'Heads hoops heats up as boys take third at Western B Divisionals

The Copperheads finished up the season strong, as the Anaconda boys came roaring back from a first-round loss to take third place at the Western B Divisional Tournament in Hamilton over the weekend. 

While the Copperheads had a tough road at the start of divisionals on Thursday after a 54-36 loss to Thompson Falls, the 'Heads righted the ship the following day and held off Lincoln County High School for a 40-31 win in a defensive slugfest. 

That was the story of their tournament, as the 'Heads kept the defensive pressure up against Arlee on Saturday, winning 49-44 and sending them to the third-place match where they faced Florence-Carlton later that evening.

That, too, was won on the defensive front – plus a flurry of second-half scoring by the Copperheads, who took home the hardware in the form of the third-place trophy at divisionals with their 52-39 victory over Florence. And that's where their season ended, as only the top two from Western B advance to the state championships.

The Lady Copperheads also faced Thompson Falls in the first round at divisionals, where the Lady Blue Hawks came back from a nine-point deficit at the half to win by five. 

The Anaconda girls turned things around on Friday with a superb 65-48 win over Superior to extend their tournament to Saturday, but Mission (St. Ignatius) brought their season to an end with a 47-40 win over the Lady Copperheads in the consolation semifinal. 

Here are our game summaries from divisionals for the boys and girls, and check back in with the Leader on Friday for a look back on the season with the head coaches of both programs.

T-Falls 54, AHS 36 (boys)

Thompson Falls jumped out to a 16-point lead in the first quarter of their first-round matchup on Thursday, but the Copperheads held their own the rest of the way. Six points from Shane Schalk in the second quarter and five from him and Travis Dye in the third helped fuel a comeback attempt, but the Blue Hawks held the 'Heads off. 

T-Falls 18 14 10 12 54

AHS 2 14 13 7 36

Scoring: Shane Schalk 11, Travis Dye 7, Brody Galle 6, Kyson Patrick 4, Teague Cromwell 3, Ryder Anderson 2, Jesse Jones 2, Treyton Patrick 1.

AHS 40, Lincoln County 31

With their backs against the wall, the Copperheads came out swinging as they took big first-quarter lead in their game against Lincoln County High School (Eureka) on Friday. Eureka came back to within four, but with nine second-half points from Travis Dye – all threes – plus a pair of third-quarter treys from Ryder Anderson, along with four points from Treyton Patrick in the fourth, Anaconda pulled away for the win and advanced to the consolation semifinal.

AHS 10 8 9 13 40

LCHS 2 12 9 8 31

Scoring: Travis Dye 13, Ryder Anderson 11, Brody Galle 8, Treyton Patrick 4, Teague Cromwell 2, Shane Schalk 2, Kyson Patrick 1.

AHS 49, Arlee 44

In their final battle with the Warriors this season, the 'Heads took an early lead with eight first-quarter points from Travis Dye, including a pair of threes, while Brody Galle and Treyton Patrick both were in double-digit scoring in the second half as Anaconda pulled away led by a stalwart defense that limited Arlee to two fourth-quarter points. That win on Saturday afternoon meant AHS would play Florence-Carlton for third place in the division.

AHS 15 7 14 13 49

Arlee 13 14 15 2 44

Scoring: Brody Galle 15, Travis Dye 11, Treyton Patrick 10, Carson Lacey 5, Ryder Anderson 4, Kyson Patrick 2, Reid Maes 1, Shane Schalk 1.

AHS 52, Florence 39

It was all defense the first half, and all offense the second half of Anaconda's Saturday evening faceoff with the Falcons. The 'Heads came alive in the third quarter with five each from Jesse Jones and Travis Dye and four from Brody Galle and Ryder Anderson – plus five more from Dye and three more from Galle and Carson Lacey in the fourth – as Anaconda pulled away for the win and the third-place trophy.

AHS 10 6 20 16 52

FCHS 6 9 15 9 39

Scoring: Travis Dye 16, Brody Galle 11, Ryder Anderson 8, Jesse Jones 5, Shane Schalk 4, Carson Lacey 3, Kyson Patrick 3, Treyton Patrick 2.

T-Falls 48, AHS 43 (girls)

A slow start led to a strong second quarter performance for the Lady Copperheads against Thompson Falls on Thursday as Meela Mitchell scored nine of her 22 in the second stanza. Yet the Lady Blue Hawks came out on fire in the second half and didn't let up on their way to victory and sending Anaconda to the consolation bracket.

T-Falls 5 9 18 16 48

AHS 6 17 10 10 43

Scoring: Meela Mitchell 22, Rain Daniels 9, Quincy Saltenberger 6, Addie Olson 4, Addie Case 2.

AHS 65, Superior 48

This time it was Anaconda that didn't let up as the Lady Copperheads controlled their Friday game against Superior from start to finish. Meela Mitchell went 13-of-16 from the free throw line on her way to 32 points on the night – 20 of them in the first half. Rain Daniels also scored 10 of her 16 in the first half, while Giana Chor put up six points in the fourth to help close out the game.

AHS 17 18 12 18 65

SHS 12 10 16 10 48

Scoring: Meela Mitchell 32, Rain Daniels 16, Giana Chor 8, Addie Olson 5, Addie Case 2, Quincy Saltenberger 2.

Mission 47, AHS 40

Playing in the consolation semifinal on Saturday morning against Mission High School (St. Ignatius), the Lady Copperheads had a strong first-half showing as they went into the break up by seven as Meela Mitchell scored 14 first-half points. Addie Jovanovich added five points in the second quarter, including a three. Yet the Lady Bulldogs were on a mission to come back in the second half, which they did with a furious third quarter, and while Mitchell added seven more in the fourth the damage had been done as Mission eliminated Anaconda from divisionals.

MHS 7 10 19 9 47

AHS 8 16 3 13 40

Scoring: Meela Mitchell 21, Rain Daniels 6, Addie Jovanovich 5, Giana Chor 4, Quincy Saltenberger 4.