Blue Hawks claim Western 7B title

For the Thompson Falls boys’ basketball team, it was the first leg of what they hope will become a longer journey.

And for the T Falls’ Lady Hawks, it was a setback in their quest, but not an interruption of their trip as they fell to tourney host St. Ignatius 53-51. 

The T Falls boys head to the Western B Division tourney with a number one seed, while the Lady Hawks head to Hamilton as the 7B’s number two seed. 

The Blue Hawks put a stamp on the Western 7B District tournament this past weekend with a convincing 67-43 win over the Troy Trojans in St. Ignatius Saturday night. 

Coach Jake Mickelson and crew swept through the regular season 7B schedule without a loss (10-0) and were the clear favorites to win the district’s number one seed at this coming weekend’s Divisional tourney in Hamilton. 

T Falls wasted no time establishing the tempo of the game as they used their athleticism to take a 16-7 lead after the first quarter of the title game. 

The Hawks outscored Troy 19-15 in the second quarter, giving them a 35-22 halftime lead. 

Thompson Falls kept up the pressure on both ends of the court in the second half, holding the Trojans to 21 points over the final two quarters while adding 32 to their total. 

The win moved the Blue Hawks to 16-3 on the year. 

Senior forward Owen Doyle led the T Falls offense with a game-high 24 points, including four three-pointers. He also snared six rebounds for the Blue Hawks. 

Two other T Falls players scored in double figures, with guards Sam Burgess contributing 13 points and senior Kaiden Robins adding 10. 

Bryson LeCoure, the Hawks standout senior forward, led the team in rebounding with seven to go with his eight points.  Thompson Falls outrebounded Troy 41-31 on the night. 

Carson Orr topped Troy in scoring with 20 points.  The loss dropped Troy to 9-6 overall.  Both teams advance to this weekend’s Western Divisional in Hamilton. 

In the girls 7B title game, Thompson Falls, the number one seed coming into the tournament, fought their way to a 17-13 win before a big crowd at Mission High School. 

The Lady Bulldogs battled back in the second quarter, outscoring T Falls 12-8 to erase the T Falls lead and knot the score at 25-25 at halftime. 

The back-and-forth struggle continued in the second half, with St. Ignatius outscoring T Falls 14-13 in the third quarter, giving them a precarious 39-38 lead heading into the final quarter of regulation and leaving fans on the edge of their seats in anticipation. 

Despite a game-high 27 points from standout senior forward Addy Deal, St. Ignatius was able to add one point to their lead in the final eight minutes of play, then hold on for the two-point “upset”.   

The loss dropped T Falls to 13-7 on the year, while the win lifted the Lady Bulldogs to 16-4.  The two teams finished the regular season 7B schedule with 9-1 records, including a split of their two regular season games, both of which were decided by six points. 

Cora Matt led St. Ignatius with 15 points, while teammates Sheadon Kain and Kason Page scored 13 and 10 points respectively. 

Both T Falls teams face teams from Anaconda in the Western Division tourney this weekend in Hamilton. 

    Thompson Falls forward Owen Doyle drives toward the basket during Western 7B District playoff action this past week in St. Ignatius. Phot (Tracy Scott, Valley Press)
  

    Thompson Falls senior forward Bryson LeCoure breaks for the basket during the Blue Hawk championship run in the Western 7B district tournament this past week in St. Ignatius. (Tracy Scott/Valley Press)
  

    Blue Hawk forward Addy Deal stretches for a rebound during the T Falls District 7B playoffs this past weekend in St. Ignatius.  (Tracy Scott, Valley Press))
  

    Thompson Falls senior forward Annalise Fairbank snares a rebound during the Lady Hawks game versus St. Ignatius during this past week's District 7B postseason tourney in St. Ignatius.  (Tracy Scott, Valley Press)
  

    T Falls junior Gabit Hannum goes up for two during the Lady Hawks game in this past week's District 7B playoff tourney versus Mission.  (Tracy Scott, Valley Press)