Whitefish boys’ season comes to a disappointing end with loss to Libby

The Bulldogs were hoping for a Western A divisional berth, but instead their season ended on Friday night with a narrow 43-34 loss to the Loggers in Libby.

Friday’s matchup was a play-in game to determine which team would tout the No. 3 seed into the divisional tournament. Whitefish led after three quarters, but a Logger fourth-quarter put Libby ahead in the final stretch. The game came down to free throws and the Loggers hit eight-straight free throws in the final period to win.

Whitefish senior Bodie Smith did all he could to lead Whitefish with a game-high 18 points. Fellow senior Talon Holmquist added 10 points, Jaxsen Schlauch scored 4 and Fynn Ridgeway had 2 points in the game.

For the Loggers, Caden Williams led his team with 16 points, Tyler Andersen had 11 and TJ Anderson scored 8 points to help Libby secure the win.

Throughout the first half, neither team could build much of a lead as Libby had a slight 20-19 advantage heading into halftime. Whitefish’s tough defense put the Loggers on their heels in the third quarter, holding Libby to just four points as the Bulldogs built a narrow 27-24 lead heading into the final period of play. Holmquist helped Whitefish to take the lead as he scored all of the Bulldogs’ 8 third-quarter points.

The game was close down to the final minutes when Whitefish had to start fouling to save the clock as the time wound down. In the fourth quarter, Libby hit nearly all of its free throws and Whitefish was not able to close the gap.

Whitefish ends the season with a 7-11 overall record; Libby has a 14-5 record as the team advances to divisionals.

Whitefish 13 6 8 7 - 34

Libby 14 6 4 19 - 43

WHITEFISH — Bodie Smith 18, Talon Holmquist 10, Jaxsen Schlauch 4, Fynn Ridgeway 2.

LIBBY — Caden Williams 16, Tyler Andersen 11, TJ Andersen 8, Ryder Davis 4, Cy Stevenson 2, Ivan Cano 2.