Lady Bulldogs win conference, district championships

Last year, the Lady Bulldogs defeated the Jordan Lady Mustangs twice during the regular season, lost to them at the District 4C Tournament by two points in overtime, and then won a challenge game against them in the Southern C Divisional to advance to state. CCHS also faced Jordan at the Southern C Divisional in 2021 and lost by seven points in overtime.

Fast forward to this year. CCHS beat Jordan both times during the regular season on their way to a district title. In Ekalaka though, it took two overtimes for the Lady 'Dogs to eventually take a 10-point victory.

To say the girls have had a rivalry with Jordan over the last few years might be an understatement.

With a six-team conference this year after some realignment of Montana Class C basketball districts, the Lady 'Dogs had a first round bye at the District Tournament. It seemed fitting they would play Jordan in the second round.

Friday's contest wasn't close though. Lady Blue removed any doubt, defeating Jordan by 23 points. Ekalaka was up 13-8 at the end of the first quarter and outscored Jordan 22-5 in the second. They put up 70 shots from the field and attempted 29 free throws. Jordan shot only 43 times from the field and attempted 18 free throws. CCHS won the rebound battle by 10 and had only 11 turnovers compared to 32 for Jordan. Seniors Tyra O'Connor and Heidi LaBree each shot 5 for 12 from inside. LaBree also knocked down 6 of 7 free throws and O'Connor had a team-high 7 rebounds. In total, four players finished the game with double-digit points for CCHS. Lindsay Lawrence had 22 for Jordan.

CCHS 13 35 47 61

Jordan 8 13 26 38

CCHS: Heidi LaBree 16 pts, 6 rbnds, 5 trns, 2 asts, 1 stl; Tyra O'Connor 12 pts, 7 rbnds, 3 trns, 2 stls; Nasya O'Connor 11 pts, 4 rbns, 1 trn, 2 stls; Codi Melton 10 pts, 2 rbnds, 1 ast, 1 stl; Kendall Shepherd 3 pts, 1 ast, 1 stl; Kendra Tooke 3 pts, 3 rbnds, 1 trn, 4 asts; Nicole O'Connell 3 pts; Kendall Kittelmann 2 pts, 2 rbnds, 1 stl; Brynn Loehding 1 pt, 1 rbnd, 1 ast, 2 stls.

Jordan: Lindsay Lawrence 22; Krystan Hafla 4; Sarah Murnion 3; Skylar Lawrence 3; Brooke Murnion 2; Jaelin Twitchell 2; Javon Dutton 2.

Saturday's championship contest was versus the other team who received a first round bye in the tournament, Broadus. At one point in the third quarter, the Lady 'Dogs were up by 20 points, but the Lady Hawks didn't go away. Broadus battled back and actually outscored Ekalaka in the fourth, 8-17, losing by 10.

CCHS went 68 percent on free throws (13 of 19) but struggled from the field where they shot only 26 percent (19 of 72). Broadus shot only slightly better from the field, 15 of 53 (28 percent). CCHS had 16 turnovers and 11 steals; Broadus gave it away 25 times. Each team had 40 rebounds. Tyra O'Connor had 10 of those boards for CCHS. She finished the game with a double-double as she also had 15 points. Lady Hawk Mia Mader led all scorers in the game with 16 points.

CCHS 13 26 46 54

Broadus 8 20 27 44

CCHS: Tyra O'Connor 15 pts, 10 rbnds, 2 trns, 1 stl; Heidi LaBree 14 pts, 7 rbnds, 3 trns, 4 asts, 2 stls; Nasya O'Connor 12 pts, 6 rbnds, 4 trns, 2 stls; Kendall Shepherd 6 pts, 2 rbnds, 1 trn, 1 ast, 1 stl; Codi Melton 3 pts, 4 rbnds, 3 trns, 5 asts, 2 stls; Kendall Kittelmann 2 pts, 2 rbnds, 2 trns, 3 stls; Kendra Tooke 2 pts, 4 rbnds, 1 trn, 1 ast; Brynn Loehding 3 rbnds.

Broadus: Mia Mader 16; Zeason Schaffer 11; Maddie Zimmer 7; Kendal Stanley 4; Emma Isaacs 3; Abi Krantz 2; Rheanna Schroeder 1.

The Southern C Girls Divisional Tournament is set to take place next week, March 1-4 at Lockwood High School. The Lady Bulldogs will play their first game at 3 p.m. on Wednesday versus Absarokee. A full tournament bracket can be found on page 8.