Girls ground Bluehawks as well

The Columbia Falls girls basketball team scored 18 points last Thursday before opponent Thompson Falls even dropped a bucket. From there, the Wildkats cruised to a 71-39 victory.

Kayla DeWit knocked down 23 points and sister Kelsey added 17, as an undersized class B Thompson Falls squad simply couldn't handle the Kats' defense, whether it was a press or a zone. Dani Gilley and Shay Grilley had nine points apiece as well.

Kelsey also had 18 rebounds, two steals, five blocks and five assists and just one turnover. The Kats out-rebounded the Bluehawks 46-26.

"We jumped on them defensively right away," coach Dan Fairbank said.

The Bluehawks pressed most of the game and the Kats broke it often. Columbia Falls had just 12 turnovers.

The win improves the Kats' record to 8-5 overall. The girls now go on a two week road trip against conference opponents. They face Polson on Thursday. Gametime is 7:30 p.m.

"We have to get after their shooters," Fairbank said. "We can't give them second chances and we have to be mobile. They have four of the top 10 scorers in the conference."

The Kats have some scorers of their own. Kayla averages 19.54 points a game and Kelsey averages 13.85 points per game. Kayla is the top scorer in the conference. The girls are now 8-5 overall and 3-0 in conference.