Tigers return home after districts semifinals

ST. REGIS – The St. Regis Tigers were eliminated from the district tournament in Ronan after being defeated by Charlo and Two Eagle River.

The Thursday, Feb. 20 game against Charlo had a final score of 19-59.

The team struggled from the start as they had no points in the first quarter. By the half, they saw some improvement as they raised the score to 5-30.

The second half saw the Tigers build up steam and start to improve. As they started to pull back, the slow start took its toll. The boys were able to gain 14 more points in the quarter.

According to Head Coach Taylor Nordby, the team had trouble making the shots they needed to. He felt the team came out not wanting to play and wound up faltering as a result.

“They didn’t play hard and we got pumped pretty hard right off the bat,” Nordby said.

Junior Dakota Wickham was the top scorer for the Tigers as he brought in eight points. There was a three-way tie between eighth grader Brandon Managhan, junior Gibson Lowry and senior Keenan Clute for second best scorer with three points.

Senior Dallas Lewis was also praised for a great game. Lewis was able to make two block shots.

It was a disappointing day for the coach as the game did not meet the goals he had set. The goal was to break 30 points in the game and keep the other team under 50.

While it was disappointing, the outcome was not too much of a surprise. With Charlo standing as one of the top teams, it was expected they would play a strong game.

On Friday, Feb. 21, the team played a consolation game against Two Eagle River. The winner of the match moved on to the next part of the tournament while the loser was eliminated.

Before the game Nordby had high hopes for the game against the Eagles. He said the last time they faced off against St. Regis they lost by two-points. The coach was confident his team had improved since then and hoped to pull off a win.

Nordby was optimistic about the team’s chances against Two Eagle and he hoped it would turn out to be a better day for the Tigers.

The game against Two Eagle River on Friday, Feb. 21, had a final score of 36-62. The game started close but quickly spiraled out of control as the Eagles pulled ahead.

The Tigers took an initial lead as the first quarter ended with a score of 9-7. Things changed in the second quarter as Two Eagle River exploded out to gain a strong lead. The first half ended with a score of 14-29.

The Eagles were still ahead in the second half. The St. Regis guys were able to pull back a little but their 22 points for the half were not enough to beat Two Eagle River’s 33 points.

Wickham continued to shine as the top scorer of the team with 10 points. Lewis was also a strong competitor as he brought in six points.

While the Tigers returned home in defeat, they did so after making it to the District Tournament after a good regular season.