Blue Hawks earn all-state honors

Good news and bad news for the Thompson Falls girls and boys basketball team.

The recently announced Western 7B Conference all-stars list shows both Blue Hawks teams were represented by two players each.

The bad news among the good is that two of those players, one from the boys team and one from the girls team, are seniors and will not be on the T-Falls court next year.

But one from each team will be back for their senior year.

Highlighting the list is Lady Hawks junior forward Ellie Baxter who frequently led the team in scoring throughout the year while providing outstanding floor leadership and rebounding ability.

Joining Baxter on the list is senior forward/guard Maliyah LeCoure. Together they helped the Lady Hawks reach the state finals via a second place finish in the Western B Divisional tournament.

Baxter will return to a solid group of returning players next year in hopes of improving on their 16-10 overall record and subsequent trip to the state finals in Bozeman earlier this month.

LeCoure, a tough, battling forward who spearheaded T Falls’ rebounding and defensive efforts throughout the year, will graduate this Spring, along with three other seniors. In addition to first team 7-B honors, Baxter was named to the All-State squad, while LeCoure was named to the 7-B Conference second team.

The Blue Hawks boys also placed a pair of players on the teams, with senior guard Nathan Schraeder also being named All-State. T Falls junior forward Jesse Claridge was chosen to the Western 7B second team.

Claridge will be back next season, while Schraeder will graduate and move on.

Schraeder, who also had success as a member of the Blue Hawks’ state champion football team, was most often the leading scorer for Thompson Falls as they battled to a spot in the Divisional Tournament.

Claridge, who will be among a solid group of returnees for next year’s boys team, was also a top scorer and rebounder for the 2021-22 Blue Hawks team.