Polls

At the Charlo and Arlee boys basketball match up last Thursday, I was so impressed by Arlee’s huslte and quickness on the floor. I thought Charlo’s height would be an advantage that the Warriors couldn’t overcome.
I was wrong.
The crisp passes and hustle made Arlee hard to beat. Charlo used its height but could only do so much.

This week I will hit up Ronan wrestling against Libby tonight. The Chiefs are a pretty solid team. Some teams that I have watched only have solid middle-weight wrestlers. The Chiefs are strong the whole way through with only a few holes here and there.
Polson and Ronan wrestling teams are heading to Missoula this weekend while Arlee and Mission/Charlo head to the Choteau tournament. Both competitions are top-notch, featuring the same, if not better, competition than the state tournament.
Hard to believe, but it is three weeks away from divisional wrestling tournaments. Crunch time.
Polson and Ronan won’t have to travel far, as its tourney is in Polson on Feb. 5/6. Arlee and Mission/Charlo have a haul, as the tourney is in Deer Lodge the same weekend.
The State tournament is Feb 12-14 in Billings.
In my very untrained opinion, there are at least a handful of wrestlers from Lake County that will be making appearances in Billings.
In the poll that came out yesterday, Ronan is third and Polson is ninth in the Class A coaches poll. Polson’s Brock Picard is first at 171 and Ronan’s Toby Cheff is first at 189.
At 98 pounds, Polson’s Craig Feistner is third and Ronan’s Lukas Conklin is sixth. I’ve seen these two wrestle each other and its a good match up.
Ronan’s Cameron Neiss is first at 135 while teammate Dilan Starkel is fourth at 140.
Ronan’s Mickey Cheff is second at 152 and Polson’s Ty Fouty is fourth in the same weight class.
Chief Cole McArthur is second at 160 while Polson’s Josiah Clairmont is fourth at 215. Pirate Kaden Thomas is third at heavyweight.

Also, baseball player Mark McGuire admitted he used steroids. Duh. Have you not seen pictures of his progression? He didn’t hit a natural growth spurt, I know that much.
This sparked another round of debates as to whether his records, and those that were obtained by juicers, should stand and if they should be allowed in the hall of fame.
My answer is no to both.
They cheated. Plain and simple. It wasn’t a life or death situation where some crazy man tied them to a chair and told them to take steroid or their offspring and loved ones would die.
They chose to inject themselves and they should pay the price. Yes, I acknowledge that some doctors may have told the players the substance was extra protein or vitamins or something like that. But, really? You start sprouting muscles overnight like the Hulk and you don’t question it?
It was, and still is, illegal in baseball.
Yes, McGuire was part of a baseball revival after the spotty 1994 season. Yes, people started to care about his home-run record chase.
But it was a lie.
When I heard of the rumors of steroids, my reaction was the same as when I found out Santa/Easter Bunny/Tooth Fairy wasn’t real. I was mad that I was lied to and made a fool of. In my opinion, that is what McGuire, Bonds and everyone else did. They made fools of their fans.
I, for one, don’t like that.
Baseball is cracking down on steroids, a good first step, but if they really want to get rid of the scandal, don’t allow it. That may seem a bit harsh and drastic, but give them an inch, they will take a mile. Allow only certain kinds or some players to sneak through and soon everyone will be finding a loophole.