By Danny Waldo
For one team, it wasn’t the ending they had envisioned, while for the other, it was the perfect ending to an up-and-down season. The Bozeman Hawk boys and girls basketball teams both found themselves in the State AA championship game on Saturday night, March 12th, in Bozeman, at the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse, and while the prospect for a clean sweep of the basketball titles was certainly a possibility, it was not to be as the Hawk boys were knocked off by defending state champion Billings Skyview 72-56. The girls did their part earlier in the evening, hanging on to defeat a pesky Great Falls High Bison squad 45-44.
Girls Bozeman 45, Great Falls 44 After falling behind 6-0 behind a pair of quick threes to open the game, the Bozeman Lady Hawks slowly and methodically took control of the title tilt, using superior size to and quickness to erase the early deficit and hang on late. The first quarter was a seesaw battle that ended with the score knotted at 10, but in the second Bozeman began to distance themselves from the Bison, racing out to a 20-12 lead. But costly fouls allowed Great Falls back into the game, and Bozeman led just 25-22 at the halftime break. Fouls would quickly become the story of the second half as three Bison starters picked up their third and subsequent fourth fouls, relegating them to the bench. Included in the foul-plagued group for the Bison was University of Montana commit, Nora Klick, who picked up her fourth early in the third period and was confined to the bench until the fourth quarter. The Hawks again built the lead up to nine with just over two minutes to go in the third quarter before Great Falls once again came back, eventually tying the score at 37 a piece with just over four minutes remaining in the game. A rebound and put-back with just over two minutes remaining put Bozeman back on top, and they would not relinquish the lead. However, the game was not decided until junior Amber Tarabochia knocked in 1-of-2 free throws for a four point lead with just seven seconds remaining. Great Falls hit a three with less than one second left to close out the scoring, then there was nothing left to do but celebrate for Bozeman who picked up their first state title since 2010 after a runner-up finish a year ago.
Bozeman High’s Caitlyn Lonergan participates in the 2015 Valley Showcase Bozeman High’s Drew Huse participates in the 2015 Valley Showcase
Boys Billings Skyview 72, Bozeman 56 Cold shooting and porous defense were the main culprits in Bozeman’s unsuccessful bid to knock off the defending state champion Billings Skyview Falcons, and what many expected to be a drag out battle down to the wire ended up being a Falcon rout. Skyview opened up a 30-22 halftime lead and continued to stretch it from there. Bozeman’s Trace Bradshaw had 12 first half points, but the rest of the Hawks combined for 10. Central Arkansas signee Aaron Weidenaar went 1-8 and 0-2 from three-point land for two first half points. Bozeman cut into the Skyview lead and trailed just 36-33 in the third, but Skyview again answered with a quick burst to put them back up top 42-35 heading into the final frame. The fourth quarter was all Billings, as Skyview quickly opened with a pair of threes and raced out to a 13-point lead. Bozeman would no closer than 10 the rest of the way and the Falcons were on their way to their second consecutive state title, and second state title in school history. Meanwhile, Bozeman was denied their first title since 2011, but they did improve on their fourth place showing from a year ago and finished the season with a very respectable 20-3 record. •
