Hawks capture title for 4th year

Taking top honors at the 8-B District Basketball Tournament never gets old, said Thompson Falls head coach Chadd Laws, whose Bluehawks finished in first place Saturday for the fourth consecutive year.

The Bluehawks went into the Polson tournament with a 13-5 overall record and a 7-1 conference record, then chalked up two more victories by defeating Eureka Friday and Troy in the championships Saturday.

In a close conflict Saturday evening, the Bluehawks claimed a 66-64 win over the Troy Trojans.

"It's always good winning districts and putting us in a good position for divisionals," said Dallas VonHeeder, one of four seniors on the Bluehawks team. "Taking four in a row is pretty nice," said Erik Gilbert, who, along with VonHeeder, collected 12 points against the Trojans.

Senior Brian Schenavar led the Bluehawks with 19 points against Troy, including five 3-point baskets for the night.

"Those guys are real warriors." said Laws of his group of seniors, who have been with the team all four years. "They're an inspiration to the team and I can't say enough about our seniors," added Laws, who took over the Bluehawks as head coach in 2000.

However, Brandon Damaskos, a senior, gave a lot of credit to the good support from their underclassmen. "They come through when we get into foul trouble," said Damaskos, who added that they knew Troy would be a tough team to beat.

Though the Trojans came close to taking the championship, Gilbert said they weren't worried. "We stepped up our defense; we settled down and played our kind of basketball," he said.

Troy got on the board first with a layup, but Gilbert seconds later came through with a 3-pointer, then swiped the ball and scored again. The Trojans quickly regained the lead until Damaskos tied the game 7-7. Troy led again, but again Damaskos tied. The game remained close throughout the first quarter, which ended with the Trojans ahead 19-14. VonHeeder hit first in the second, but Troy spread the gap to a 12-point lead before Bluehawk Mike Wood scored, followed by Gilbert, then Damaskos to put T-Falls only four behind.

The Trojans again applied the pressure, but the Bluehawks didn't remain idle and by halftime had a 40-34 lead. The Hawks had a seven-point lead before Troy fought back to a one-point deficit at the end of the third.

Within a minute into the final quarter, Troy took a short lead, but the Bluehawks soon flew ahead and remained in the lead until the last minute and a half, when Troy moved into the front. With 41 seconds on the clock, the game was once again tied, but with 8.3 seconds left, VonHeeder was pushed and made both free throw points for the lead.

Troy had one last chance with 1.5 seconds left in the game, Troy's Brian Hammrich stepped to the foul line, but missed both shots and Thompson Falls had the game and the championship.

The Bluehawks had beat the Lions both times during the regular season, but at districts at Linderman Gym, the Lions started out with a quick lead. The lead went back and forth until midway through the first quarter, when the Hawks took a commanding stretch. Eureka inched its way back to come within two points with just over two minutes in the quarter and with 1:42 remaining in the period, trailed by a mere one point. But with just over a minute left, Schenavar stole the ball and scored. VonHeeder followed suit with a drive up the middle for two. Schenavar led the game with four steals.

The Lions led off the second quarter, but Damaskos came back with a 3-point swish. The Bluehawks widened their lead by 10 points, but Eureka scored four in a row to come within three points and with two minutes left in the first half, the Lions tied the game 32-32. A technical foul against Thompson Falls gave Eureka two of three free throw points and the lead with just over a half of a minute remaining in the half. However, with 26 seconds left, Gilbert was fouled and sank both shots to regain the lead for the Bluehawks. The Lions retook the lead again with a free throw, but with 11 seconds on the clock, Damaskos did the same. The Lions were moving the ball down court when Bluehawk John Buckingham stole the ball and heaved a long one for three points to end the half with Thompson Falls in the lead 45-41.

The score was tied three times in the third, which finished with the Lions in the lead by two points — 64-62. VonHeeder struck within seconds of the start of the fourth, followed by a 3-pointer by Dillon Gerstenberger for a Thompson lead. It wasn't long before the Lions recaptured the lead, which they held until almost the two-minute mark, when Gerstenberger made one from the corner for two points. Eureka trailed by only one point when Schenavar nabbed two-for-two at the foul line. The Lions came within two points, but Thompson Falls held them off for an 83-80 victory.

Gerstenberger finished the game with 21 points, five which were 3-point shots. Damaskos collected 20 points, followed by Erik Gilbert with 14 and VonHeeder with 11.

Thompson Falls' first divisional game is slated for Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at Polson. The Bluehawks take on Valley Christian.

It was Horseman Mitch Thompson that clinched the win over Eureka in the consolation game Saturday afternoon, said head coach John Revier. The Horsemen were down one point with nearly 12 seconds left in the game. Thompson, who has been suffering from ankle injuries for weeks, plowed through the middle and leaped over Eureka's two 6-foot-8 and 6-foot-9 giants to put one in the bucket for the lead. Moments later, the Lions fouled Tanner Colombo, who grabbed both free throw points for a 55-52 triumph and third place.

The Lions started out with a five-point lead at the end of the first quarter, but Plains tied the game 26-26 at halftime. By the finish of the third, the Horsemen led by one. However, the Lions fought back and took a short lead throughout most of the fourth until Thompson scored his only basket of the game.

His younger brother, Trent Thompson, a sophomore, led the team with 18 points. Colombo chalked up three 3-pointers for the night, while Paul Green picked up one 3-point basket, something the team couldn't manage against Troy the previous day. Revier said he was very pleased with their shooting Saturday, particularly their free throws, which reached 88 percent. "That's what really won us the game," said Revier. "They came to play and shot well," added Revier, whose team faces Seeley-Swan Thursday at 8 p.m. at Polson. The Blackhawks finished in second place in 7-B.

On Friday, Trent Thompson and Paul Green were the point leaders with 14 apiece, but that wasn't enough to stop the Trojans from finishing the game with a 51-41 win over Plains.

Troy began with a 16-10 lead in the first quarter. The Trojans had a nine-point lead near the end of the second quarter, but with seven seconds on the clock, Conor Ballantyne, a 6-foot-3 junior, drove through the middle for two points.

The Trojans kept up the press, spreading the gap to a 12-point lead. With just under a minute left in the third, senior Ian Stokes hit for two points, followed by Trent Thompson. On his heels was Colombo with two points from just inside the arc to end the quarter with the Trojans in the lead 36-26.

Brian Green started out the fourth by going to the foul line twice for two points. Troy scored, but Stokes came back with a basket of his own, followed by the 6-foot-7 Thompson, then Paul Green with one from under the basket, putting Plains only four points behind.

But the Plains boys ran out of steam as the Trojans grabbed the win.