Kvelve's Comments: New Year predictions
As another year comes to an end, I want to take the opportunity to clear the air, make amends and make a prediction or two for 2025.
First, it was recently pointed out to me that I mislabeled a picture from a girls' basketball game, and not for the first time. Over the past five years, I have spelled the names of some people wrong, identified the wrong person or omitted others.
Whenever this happens, and I think, in my defense, your honor, the mistakes are relatively rare. I take great pride in accuracy, including spelling names.
There is a really good person who is a member of the Plains VFW who has endured two misspellings of his name in articles I have written. I feel bad to this day for these errors and pledge to concentrate more this coming year on double-checking spelling. I do my best to cover seven schools and their multiple sports teams throughout Sanders and Mineral counties.
It has been a challenging year, as have the last three as I recover from serious heart problems, but I will not use that as an excuse. To anyone whose name I misspelled or who has been incorrectly identified in a photo, I apologize from the bottom of my healing heart.
As for predictions for the coming year, this Bobcat alum will make the bold statement that I feel this is the year of the Cat. This is the year they will win the national championship and defeat the awesome Bison from North Dakota State, 35-32, Monday night in the title game in Frisco, Texas. Tommie Touchdown will get er done!
Locally, I think fans are in for some pleasant surprises in basketball and on the wrestling mats.
There are just three varsity teams in the two counties, Plains-Hot Springs, Thompson Falls and Superior. Of those three, all of which are full of underclassmen, I see, via my crystal ball, that Plains-Hot Springs, the Savage Horsemen, will be a major player the rest of the regular season with a chance to make a run at state team honors.
They have a pair of state-caliber wrestlers in Hot Springs students David Chapman and John Waterbury, along with a host of Plains wrestlers who ruled the roost at the recent Arlee Christmas invitational meet. Six Savage Horsemen who individual titles, including Chapman, Beau Crabb, Matthew Thurston, John Owen Jermyn, Gavin Schrenk and Cody West. They are developing depth up and down the roster and depth equals team points.
Thompson Falls also has a young team which will develop into a solid unit as the season wears on. Look for sophomore Weston Block to have a good year for the Blue Hawks grapplers.
Perhaps the best bet for an individual title among the three is sophomore Turner Milender, a 165-pounder who is off to a solid start this season.
On to basketball, I hope you all kept some extra Velcro on hand to buckle you into your seats as the rest of the season kicks off Thursday (January 2) night in St. Regis for boys' and girls' games between two of the top contenders for team championships in the newly expanded Western 13C conference.
The most hotly contested team title chase in the Bi-county area is the boys 13C, where teams from Noxon, Hot Springs and St. Regis are all talented and off to good starts.
Noxon’s boys may be the front-runner with Ricky Williams and Shane Murray leading the way for a team that is off to a 2-1 record, with the 6-4 Murray’s scoring and rebounding emerging as a major factor.
St. Regis, with a loaded lineup back from last year’s 14C championship, but without their leading player from that team, John Pruitt, who is now playing ball in Billings for Rocky Mountain College, will be in the mix at to the end.
The Tigers field a solid lineup which features guard Conner Lulis, and forwards Barrett Bassette and Kaden Sanders, along with senior leadership in the form of Ayden Rael and Hunter Stollar. St. Regis has roared out to a 4-0 start heading into their game this Thursday versus Hot Springs.
The Savage Heat are also loaded, with seniors Nick McAllister, Weston Slonaker and Calvin Timmer, along with surprise freshman Chase Depoe, sophomore Ben Aldridge and foreign exchange student Pedro Vidotti giving the Heat scoring, rebounding and depth that should serve them well throughout the year.
In the girls 14C title pursuit, Hot Springs, St. Regis and Noxon have all shown signs of competing for a championship, with the Lady Heat from Hot Springs, led by junior forward Kara Christensen and French foreign exchange student Lilia Sapanel, who along with senior Brooke Jackson give the Lady Heat a good shot at a winning season.
St. Regis, led by outstanding senior point guard Shylah Dalka and a host of talented underclassmen who give the Lady Tigers a potent and deep lineup.
In the Class B chase, the Bi-County has three basketball schools, Plains, Thompson Falls and Superior, who could all have teams in post-season play based on early results.
Perhaps most surprising of all is the Superior boys' team, which features a underclassmen-dominated team, topped by 6-5 sophomore Landon Richards and outstanding point guard Gannon Quinlan. The Bobcats are not just young, they are deep and are off to a 3-1 start to the 2024-25 season.
T Falls boys are also likely to be in the hunt this year for post-season play, led by 6-3 senior forward Bryon LeCoure, who routinely leads the team in scoring and rebounding. The Blue Hawks have solid starters and good depth, as they have shown in posted a 3-2 pre-break record.
Plains boys are also a threat in the Western 7B, compiling a 3-1 record behind the scoring of senior Darrn Standeford and the scoring/rebounding of senior Zayden Allen. The Horsemen go into the post-holiday break portion of their schedule trailing league leader Troy, which comes to Plains this Friday night.
In the girls 7B conference competition, Plains sits atop the early standings board with a 3-2 record. The Trotters have been getting outstanding play from a talented group of sophomores including forwards Ava Lawyer and Aubree Butcher, along with the team’s only senior Trystan Larsen as they enter the post-holiday portion of their schedule.
Superior is also showing signs of developing into a contender this year, battling perennial champion Charlo to the end before losing 50-46. They also own a 46-34 home win over Hot Springs and are 1-2 on the year.
Thompson Falls girls, also loaded with talent, including all-conference junior forward Gabi Hannum, are off to a surprising 1-4 start to their season. They will no doubt improve as the season goes along, given their depth and overall talent.
So, there you have it! Happy New Year everyone, and thanks to all of you for your kind words and support during 2024. I really enjoy covering local sports, it has been one of the highlights of my goofy life!