Shot Doctor

Wally West, left, works with Robert Faoa of Ronan during the Shot Docter basketball camp being held this Thursday and Friday at Ronan High School. West came from Georgia and was the fifth-round draft pick by the Utah Jazz in 1980. West played college ball at Boston College under Rick Pitino.

New Marlins stadium has weird feature

All these new Major League ballparks have gone retro, featuring unique quirks and aspects that make them stand out from the rest. It's certainly better than the cookie-cutter stadiums of the 60s and 70s, although it would be nice if they didn't cost tax-payers an arm and a leg.

The Marlins new stadium takes the cake for a unique quirk. They're installing an aquarium backstop. What?

The two giant aquariums will be located on either side of home plate, but not directly behind it. And no worries on a Faith No More-type situation with a fish flopping around on the ground and gasping for air because the aquariums will be constructed with shatterproof glass.
MLB.com has more details:

"Each aquarium will be constructed using a durable fiberglass structure, and white crystal-clear acrylic panels 1.5 inches thick will be used for the viewing windows. To safeguard it from impact, Lexan — the material used for bulletproof windows — will be installed in front and in back of the acrylic panels."

The aquariums will hold 600 and 450 gallons, but will sadly not be big enough for a real marlin.

This makes me think they should have Grizzly Bears at UM's home stadium.

Morning coffee... June 11, 2010

Boise State has left the WAC conference for the Mountain West Conference, leaving many wondering what other schools will make a move in the college football landscape.

Colorado and now Boise State have made changes, who is next? I can only expect the names of the schools to get bigger and more numerous. Ready for college football to change forever?

Montana college sports

Montana's Drennen finishes seventh in 1,500 meter event at Nationals - MontanaGrizzlies.com
The farthest I've ever ran is to the fridge. Seriously, distance running is the last thing you'll see a journalist doing. Buying a donut at the bakery across the street? Bingo.

Watch them set up the MSU basketball floor on YouTube
Sorry I don't have any Bobcat news at the moment. Forgive me.

Local-ish news

MMA bouts planned in Kalispel tonight - The Daily Interlake
Things you will not see me do... get in the octagon.

National news

South Africa ties Mexico 1-1 in the World Cup opener
For those of you that follow soccer, the WORLD CUP IS HERE!!!!

2010 Polson Minor's League Baseball Champs

Polson Minor's League Baseball Diamonndbacks hold up their trophies and awards after winning the 2010 championship game against the Mariners, 2-1, on June 8th. Coaches: Lonnie Erickson and Ken Druyvestein. Roster: Ethan Tolley, Brenden Schliep, Kyle Druyvestein, Preston Folk, Aaron Hansen, Jayden Schwend, Logan Erickson, Isaac Janeway, Conner Young, Haden Smith.

Should UM and MSU move to FBS?

Huge news for college football, and this is only the tip of the iceberg. Colorado is headed to the Pac-10. Now sit back and watch the Big 12 crumble to nothing. If more teams follow, the Pac-10 could look completely different in a blink of the eye. Also considering USC was just slapped with a two-year postseason ban, things are getting really juicy.

Now lets step back and take a look at how this affects more local teams, namely the Big Sky and the Montana schools. Talk of moving up to FBS is nothing new for Montana and Montana State, however is it the right move if this Big 12 vacuum clears some space in the smaller conferences?

Having seen a program fall flat when they moved up first hand, let me be the first to say that the Montana schools don't want to become the next Idaho. They also shouldn't expect to have Boise State-like success if they move up. I recently read this very well-written article in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle by Will Holden explaining the challenges of the transition from FCS and FBS. I want to show you a few snippets and explain why it would be a bad idea for the Montana schools to move up.

CLICK "READ MORE" TO SEE THE FULL BREAKDOWN

Local players and coaches headed to All-Star Games

This coming from The Daily Interlake, Polson's Staci Benson will play in the Montana Treasure State Jim Patrick Softball Classic this weekend. Benson was the all-state shortstop for the Polson Pirates, who captured the state title this year.

Also, Mission High School's Justin Evans has been named to the 22nd Annual Class B Big Sky All-Star Football Game that will also be played this weekend. Along with Evans, Mission head football coach Pete Hamilton was also named to the coaching staff.

Morning coffee... June 10, 2010

Orenzo Davis from Littleton, Colo. is transferring to Montana State University, after playing junior college ball at Palomar College in California.

Hopefully I can get these morning headlines in each morning to give you a good feel of what's going on in the state of Montana for sports. Also if you run a sports blog, I would definitely love to link it up to this blog. Feel free to shoot me an email about it.

National News

Tom Izzo plans to go to Cleveland - The Daily Interlake
uh-oh Michigan State fans, time to get worried.

Chicago Blackhawks win Stanley Cup - The Daily Interlake 
Watching them celebrate in front of a Philadelphia home crowd was a 12 on the unintentional comedy scale.

Local News

Don't forget this weekend is the Polson Splash Softball Classic, starting Friday, featuring about 450 players and coaches. There are four age groups and each team plays round robin games on Friday and Saturday then they are seeded for a single elimination tournament on Sunday. Games will be played at the Polson Softball Fields.

Catching up with Craig Ochs

As much as it pains me to do this, I'll try and keep good tabs on the Montana Grizzlies and Montana State Bobcats on this blog. As an Eastern Washington University graduate, I have to say that this seems very foreign to me so please forgive me if my occasional sports loyalties bleed through the writing.

The Missoulian just released this feature on former Griz quarterback Craig Ochs. He came to Missoula by way of transferring from the University of Colorado and had two successful years for Montana.

From the story by Bill Schwanke:

Once he completed a stellar, but short, career at Montana, Ochs took a shot at pro football and wound up playing on a championship team in NFL Europe. It looked like it would set him up for at least a roster position with the Buffalo Bills, the team that sent him overseas.

But a major injury to his throwing shoulder produced yet another crossroad. Would he rehab the injury and continue trying to make it in pro football or would he just move on?

Ochs chose the latter, taking a coaching position on Bobby Hauck’s staff at UM. By then he was married and had a young daughter. The job didn’t pay all that well, and Ochs felt the pull to do something that would make the future brighter for him and his growing family.

Back to Colorado he went, originally planning to attend law school. Instead he went through a masters-through-the-law program at the University of Denver, specifically in natural resources law with a heavy natural gas and oil emphasis.

You can read the full story at Missoulian.com, I highly recommend it.

Don't forget about Derek Fisher

This gets me every time when the Lakers are in the Finals. Derek Fisher turns in a clutch performance and the media acts like they've been blindsided. He's been doing this for years! Granted, he has played old and washed-up for most of the season but one thing you can never do in the NBA playoffs is underestimate somebody that has been there before.

Fisher took over in the fourth quarter last night, scoring four clutch baskets to help LA beat Boston 91-84. That gives the Lakers a 2-1 lead in the series and lets them regain home court advantage. He finished with 16 points, second highest to Kobe's 29 on the team.

Now, many people have said he's been playing like a wet suitcase all season. Many people were right, but mark my word, you can always count on Derek Fisher coming up big in the clutch. He's hit big threes, he's caused Sacramento Kings fans to contemplate jump off a building and he's been every bit a staple of the Lakers' greatness as Kobe.

Is he as good as Kobe? Heck no. Not even close. He's a role player for sure. However, Fisher is also a veteran that knows where he needs to be at the right time. When the moment is right, he knows when to pull the trigger. He understands that no matter how terrible he is during the regular season, all it takes is some plays in the post-season to help your team.

That is why, you can never count out Derek Fisher. He'll come back to bite you.

Greetings everyone!

Hello everyone, I wish I could say something classy and inspirational, but I thought that this photo basically ruins the mood for anything like that happening.

My name is Brandon Hansen, I'm the new sports editor for the Lake County Leader. Hailing from Spokane, Wash. I think I'm the only person in the entire eastern part of Washington that isn't a fan of Gonzaga University Basketball.

I am, however, a huge Boston Red Sox fan, as evident by the photo. It started in high school and has quickly gone down a road of baseball debauchery where I find myself constantly refreshing GameCast at work.

So take a look around and feel free to send me any questions via email. I'd love to make this blog as interactive as possible.

Polson girls basketball state, game one

Junior Breanne Kelley goes up for a lay-up in a regular season game against Whitefish.

The Polson girls basketball team lost their first game of the Class A State Girls Basketball Tournament. In a close 44-40 loss, Polson rallied from a 12-point deficit in the fourth quarter to pull within four at the end.
Junior Breanne Kelley led with 13 points and sophomore Riley Kenney added 11 and went 5-for-5 at the free throw line. Senior NIcole Davey had 10 points and grabbed six defensive rebounds.
The Pirates will face Havre, the second seed from the central division, at 2 p.m. today.

All-star rosters

The rosters for the Mission Mountain All-star game have been released. Thirty players from Lake County have been selected to play. The girls game is at 7 p.m. and the boys is at 8:30 p.m. on March 26 at the SKC gym. Boys coaches will coach the girls team and girls coaches will coach the boys teams.
Here are the rosters:

Girls
Team A
1. Mallery Knoll (JR) – Bigfork
2. Lila Cenis (SR) – Bigfork
3. Kyla Mitchell (JR) – Mission
4. Katie McDonald (SR) – Mission
5. Kinley Pope (SOPH) – Charlo
6. Mahalia Hendren (FR) – Arlee
7. Megan Massingale (JR) – Hot Springs
8. Breanne Kelley (JR) – Polson
9. Jonna Grant (JR) – Ronan
10. Jaylen Carpentier (SR) – Two Eagle
11. Mackenzie Woods (SR) – Hot Springs

Team B

1. Catlin Charlebois (JR) – Bigfork
2. Adessa Durglo (JR) – Mission
3. Stephanie Maughan (SR) – Charlo
4. Jaris Kelley (SR) – Charlo
5. Chelsea Allair (SR) – Arlee
6. Randi Arnold (SR) – Hot Springs
7. Nicole Davey (SR) – Polson
8. Sierra Pete (JR) – Polson
9. Heather Earhart (SR) – Plains
10. Alice Van Gunten (JR) – Ronan
11. Adele Frost (SR) – Two Eagle
12. Quinci Paine (JR) – Bigfork

Boys
Team A

1. Trent Thompson (SR) – Plains
2. Jorren Gies (SR) – Mission
3. Keenan Evans (SR) – Bigfork
4. Lael Richmond (SR) – Bigfork
5. Justin Dustybull (JR) – Ronan
6. Kody Morigeau (SR) – Arlee
7. Reiley Winebrenner (SR) – Hot Springs
8. Tim Rausch (SR) – Polson
9. Vince Digialornado (SOPH) – Polson
10. Houston Blevins (SR) – Charlo
11. Chance Firestone (SR) – Charlo
12. TJ Cutfinger (JR) – Two Eagle

Team B

1. Jake Durglo (SR) – Mission
2. Brian Green (SR) – Plains
3. Bryce Benson (SR) – Plains
4. Christian Ker (JR) – Bigfork
5. Evan Jordt (JR) – Bigfork
6. Kevin Wroblewski (JR) – Ronan
7. Kyle Felsman (SR) – Arlee
8. Cody Hoff (JR) – Hot Springs
9. Kyle Bagnell (JR) – Polson
10. John Sansavere (SR) – Arlee
11. James Maestas (SR) – Two Eagle
12. Lucas Black (JR) – Ronan

The Polson girls basketball team plays at 6:30 p.m. tonight against Sidney, who has been ranked third in Class A for much of the season.

Boys state wrap-up

What a weekend.
I ended up driving to Butte for the Polson boys championship game. It wasn’t a bad drive, the weather was nice, but once I entered Butte I could tell something exciting was happening. I stopped for some food and the restaurant was filled with purple. Granted, it was Laurel fans, but still.
Entering the Civic Center was the same way. I got there early, halfway through the third-place game, and already the stands were packed with fans for the championship game. Once that game cleared out and the warm-ups started, the place was loud. Between the bands and the student sections, it was impossible to hear someone ask you a question standing right next to you.

Polson sophomore Tyler Krell works down low against Laurel.

Polson stayed in the game until the very end. The refs didn’t do the greatest job I’ve ever seen calling fouls. I don’t like blaming the outcome of a game on the refs and who’s to say the outcome would have changed, but c’mon.
On the drive back. I passed many cars with a 15 a the beginning of its license plate, heading back home after the game.
I was able to grab three Pirates after school yesterday and ask them about the tournament, so their tidbits will be in this week’s paper.
I have only been to one other state championship game. That was six years ago when my schools boys hockey team made the title game. The Xcel Energy Center, home of the NHL’s Minnesota Wild, was to capacity, and probably beyond. That event is one of the biggest high school sporting events in the nation. It was so sweet and to be there as a student makes things better.

The Xcel Energy Center: home of the Minnesota boys state hockey tournament

Arlee made waves at the Class C tournament, taking fourth. The whole town pretty much shut down to send them on their way and welcome them back on Sunday. I was able to sit down with three of the players yesterday to talk about the tournament and their season. That will be in this week’s paper, but all three were grateful for such an outpouring from the community. As I made my way to the interview, signs and balloons were still hung up.

This weekend will feature another state tournament: the Class A girls basketball tournament. Polson will make its way to Hamilton this week in hopes of coming back with a trophy. The Pirates face Sidney in the first round and will be without Sierra Pete, who suffered an injury during the divisional tournament. I will be traveling down there, so hopefully I will be able to post updates as the tournament progresses. Pete, Nicole Davey and Breanne Kelley sat down with me after a practice to talk about the season and some other random things. That will be in this week’s paper as well.

As the papers are starting to get bigger, I am able to include more stories and at a greater length. If you have any suggestions or ideas, please feel free to send an e-mail to sports @leaderadvertiser.com.

State tournaments, day 2

Jesse Pfau handles the ball in the district championship game against Charlo.

The Arlee boys’ basketball team advanced with a 59-56 win over Culbertson, who had topped the polls for much of the year.
Arlee started out down 22-14 after the first quarter and down five points at the half. That lead was cut to two after the third quarter. With a 16-point fourth quarter, Arlee upset Culberson.
Junior Jesse Pfau led with 17 poins and senior Kody Morigeau added 12. Junior Kasey Bridgewater drained both of his three-point attempts and senior Kyle Felsman led with six rebounds.
The Warriors play at 8 p.m. tonight in Billings against St. Labre, who has been ranked No. 11 entering state.
They beat Power last night 79-52 in the opening round.

Senior Derrick Rathe blocks the ball during the Northwestern A divisional challenge game.

Stats for Polson:
In Polson’s upset over Billings Central, junior Louis Mohr led with 19 and was one of five players to score double digits. Senior Tim Rausch had 13, junior Kyle Bagnell had 12, sophomore Tyler Krell had 11 and sophomore Vince DiGiallonardo had 10.
Polson worked for nine steals, Bagnell had three while turning the ball over 14 times.
The Pirates face Butte Central at 6:30 p.m. today in Butte.

Polson boys basketball, game one

Polson's Louis Mohr drives around Ronan's Marcus Hungerford in the challenge game Monday.

The Polson boys basketball team won its opening game of the Class A boys state basketball tournament by beating Billings Central 65-53.
Polson, the second seed from the Northwest, over took the Rams, the first seed from the east.
Up next, the Pirates will face the winner of the Butte Central/Corvallis game 6:30 p.m. tomorrow in Butte where the winner will make the title game.

The big show

The last two weeks have been so crazy. I had to keep up with the Olympics as well as all 12 Lake County basketball teams during the end-of-the season runs each made.
Polson and Arlee boys basketball teams are competing at the state tournament as I type.
Polson has the height and speed to make a good statement this year. Seniors Tim Rausch and Derrick Rathe seemed pumped when I talked to them after the challenge game against Ronan. They might be an underdog, but a strong one at that. Louis Mohr is just hitting his stride, back from academic ineligibility, and put him next to Kyle Bagnell for a deadly combination.
Speaking of the Chiefs, the first –half of the challenge game was so exciting. Plus, Ronan has so much speed and grit that it showed when they kept going after the Pirates time-and-time again. They forced Polson to take shots and be on their toes.
They play Billings Central in the first round and are in a bracket with Butte Central, ranked No. 5, and Corvallis. Laurel and Columbia Falls, arguably the first and second-best teams in the state, square off in an opening match.
Arlee, on the other hand, is a strong team with depth on its bench.

Many nights during the regular season, upwards of seven players would score a solid-amount of points. Kyle Felsman might be listed at 6-foot on the roster, but the kid can jump. He beat Charlo’s Houston Blevins a couple times to start two games that I saw. He and Jesse Pfau also have speed. The Warriors have been ranked in the top-10 coaches poll all year long and face No.3 Culbertson in the first round. The only other teams to be ranked are Big Sandy and Drummond, both in the other bracket.

Stats and analyzing games can only go so far, though. It is impossible to factor in the will and want both of these teams have. Both battled back from losses to take second in their respective conferences for berths to the big show. The state tournament may be new to both teams, but don’t count them out.

Olympics
WOW. That’s really all I can say. Between all of the exciting hockey, I tried to find time to keep up with the other sports. I know the hockey subjects have been talked close to death, but c’mon. It was good. You couldn’t have asked for a more exciting gold-medal game. Tied by USA with under 25 seconds left IN THE GAME, only to have the NHL’s golden child win the gold for his team.
Such a story book game, minus the USA losing.
I need time to recover, but won’t be afforded it as the NHL didn’t stop and started games the day after the championship game.

I need a nap.

wrestle-mania

This week’s sport section was short on space as I had so much more to put in the B tab. Most of the week’s content is wrestling as an astonishing 42 wrestlers from Lake County make their way to Billings this weekend.
Many have a shot at placing or taking home the crown.
Story lines:
Ronan, as a team, took third last year while Polson has the tools to make a run at a top-three team finish.
Ronan senior Micky Cheff looks to defend his state title from last year
His brother, Ronan junior Toby Cheff, looks for his first state title after finishing third in the past two tourneys
Polson senior Ty Fouty took fourth last year
Ronan senior Cameron Neiss will go for his second state title
Arlee junior Cole Rice is looking for his first state title after taking second last year
Polson senior Kaden Thomas took fourth
Polson senior Brock Picard is going for his third title which would make him the second Pirate to get three state championships. In an interview with the Leader last year Picard said, “Getting two down is a pretty big accomplishment, but I’m not going to settle for two, I’m going to settle for three.”

At the end of the tournament, 1350 matches will have taken place between the three classes.
The brackets came out on Tuesday at http://www.mhsa.org/
Here’s a preview of the match-ups:
Class A- full brackets
98
Polson’s Pat Sumner vs Frenchtown’s Glen Hensley
Ronan’s Lukas Conklin vs Frenchtowns’s Rot Schutter
Polson’s Craig Feistner vs. Butte Central’s Tyler Arelleto

105
Polson’s Lucas Polk vs. Frenchtown’s Carson Wabaunesee

112
Ronan’s Andrew Teigan vs Hamilton’s Michael Ledford
Polson’s Razz Walhood vs. Corvallis’ Levi Gingerich

119
Polson’s Jesse Alfiero vs. Dillon’s Shawn Tezak
Polson’s Drew Fouty vs. Anaconda’s Jake Stock

125
Ronan’s Kyle Lawson vs. Corvallis’ Travis Davis
Polson’s Nick Howell vs. Dillon’s Marcus Osbourne

130
Ronan’s Shelby Grant vs. Sidney’s Lane Houchen
Ronan’s Cameron Neiss vs Glendive’s Cole Bilbrey

135
Polson’s Jacob Young vs. Glendive’s Alex Palmer

140
Polson’s Mike Devlin vs. Glendive’s Dillon Beeler
Polson’s Randy Kelley vs. Laurel’s Tommy Cooper

145
Polson’s Brock Bleazard vs. Glendive’s Kyle Rushing
Ronan’s Dustin Goldsby vs. MCY’s Shane Cooley

152
Polson’s Ty Fouty vs Glendive’s Jake Scheetz
Ronan’s Quenton Denton vs. Laurel’s Dylan Kramer
Ronan’s Micky Cheff vs. MCY’s David Dey

160
Ronan’s Cole McArthur vs Belgrade’s Justin Ricker

171
Ronan’s Tyler Wheeler vs. Havre’s Casey Schlaub
Polson’s Brock Picard vs. Livingston’s Kyle Dirette

189
Polson’s Devin Kamarainen vs. Belgrade’s Austin Rehyer
Ronan’s Toby Cheff vs. Browning’s Wyatt Wippert

215
Ronan’s Colby Robers vs. Belgrade’s Michael Lingo
Polson’s Josiah Clairmont vs. Browning’s Collin Johnson

285
Ronan’s Aaron Yazzi-Whitworth vs. Belgrade’s Clint Robinson
Polson’s Kaden Thomas vs. Livingston’s Kyle Satre

Class B-C- Full Brackets

98
Mission/Charlo’s Dillon Edwards has a bye

105
Arlee’s Austin Rubel has a bye

112
Mission/Charlo’s Russell Schultzvs. Forsyth’s Trey McDonald

125
Arlee’s Logan Lefler vs. Shepard’s Ty Seader
Mission/Charlo’s Scotty Gilleard vs. Forsyth’s Craig Nelson

140
Arlee’s Cole Rice vs. Harlem’s Sheldon Hofer

145
Mission/Charlo’s Jame Petersen vs. Big Sandy’s Lane Martin

152
Mission/Charlo’s Travis Dumont vs. Malta’s Noah Harms

160
Mission/Charlo’s Chad Anderson vs. Choteau’s Own DeBruycker

189
Mission/Charlo’s Joel Lewsi vs. Jake Stewart

215
Arlee’s Cody North vs. Augus Lorenzen
Arlee’s Bryce Norling vs. Choteau’s Taylor Buck

Hwt
Mission/Charlo’s Nick Dinnell vs. Fort Benton’s Rovert Shinaberger

Another wrestling note, courtesy of Anders Blewett

Blewett Wrestling Scholorship

For the 4th year in a row, Alexander (Zander) Blewett, III, a trial lawyer from Great Falls who practices in the law firm of Hoyt & Blewett PLLC intends to award $1000 for the single wrestler in Class AA, Class A and Class B/C who has displayed the best combined qualities of wrestling and academic achievement. The award will go to one senior in each class around the state who best qualifies.
Applicants need not be state champions in order to qualify for this scholarship; if they are state champions, they must still exhibit good academic achievement. The winner of each class must attend a college somewhere in the United States and a check in the amount of $1000 will be sent to that college to help defray the cost of tuition.
For more information about the scholarship, including past winners see the website. To request an electronic copy of the application, contact Jeri at Hoyt and Blewett PLLC in Great Falls by phone at 761-1960. The typed application must be postmarked by March 31, 2010.
In 2008, Polson wrestler Logan Togison won the Class A scholarship.

Trust me, any scholarship is worth applying for. My Big Ten university student loan repayment has started.

As if the state tournament isn’t enough, the same group also puts on an all-state wrestling tournament, to crown the champions in each weight class from all classes.

“Every year three state champions are crowned at each of the fifteen weight classes, and every year the fans leave the state tournament a little unfulfilled. Why is it wrestling fans in Montana are denied the opportunity to watch the best wrestlers in the state, regardless of division, square off against each other? Imagine state champions from Miles City, Poplar or Glasgow tangling with state champions from Flathead, Helena or Billings. How much excitement and energy would an event like that generate for the sport of wrestling? And how enjoyable would it be for the wrestlers themselves to get an opportunity to compete against the best at their respective weight classes and ultimately decide mat supremacy?”

This year, the event will be a one-day, single elimination wrestling tournament that will take place at the Great Falls High School Old Gym on Saturday, February 20, 2010, one week after the All Class State Tournament in Billings (Feb. 12-13).

Eight wrestlers from all four teams in Lake County have been ranked on the Feb. 8 list:
Polson freshman Craig Feistner, 98
Ronan senior Cameron Neiss, 130
Arlee junior Cole Rice, 140
Mission/Charlo senior Jame Petersen, 145
Ronan senior Micky Cheff, 152
Ronan junior Cole McArthur, 160
Polson senior Brock Picard, 171
Ronan junior Toby Cheff, 189

Last year, Picard won the 171 weight class.

More information can be found on their website.

Busy Weeekend

I know I’m a day late with this post, but better late than never right?
This week is one of the busiest I’ve had in a while, with sports Thursday through Saturday.
Trust me, I’m not complaining.
My favorite part of this job is actually going to sporting events, rather than calling coaches on Mondays to hear their account.
A couple key match-ups between first and second place teams happen this week.
Tonight, the Polson girls’ basketball team takes on Columbia Falls. The Pirates sit atop the Northwestern A division at 4-0 in league and 11-2 overall. Columbia Falls is second at 3-0, 8-5.
Tomorrow night, both Charlo basketball teams travel to Arlee. First up is the boys at 5:30. Last time the two teams met, Arlee won. Currently, Arlee (7-0, 12-1) is first while Charlo (6-2, 8-6) is second. Charlo has been on a roll lately, winning its last four games while Arlee has bounced back from its first loss.
Arlee has speed up and down the court while Charlo has size. In the last meeting, Charlo’s size wasn’t able to control Arlee’s quick passing. We’ll have to see what happens this time around.
On Saturday, a full slate of sports is up. Starting at 11 a.m., the Northwestern A divisional wrestling tournament is in Polson.
The newest rankings came out today and Ronan sits at third, as a team, and Polson is fourth after the Pirate’s win over Ronan last week.
Both teams will go up against Columbia Falls, who is unranked, Libby, ranked 10th, and Whitefish, unranked.
Individually, 13 Lake County grapplers are in the top-six of their weight class in all of Class A.
From Polson:
Craig Feistner, first, 98 pounds
Pat Sumner, fourth, 105
Jesse Alfiero, sixth, 119
Jacob Young, fifth, 135
Randy Kelley, sixth, 140
Ty Fouty, fourth, 152
Brock Picard, first, 171
Josiah Clairmont, fourth, 215
Kaden Thomas, fourth, hwt

From Ronan:
Cameron Neiss, first, 130
Micky Cheff, third, 152
Cole McArthur, third, 160
Toby Cheff, first, 189

The consolation rounds start at 3:30 p.m. and the championship matches are at 5 p.m. With the location ideal for Polson and advantageous for Ronan, both teams hope to have the crowd help them.

The B-C divisional tournament is also going on, but in Deer Lodge. Arlee and Mission/Charlo are both unranked as teams.
Austin Rubel, ranked sixth at 105, Cole Rice, first at 140, and Logan Lefler, third at 125, are ranked for Arlee.
Mission/Charlo has Scotty Gilleard ranked fourth at 125 and Jame Petersen second at 145.

Also on Saturday, both Mission basketball teams take on Seeley-Swan in conjunction with coaches vs. cancer. Both Ronan teams take on Libby and the Charlo girls’ basketball team takes on Thompson Falls.

Add the Superbowl on Sunday and things are going to be super busy.

Rules

The MHSA executive board recently met for their MHSA 2010 Annual meeting. There were six proposals on the agenda that had mixed reviews.
The one that sparked my interested was the first one: to allow eighth graders to participate in high school athletics.
Alberton Public Schools propose the following amendment to By-Laws, Article II, Section (5) STUDENT

BELOW NINTH GRADE, subpart 5.1 on page 20 of the current MHSA Handbook:
5.1 No student who is enrolled in a grade below the ninth shall be eligible to participate in an
Association contest, except as noted in Part C or eighth grade students meeting the following
requirements:
a. Eighth grade student(s) may play on a high school volleyball and basketball team. The number
allowed for practice/participation would be those needed to make a scrimmage type situation for
the team. This would be twelve (12) for volleyball and ten (10) for basketball. A track team
without sufficient numbers for a relay team may use eighth grade students only on their relay
teams. (A high school team may have more than one eighth grade student on their team.)
b. Permission for eighth grade participation must be requested by the school and authorization
granted by the Executive Director of the MHSA. All eighth grade player names will be submitted
to the MHSA Executive Director prior to their first practice. Those eighth grade practice
participants would be eligible to play in the varsity contests upon meeting all eligibility criteria and
upon approval granted by the MHSA Executive Director.
c. Eighth grade students allowed to participate by the Executive Director will have eight semesters
of high school eligibility remaining when they enroll in the ninth grade.
The official MHSA waiver form must be used.

Proposed replacement:
5.1 Eighth grade students are allowed to play in any sanctioned MHSA sport in all classes (AA,
A, B, C) if the local school district has approved participation for eighth grade students.
Eighth grade students who are allowed to participate by their local school district will have
eight semesters of high school eligibility remaining when they enroll in the ninth grade.
Rationale:
1. Takes the decision out of the hands of the MHSA Executive Director or Executive Board and places
it at the local level. Each and every district would decide whether to allow eighth grade students the
opportunity to participate.
2. Would allow smaller schools a chance to fill junior varsity schedules.
3. Would help fill smaller wrestling weights for schools.
As Montana’s enrollment numbers shrink, the time has arrived that we allow eighth grade students the
chance to participate. The decision would be local control only.

In Minnesota, seventh graders are allowed to try out for varsity athletics and if they make the team, they play. If they make the JV team, they play. Sixth graders are allowed to participate on the swimming/diving teams since there aren’t any middle school swim/dive teams.
Yea, things can get a little weird when you have seventh or eighth graders riding the bus and spending a lot of time with seniors in high school. My opinion is that if the seventh/eighth grader is good enough to play at that high level at that young of an age, than let them. They are going to get bored at the lower levels they are forced to play at. My brother was that way in baseball. As a seventh grader, he played middle school baseball and rocked it. The next year, he tried out for varsity and was a starter ever since. I was a senior when he was an eighth grader on the varsity team, so it would be weird that he was hanging out with kids my age, but things worked out.
In Montana, the rationale might be a little bit different, as in this proposal is to help fill JV and sometimes varsity teams. Its more about participation than skill. Still, I agree with the proposal.
Currently, eighth graders are allowed to play on basketball, volleyball and track. This proposal aims at wrestling, I think, since football teams are usually full.
There are many wrestling teams that forfeit at the lower weight classes because it can be hard to find a high schooler that is at 98 pounds or lower. At the least, the eighth grader can help fill those lower classes and more kids are able to participate.
North Dakota allows 8th-graders to play certain sports, although contact sports like football aren't included.

Behind this proposal is the declining enrollment in the Class C schools. They have 100 votes and two-thirds is needed to pass the resolution.
The original proposal by Alberton would have extended 8th-grade participation to all classes and all sports, but that was amended by Medicine Lake to apply to Class C schools only, and to exclude football.
That amendment passed, and the schools voted 79-69 to pass the rules change. But because two-thirds of the schools must ratify amendments to MHSA bylaws, the proposal failed.

This means that the rules will not change, but that doesn’t mean that it can’t be studied and brought up again next year.

All of the proposals can be viewed at http://www.mhsa.org/MHSAInfo.htm under the January 2010 meeting.

Mascots

The University of North Dakota Sioux have been long time hockey rivals to my alma matter- the Golden Gophers.
But, if UND’s mascot changed, would it be the same? I don’t know. I can’t imagine having a Gopher-Sioux battle titled anything else. The Fighting Sioux in their black and green gloss jerseys have been a source of bitter feelings but in the last five or ten years, their mascot has been deemed offensive by the NCAA.
Is it?
I have no right to decide if that is offensive to any Native American. Schools in Montana have some borderline mascots and no one, that I’ve heard, has complained.
If UND receives tribal approval before November 2010, they will be able to keep their name.
“In 2005, the NCAA ruled that the nickname was "hostile and abusive" to Native Americans and said the school would be barred from hosting postseason events if they didn't change the name. The Board of Higher Education sued in response to that ruling and the two sides settled in 2007 with the NCAA saying that they could keep the name if they received tribal approval before November 2010.”
UND isn’t a DI school, only its hockey team participates at that level and do so in one of the top-three arenas in the nation. The Ralph Englestad Arena is top notch and when one walks into it, they know they are in the Sioux domain.
Rumor has it that the Sioux won’t be able to use the facilities if they change their name, something that was written into the contract. If they are able to use the building, how awkward is that going to be if the logos are unable to be removed because of the cost?

“It's also unclear how a nickname change would affect the $100 million dollar Engelstad Arena, where UND plays hockey.
When Ralph Engelstad donated the money to build the arena, he ordered thousands of Fighting Sioux logos built into the structure.
There's even a large logo in the granite floor of the concourse. Engelstad said he wanted to ensure the logos could never be removed from the arena.
The arena is operated by a foundation, not the university.”

Last week, North Dakota's Board of Higher Education says the state should ask the Supreme Court to speed up an appeal by Spirit Lake Sioux members who want to keep the University of North Dakota's Fighting Sioux nickname.
A state judge ruled last month that the board can drop the nickname and Indian head logo before a November deadline set in an agreement with the NCAA. The tribal group appealed last week.
Board attorney Pat Seaworth says it normally takes the higher court about seven months to decide an appeal. The board hopes to have a ruling within 30 days.
The board approved the motion 5-3 on Thursday.
UND President Robert Kelley and Athletic Director Brian Faison said they would like the issue solved quickly so the school can pursue entrance into the Summit League.

There however is a loophole here. Since the arena is not owned by the university and is a private arena rented out to the university by The Englestad trust, which as part of the deal it originally struck
with the University during the building process stated that the nickname and logo would not change, UND would
have until the year 2031 when it takes over the rights to the building according to contract, to remove the over 2000 Fighting Sioux logos that are emblazoned all over the arena. However, up until those renovations take place, without tribal approval of the nickname (which seems unlikely at this point) The University of North Dakota, by NCAA ruling would be unable to host any NCAA tournament games.

Onto less serious news:
I went to the Polson-Columbia Falls wrestling meet last night. I was excited to see that 171-pound wrestler Brock Picard was featured in the first match of the night. I haven’t got to take any pictures of him wrestling, so this was my big chance. The match starts and I turned on my camera. When I raised my camera to shoot some shots, the match was over. Picard had pinned the kid so quickly. The Pirates went on to win 54-27, winning all but five weight classes.

There are a couple rivalry games this week. The Charlo basketball teams travel to Hot Springs. I know the girls have a strong rivalry with Hot Springs that stems from volleyball which stems from something else I’m sure. Last time the two teams played, the Lady Vikings lost 40-33 but the boys won 46-38

Polson and Ronan meet up on Friday in a huge match. Both teams have won one match against the other and both boast big names like Cheff, Picard, Neiss, Cheff, Feistner, Starkel, Fouty, Conklin, Thomas and Clairmont.
This is the last week of competition before the divisional meets next weekend. Northwest A (Polson and Ronan) will compete in Polson while the B/C divisional (Mission/Charlo and Arlee) is in Deer Lodge.

Reporter Sasha will be taking the reins on this event as I have the weekend off and will be traveling to Jackson Hole, Wyoming for a hockey tournament. Yes, I get the weekend off but that doesn’t mean I won’t be around sports. I’ve passed through Wyoming on my way to play hockey in Colorado as a freshman in college but I was sleeping/not really interested at the time. This time around, I will have time to sightsee and, more importantly, shop.