s, Klimple, and Corette, drove the ball to the Ram 18. It was then that quarterback Forthofer faked a handoff to Klimple and then darted through a gap in the left side of the Ram defense. A second later, Forthofer was being mobbed by teammates in the back of the end zone with 2:27 on the clock.
With the Broncs now up 24-21, Central suffered a short return on Kleinsmith’s ensuing kickoff, and then turned the ball over on downs at its own 34 with 90 seconds left in the game.
After a couple of running plays into the Central defense, which depleted most of the Rams' timeouts, Klimpel took a handoff and ran right behind his line on a jet sweep. A split second later, he rose to look downfield and quickly whipped a pass into the darkness.
The bleachers behind the Frenchtown bench exploded in elation as Klimpel’s pass had fallen into the arms of Warner at the two-yard line. Warner stepped into the end zone for a game-clinching TD with 59 seconds remaining, and with Kleinsmith’s PAT, the scoreboard lit 31-21, and history was made.
2025 Class AA Football Championship Game - Glacier vs. Billings West
The Golden Bears' first play was the longest of the Class AA championship game, as running back Payton Cicero dashed around left end and sprinted up the sideline for a 58-yard gain. The Wolfpack defense responded, in more typical fashion, to hold the Bears to a 22-yard Jaxon King field goal with just over two minutes off the game clock.
Down 3-0, Glacier responded with a long drive of their own on their second possession, leaning on the running of Knopik, to the Bear two two-yard line. It was there that the Billings West defense stonewalled the Pack, and Glacier had to resort to a 20-yard field goal by Kyle Smith in the final seconds of the first stanza.
Neither team scored in the second period, and the highlight play was a 47-yard interception return by Glacier free-safety Ethan Kastelitz. Kastelitz’s interception set the Wolfpack up at Billings West’s 20, but a Presley pass was tipped and picked off near the Bear’s goal line to end the threat. Glacier had another good drive near the end of the half, but suffered a red zone sack on fourth down to send the game to intermission at 3-all.
The third quarter started with a bang, as the scoreboard suffered a malfunction and the game was delayed for over ten minutes. A temporary fix was applied, as the timing staff and officials restarted the game using stop watches or phone timing apps, we’re not too sure. It wasn’t too long before the Legends clock was back in service, but by then, the more than 5,000 people in attendance had noticed a swing in momentum to the home team. The Wolves began to smell blood.
With play resumed on the stopwatch(?), five minutes had run off the clock when the Wolfpack capped an 11-play, 77-yard drive, with a seven-yard keeper by Presley off right tackle. Smith’s extra point brought the score to 10-3 midway through the third quarter.
The Glacier defense forced a Bear punt and then executed another long drive, this time 72 yards on ten plays. On fourth down from the Golden Bear four, Knopik plowed through the West defense, finding familiar Legends paydirt. Smith’s PAT went wide right, which made the score 16-3 with 26 seconds remaining in the period.
After the ensuing kickoff, Glacier settled into a bend but don’t break defense, with secondary deep to eliminate the big play. To be obliged, the West offense conducted a methodical nine-minute drive to the Glacier six six-yard line. It was there when a Johnson fourth-down pass went over his receiver's head in the back of the end zone with only 3:17 left in the game.
Knopik’s punishing runs allowed the Pack to pick up a couple of first downs and whittle the Bears’ timeouts and clock at the same time. In Victory Formation, Presley took the last snap from center and raised the ball over his head in an exuberant display of pride and satisfaction.
Class B Semifinal Playoff Football - Lincoln County at Manhattan
In a gritty, defensively dominated 14-12 semifinal victory, Manhattan advanced to its fourth Class B championship game in the last six years. Last weekend, Manhattan capped its undefeated 12-0 season with a 27-20 win over Three Forks in the Class B title tilt, its second since 2020.
Against Lincoln County, Manhattan took control of the contest in the second quarter, after a short punt from deep in Lion territory. Tiger punt returner, Brayden Zikmund, initially let the ball bounce and then roll toward him as the Lion coverage team approached. Zikmund, expected to just let the ball be downed by the Lions near midfield, grabbed the ball and sprinted toward the left sideline. After evading a tackle in front of the Tiger bench, Zikmund raced 44 yards to give Manhattan a 6-0 lead. Connor Mayo’s PAT kick made it 7-0, and what was a quiet Manhattan crowd was ringing their cowbells.
Following another Lion punt, Pavlik dropped back to pass and spotted a streaking Zikmund who had gotten past the Lincoln County secondary downfield. Seconds later, the fleet receiver was completing a 78-yard touchdown play to give his team a 14-0 advantage with five minutes remaining in the half.
Leading by two scores at the intermission, the Tigers’ coaching staff throttled back the offense to a ball-control running game, choosing to rely on their defense to secure the win. In the third quarter, the Tiger defense bent, but didn’t break against the Lions’ potent attack.
After a scoreless third stanza, Lytle scooted through the Tiger line on a 36-yard run on the first play of the fourth quarter. Two plays later, Lytle dove into the end zone from two yards out, but the PAT kick failed, and the score remained 14-6 with ten minutes to go in the game.
The Lincoln County defense forced a punt, and the Lions took advantage of a pass interference penalty to move quickly inside the Tigers' five-yard line. A play later, running back Ayden Helgert dozed through two Tiger defenders to find paydirt. The Lions’ pass attempt for the tying two-point conversion was knocked down, which made the score 14-12 with six minutes left to play.
The Lions attempted a pooch kick on the ensuing kickoff, which was deftly recovered by the Tigers at their own 40. Interrupted by a series of Lincoln County timeouts, Manhattan marched the ball to inside the Lion 20. In a crucial fourth-down play, Tiger receiver Matthew Fenno appeared to catch a Pavlik pass near the goal line, but Lytle punched the ball out of his grasp, and the ball fell incomplete.
Lincoln County took possession with 2:14 remaining, and on first down, Lytle knifed through the Tiger defense for a 50-yard gain to the Manhattan 31-yard line. After an incomplete pass, Lytle scampered to the Manhattan sideline, where he was blitzed by the hit of cornerback Fenno, but not before getting a first down at the Lion 21-yard line.
In the final seconds, the Tigers thwarted two pass attempts to the goal line. With 3.2 seconds left in the game, Rogan Lytle’s 37-yard field goal narrowly missed wide left.
Glacier Wolfpack vs Gallatin Raptors - 2025 Class AA Football Semifinal
Friday, November 14, we were at Legends Stadium for the Class AA semifinal football game with the 9-1 Gallatin Raptors. Played in a light rain, it wasn’t a perfect night for photography, but the two teams took big swings at each other in the soggy conditions, with the defenses dominating much of the action.
In the early going, however, the Glacier offense used a punishing ground game to score on their first drive of the game, a short run by senior running back Asher Knopik. Later in the first stanza, after a big stop on fourth down, the Wolfpack took over deep in their own territory. Knopik wasted little time in finding some daylight in the Raptor line, and outracing the Gallatin secondary in a 68 yard dash for paydirt to give Glacier a 14-0 lead at the quarter break.
After an interception by Cooper Pelc, Knopik scored again on another short run, and his hat trick of touchdowns gave the Pack a 21-0 lead at the intermission.
In the second half, he Wolfpack D logged three quarterback sacks, and had ten hurries as the Raptors offense turned to their passing game in an effort to catch up.
The Wolfpack secondary feasted on a barrage of aerials by Raptor quarterback, Sam Litzen, who was 14 of 28 for 129 yards, but threw a total of four interceptions in the process. Glacier free-safety came down with three of those, but the highlight pick was by Pelc, who legged out a 50 yard return to set up the Pack’s third score of the game.
Sophomore Cruz Robinson led the Wolfpack with 12 total tackles, including a quarterback sack. Senior Jack Robinson wasn’t far behind with ten stops, including a sack.
Gallatin didn’t get into the end zone, but showed some effectiveness on offense, with Carter Dahlke getting 136 total yards on 15 touches. Junior Tyson Scheel led the Raptor rushing attack, get a total of 65 yards on 13 totes.
The Wolfpack, who have won ten of their previous games by 30 points or more, amassed 360 yards in total offense. Knopik, who rushed for 136 yards on 19 carries and scored three TDs, picked up 7.2 yards per carry. Wideout Dylan Banzet caught two second half touchdown passes and had a total of 78 receiving yards to set the pace for the Wolfpacks’ receiving corps. Sacramento State commit, Jackson Presley, had 11 completions on 20 attempts for the Wolfpack, for a total of 158 yards and two touchdowns.
Western Class AA Football - Glacier Wolfpack vs Big Sky Eagles
ArtwestimageSports.com staff was at Legends, where the Pack secured a 42-12 win over Missoula Big Sky to win the Western A and clinch a home playoff seed for the entire playoff series.
Asher Knopik rushed for 183 yards on 18 totes and scored two touchdowns, in what was a workmanlike performance for the Wolfpack.
Quarterback Jackson Presley passed just 15 times, completing 9, with a majority of those going to wideout Cooper Pelc. The lanky senior had four catches for 81 yards, with the long being a 41-yard touchdown grab in the first stanza. Presley threw three touchdown passes for 145 yards.
The most extraordinary effort was made by the Wolfpack defense, which throttled Big Sky’s offense, led by high-performing junior quarterback Eli Kasberg. Kasberg, among the leaders in Class AA passing statistics in just about every category, was under pressure by a fierce pass rush for the entire night. Kasberg, off his back foot or on the run, trying to avoid the rush, tossed a total of five interceptions on the evening, with two coming on long balls by Pelc.
Ethan Kastelitz, Grady Robinson, and Kruz Robinson also had picks, which all came on the Eagles' side of the field; two of these were converted into Glacier scores. After Kastelitz’s takeaway on Big Sky’s opening drive of the first quarter, Jack Robinson scored on a 4-yard pass from Presley after just four minutes of the game. Following Kruz Robinson’s pass theft, Knopik ripped off a 39-yard scoring run with five minutes remaining in the second quarter.
Big Sky got on the board early in the second quarter, when Tristan Miller took a Kasberg pass to paydirt, bringing the score to 21-6. After Knopik’s scoring run, Glacier drove the length of the field in the two-minute offense, capped by a 14-yard touchdown pass from Presley to Dylan Banzet with 36 ticks left on the clock before intermission.
With the Pack up 35-6 at the half, the game was thoroughly in control, and the conference crown and the number-one seed in the state playoffs were in the bag. Glacier’s lone score of the second half was a 3-yard run by Eli Imperato midway through the third period.
Big Sky scored on the final play of the game, on a two-yard Kasberg run, to bring the final score to 42-12.
2025 Class A Northwest Football - Bigfork vs Whitefish
ArtwestimageSports.com staffer Tremayne Krause was at Bigfork High School, on October 24, where the Vikings battled Whitefish for the #2 seed from the Northwest A and a home playoff game this weekend.
Bigfork got on the board first with Treker Hickey finding paydirt on a five-yard run on the Vikings' first possession. Bulldog quarterback Luke Dalen found Vlad Shestak on an 18-yard scoring pass four minutes later to tie the score at 7-7 at the end of the first stanza.
Whitefish took a 10-7 lead midway through the second quarter, when place-kicker Patrick Orme booted the ball through the uprights from 34 yards out. The lead didn’t last long, as Austin Savik caught a five-yard scoring pass from Bigfork quarterback Cole Schmidt with 38 seconds left in the half.
The Vikings added to their lead with 3:46 left on the clock in the third quarter, on a one-yard plunge by Tayden West. Down 21-10, it didn’t look good for the Bulldogs at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
It was then when Coach Brett Bollweg leaned into the Dawgs' running game, and with senior running back Cole Moses and Dalen sharing carries, Whitefish drove 98 yards to the Bigfork one-yard line. It was at that point, with 6:36 left on the clock, Moses rammed across the Viking goal line to trim the Vik’s lead to 21-16, after a failed 2-point conversion run.
The Whitefish defense forced the Vikings to punt on their next possession, and quarterback Dalen and Moses combined for a clock-eating 60-yard drive, culminating in a go-ahead score by Moses with 2:28 to go. The Vikings stuffed a PAT conversion run by Dalen to keep the score at 22-21, which meant the Vikings would just need a field goal with over two minutes left on the clock.
Bigfork’s chance at the win never came as Braylon Dunn, purposefully or not, squibbed the ensuing kickoff. Whitefish’s Austin Alton recovered the ball near the Viking 30, and the Bulldogs ran out the clock to earn the 22-21 victory.
Class B Football - Lincoln County versus Thompson Falls
Friday, October 24, we attended the Lincoln County versus Thompson Falls Blue Hawks football game in Eureka. The Lions had a huge first quarter, scoring five touchdowns over a span of twelve minutes. In a fairly balanced offensive effort, the Lions totaled 285 yards and scored four touchdowns on the ground and three via the passing game.
Senior Rogan Lytle and junior Tyce Van Orden shared turns behind center, and combined for a perfect eight-for-eight passing and totaled 127 yards and three touchdowns. Freshman Trent Shay led the junior varsity offense for much of the mercy-rule-shortened second half.
Tight end Emmitt McKim led all Lion pass catchers, with 4 receptions for 44 yards, including an 11-yard scoring pass from Lytle. Senior Josh Lambersen snagged two balls for 36 yards and a score, while adding 59 yards rushing on four carries. He also added two touchdowns rushing. Van Orden caught a 34-yard touchdown pass from Lytle, and senior Timothy Schmidt rounded out the Lions’ offensive scoring on a 22-yard run.
McKim led the Lincoln County defense with ten total tackles, while junior Ayden Helgert had six, and Lytle totaled five. The Lions picked off three Blue Hawk passes, including a long pick-six by Lambersen in the second quarter. They totaled six tackles for losses and added a blocked punt by junior DeClan Peterson. Senior Grant Brown converted on six of eight PAT kicks and missed a 40-yard field goal in the third quarter.
Thompson Falls, after trailing 48-0 at the half, finally got on the board late in the third quarter, when senior Mason Park hauled in a 62-yard touchdown pass from freshman quarterback Tristan Kelly. Hank Stone added a two-point conversion to make the score 54-8. On the Blue Hawks’ final possession of the game, Park again found paydirt, outrunning the Lions’ second-team defense for a 75-yard TD. Park totaled 78 yards on 8 carries to lead the Blue Hawks on offense.
Quarterback Kelly had 89 yards passing on seven completions for Thompson Falls, while Mason Park had 62 yards receiving, all coming on his scoring scamper. The Hawks totaled 171 yards in total offense, on a total of 31 plays. Safety Jason Myers led the defense with seven stops.
2025 Class AA Crosstown Football - Wolfpack versus Braves
The Glacier Wolfpack, the loser of the last two Class AA state championship games, is in its 19th season under coach Grady Bennett and the third and final campaign with all-state quarterback Jackson Presley at the helm. The duo has led the Wolfpack on a mission to right the wrongs suffered at the end of the last two years, outscoring opponents 368-41 in seven games.
Mac Roche, in his first season at Flathead, has already led his team to more wins than in each of the two previous seasons. The Braves still had an outside chance of securing a playoff birth with a win in at least one of their final two games. With hard-throwing left-hander Eli Coopman at the helm, who ran for 122 yards and passed for another 149 yards in their 23-22 win over Butte, Flathead’s hopes to give the Wolfpack a good game in the 2025 Kalispell Crosstown football matchup were very high.
Those hopes were quickly proved unfounded, as the Wolfpack scored four out of the first five times they had the ball, and smothered Coopman and his offense throughout the first half. With a 49-0 halftime lead, the Glacier reserves played most of the second half, with the second and third teams holding the Braves scoreless.
In the Wolfpack's 56-0 victory, Quarterback Presley threw for 204 yards and four touchdowns, and hit on 14 of 15 passes in leading his team to 440 yards of total offense. The Wolfpack defense allowed less than 100 yards in total offense to the Braves, yielding just 2.2 yards per play. The Pack sacked Coopman three times and had seven tackles for negative yards.
Whitefish Bulldogs vs Columbia Falls Wildcats - Class A Football
Last Friday night, October 10, for those in attendance at the Northwest A conference football game between Whitefish and Columbia Falls, we saw a series of events that will likely not be soon forgotten.
The 2025 Cat-Dawg Crosstown game between the two traditional rivals will forever be defined as a “miracle-comeback”, where all of the aforementioned characteristics were part of the backstory.
The Whitefish Bulldogs entered the fourth quarter with an 18-0 lead and had pretty much carried out a great game plan, with an effective run-based offense, and a bend, but don’t break, defense.
On the first series of the fourth stanza, the Wildcats forced a Bulldog punt and took over at their own 30-yard line. That was when Wildcat wideout Easton Brooks slipped behind the Whitefish secondary down the middle of the field, and caught an arching spiral from Johnston for a 44-yard touchdown. Billie Joe West added the PAT kick to make the score 18-7 with 10:50 remaining on the clock.
On their next possession, Columbia Fall’s Jory Hill caught a short screen pass on the right hash mark and cut back to the Wildcat sideline. The lanky receiver turned the corner, and sprinted past the pancake block of Trip Ross on a Whitefish defensive back to complete a 56-yard scoring play. A PAT run failed, but the Wildcats had cut the lead to 18-13 with 8:46 left in the contest.
After a bad snap on a Bulldog punt, the Wildcats took over with great field position with six minutes left. The Cats marched down the field with a mix of runs and short passes. On fourth and goal from the 5 yard line, Johnston flipped a short flare pass to running back Tripp Ross, who found paydirt near the left sideline with 3:41 left in the game. Johnston’s conversion run came up short, but the Wildcats had their first lead of the game, at 19-18.
On the Bulldog’s final drive of the game, Brooks made a diving interception of a Dalen pass at midfield. The Wildcats’ Ross scampered for a first down, depleting Whitefish's timeouts and at the same time the game clock. Johnston then sealed the win by taking a knee in Victory Formation.
Flathead, Glacier, East Helena - Class AA.A Flag Football
At Legends stadium, the host Bravettes varsity flag football team began their day against the East Helena Vigilantes, who were still shaking off the effects of the long bus ride to Kalispell. They had their moments against the powerful Bravettes, who were quarterbacked by the dynamic Julia Kay, but couldn’t keep the pace in falling 25-0.
The Vigilantes then took Glacier, and actually held the lead for most of the first half. Keely Hamilton scored both of East Helena’s touchdowns, with the first coming on a 31-yard pick six off of Glacier’s Karley Allen. She later hauled in a second quarter scoring pass from quarterback Abby Hauck to put her team up 13-7. Allen found paydirt on a short run to tie the game at 13-all just before halftime, after tossing a 55-yard scoring pass to Zeila Wagner in the first period.
After a scoreless second half, Allen scored in the Wolfpack’s half of the first overtime, then made key tackles in the red zone to help the Wolfpack take a hard-fought 19-13 victory.
In the nightcap, wide reciever Lexi Herion had 8 catches for 144 yards to lead the Bravettes to a 20-13 win over their arch-rivals, the Glacier Wolfpack, in the second Kalispell Crosstown game!
Glacier Wolfpack Homecoming vs Helena Capital - Class AA Football
In our second Homecoming matchup of the 2025 fall sports season, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was at Legends Stadium in Kalispell for Glacier’s battle with Helena Capital.
In the 2024 state finale at Vigilante Stadium in Helena last November, the Bruins defeated Glacier 31-24, and that loss has figured prominently in preparing the Wolfpack this fall. Since the opening practice in August, players and coaches have had their rematch with the Bruins circled on their respective calendars.
Homecoming is normally a highlight of the fall season, and the fact that the Wolfpack would play Capital as part of the festivities, made last Friday’s game even bigger.
With those facts in mind, the top-ranked team in Class AA left little doubt that they deserve that distinction, as they routed the Bruins 56-6 in a game that was essentially over after the first quarter.
The Wolfpack moved to 4-0 on the season, exacted some revenge on the Bruins, and put a bow on the Glacier homecoming celebration package.
The Wolfpack defense dominated the game, forcing three turnovers, two of which were returned for touchdowns. The first came on a 12-yard interception return by lineman Jesse Baines, after a tipped pass by linebacker Will Astle. Following a strip sack by safety Noah Wagner in the fourth quarter, junior lineman Matthew Ahner picked up the loose ball and lumbered 37 yards for Glacier’s final score of the contest. Glacier held Capital to just 136 total yards, and didn’t allow a Bruin score until their final possession of the game.
Glacier scored four touchdowns in the first quarter, with the first three coming on a two-yard run by Asher Knopik, a short TD pass from quarterback Jackson Pressley to Cooper Pelc, and a 38-yard run by Presley. The highlight score of the first stanza, however, came from Class AA’s leading rusher, Knopik, who stiff armed a Capital defender at the Glacier 35 yard line, and scampered the distance in front of a cheering Wolfpack sideline.
Knopik finished the game with a team leading 124 yards on 9 carries, and now has 474 yards in four games, averaging 10.5 yards per tote. Presley played little in the second half, but still passed for 160 yards on eight pass completions. Sophomore Trey Ramey and junior Eli Imperato both scored on short runs in the second quarter to push the Wolfpack lead at halftime to 49-0.
Whitefish vs Hamilton - 2025 Class A Football
The Whitefish Bulldog football team got off to a tough start against the Southwest A co-leading Hamilton Broncs last Friday night, September 5, at the Dawg Pound. The 2-0 Broncs, off a 51-0 shellacking of Ronan, scored two touchdowns in the first five minutes and held a 27-8 lead at halftime over the Bulldogs.
Much of the damage inflicted on the Bulldogs was via the pass, as Bronc quarterback Cooper Weston unleashed a slew of aerial shots, 41 by game’s end, and completed 26 for 309 yards and two touchdowns. Whitefish’s starting junior quarterback Luke Dalen tallied the Bulldogs only first half score, on a 6-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, after leading a 14-play, 77 yard drive. Dalen split time with classmate Bear Barker, and after the two each threw first half interceptions, both played well in the second half.
The teams exchanged two possessions each in the third quarter before Whitefish took over on downs at their own 35-yard line with three minutes to go in the period. Four plays and 65 yards later, senior Cole Moses plowed his way into the end zone and Aaron Anderson’s PAT made the score 27-15 at the end of the third. On Hamilton’s first possession of the fourth stanza, Weston had a bad snap go over his head, losing 22 yards. Back on their own two, the Bronc coaching staff chose to take a two-point safety, which brought the Dawgs to within ten at 27-17.
After the free-kick, the Bulldogs got the ball near midfield, and on first down Dalen flipped an arching pass to Moses who came out of the backfield on a wheel route. Moses, finding himself all alone at the 35-yard line near the Hamilton bench, fended off the Bronc’s cornerback and out legged the rest of the defense to reach paydirt. The conversion failed, but the Bulldogs were within four points, at 27-23, with nine minutes to go in the game.
After an eight play drive, Whitefish turned the ball over on downs late in the final period, and Hamilton converted a couple of first downs to run out the clock.
2025 High School Soccer
From across western Montana, we attended high school soccer matches, mostly in Class A and AA. Both men's and women's matches are included in this section with most recent first. Let's hit the pitch in Columbia Falls, Whitefish, Kalispell, Bigfork, Libby, and other outlying areas during the state playoffs!
Class A Men's Soccer - 2025 Whitefish Bulldogs
ArtwestimageSports.com celebrates the 2025 Whitefish Bulldogs men's soccer season with our outtakes from their home victories over Hamilton and Stevensville. The Class A state runner-ups completed their season with an 11-3-1 record, including two shutout victories at home in the Class A quarterfinals and semifinals. The Bulldogs defeated the Hamilton Broncs 3-0, then the Stevensville Yellowjackets 4-0 to earn a bid to the Class A state title game. This custom collection celebrates those two contests, with over 270 images from the games. Congrats to the Bulldogs on another successful soccer season!
We invite all Bulldog soccer fans to view this collection, and also for parents and other family members to purchase any of these full-size and watermark-free photographs for your own personal collections!
Class A Women's Soccer Semifinal - Columbia Falls vs Lone Peak
In the Class A semifinal In Columbia Falls on October 25, the host Wildkats and the Lone Peak Bighorn women played in light rain for most of the first half.
The Lone Peak’s goalie, Piper Dodd, suffered an own goal near the end of the first half to give Columbia Falls a 1-0 lead. After the intermission, Bigfork forward Harper Morris tied the score nine minutes into the second half.
Six minutes later, senior Bella Mann scored after a corner kick, bouncing the ball off the rain-soaked turf and over Dodd’s extended hands into the net. Nine minutes later, Mann scored a point-blank goal in a crowd of Bighorns inside the goal box, bringing the score to 3-1 with 16 minutes to go
Midfielder Taylor Rodgers knocked in a game-clinching shot with five minutes left on the clock to put the Wildkats in the title game.
Columbia Falls seeks their second Class A crown in six trips to the state championship. The Kats beat Laurel 6-1 in 2004, with their most recent trip to the title game coming in 2023, when they were defeated by Whitefish 3-1.
Whitefish Bulldogs vs Bigfork High - Class A Soccer Playoff Doubleheader
October 14, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was at Smith Fields in Whitefish for the first game of a Whitefish versus Bigfork playoff doubleheader. Following the Dawgs' 3-1 victory over the Vikings, we made a quick trek to Bigfork to catch the nightcap between the Lady Bulldogs and the Valkyries. In that contest, held under beautiful, but crisp, evening skies, the home-standing Shieldmaidens pressured the Whitefish defense for much of the first half, with Paeten Gunlock scoring the lone goal in the first 40 minutes. After Gwenna Lustig’s free kick goal just two minutes into the second half, Bigfork fell back into a defensive formation and held on for a 2-1 win to advance to the Class A quarterfinals.
Glacier Wolfpack vs Helena Bengals - Class AA Soccer
Friday, September, 12 we had the pleasure of seeing the Glacier soccer nines take on the Helena Bengals at the Glacier High pitch. The men's team dominated the Bengals with a stellar defensive effort led by Senior defenseman Cash Tweweek, and goalkeeper Silas Young. The Pack got goals from Noah Lisowski, Liam Swank, and Kyler Hardman in a 3-0 shutout win. The women jumped out to a one goal lead, on a score by Addison Brisendine, but fell to a Helena rally in the second half in a 3-1 defeat.
Columbia Falls vs Whitefish - Class A North Valley Rivalry Soccer
Tuesday, October 7, ArtwestimageSports.com staff was at Smith Fields for the North Valley Crosstown matches between Whitefish and Columbia Falls.
We got what we thought it would: defensive battles against two of the best programs in Class A. Both are very familiar with each other’s personnel and style of play, and the match came down to possession time and who would make the fewest mistakes.
The women's game came down to two second half goals resulting in a 1-1 tie. In the men's game Columbia Falls took a 2-1 victory and the North A conference regular season title, matching their success in 2024. All four teams advance to the Class A playoffs.
Whitefish Bulldogs vs Bigfork Valkyries & Vikings - Class A Soccer
In a physical battle between two closely matched sides, Whitefish’s senior forward Taylor Dorvall scored on a header four minutes into the women’s game, and followed with another marker later in the half. Bigfork’s Brynn Bagley had a shot carom off the top of the Whitefish goal to get the Valkyries within one midway through the second half. The Bulldog defense held off several Valkyrie rushes, while double-teaming Bigfork’s leading scorer, Paeton Gunlock, in the final minutes to secure a 2-1 victory.
Both teams totaled six shots on goal during the match, and were whistled with way too many fouls: Bigfork with 16, and Whitefish with 12.
The Whitefish men looked dominant in the nightcap, with star strikers Jack Oehlerich and Kyler Jonson both scoring in the first half as the Bulldogs took a 3-0 victory over the Vikings at Smith Fields. Ben Dow got the Bulldogs final goal late in the second half, which was held under darkened skies due to a lightening delay earlier in the afternoon.
Whitefish Bulldogs vs Thompson Falls Blue Hawks - Class A&B Soccer
The Whitefish Bulldogs defeated the Thompson Falls/Plains Blue Hawks in an interclass battle on the pitch at Smith Fields in Whitefish. The Bulldog women outlasted a scrappy squad from TF/P, earning a 5-0 conference win. The Whitefish men had little trouble, putting up 8 goals in the first half of a 10-0 drubbing of their Class B foes. The match ended due to the mercy rule, with 15 minutes remaining on the game clock.
The top-ranked Bulldog men are 9-0 on the 2025 season, with a huge match looming on October 7, when they play conference rival Columbia Falls in Whitefish. The match will likely have playoff seeding implications for both squads. We'll be on the sidelines working for clients in our final soccer game of the regular season!
Whitefish Bulldogs vs Hamilton Broncs - Class A Men's Soccer
The Whitefish Bulldog varsity men's soccer team met Class A Southwest foe Hamilton on Saturday, September 6, 2025, in Whitefish. The Bulldogs and Broncs engaged in a high scoring affair, with the home team taking a 7-3 win. The Bulldogs scored two goals in the first five minutes, and led 4-2 at half, following a hotly contest first 40 minutes. Whitefish's dominant front line combo of Kyler Jonson, Jack Oehlerich, Grayson Rembaugh, and Henry Barbieri offered up a lot of shots against the Broncs' young goalkeeper, Maxwell Lant. Lant, just an eighth grader, blocked six of 13 Bulldog shots, and played well against the Dawgs' offensive onslaught.
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Whitefish Women's Soccer vs East Helena-Glacier JV
On Tuesday, September 9, we attended two Whitefish women's soccer matches at Smith Fields in Whitefish. The Whitefish varsity took on a very young East Helena squad and dominated in a 10-0 win. We also caught the second half of the Bulldog's JV match against the Glacier Wolfpack. Just in time for Homecoming Locker photos, enjoy this gallery of over 350 photos that will work perfectly for making locker size prints and for posting on social media. Our image packages can be purchased for as little as $16.50, with downloads possible in just minutes!
Columbia Falls vs Whitefish - 2025 Class A Soccer
ArtwestimageSports.com staff started the 2025 fall high school season on Thursday in Columbia Falls, where the Wildcat men’s and women’s soccer teams battled North A rival Whitefish. The season is scarcely a week old, and all four squads are off to a hot start.
In the opener of our North Valley Rivalry double header, the Wildkat women, with nine returning starters from last year’s club, wore down a young Whitefish side, winning by a score of 3-1. In the men's match, Whitefish had the upper hand in a low-scoring defensive battle, taking a 2-0 early season win in a battle of Class A North powers.
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