The winning coaches are as follows:
- SOCCER=BOYS--WHITEFISH--GIRLS--WHITEFISH--SPEECH--COL FALLS--DRAMA--LAUREL
- SOFTBALL=COLUMBIA FALLS; GOLF--BOYS=POLSON; GIRLS=POLSON. BOYS=EMERSON,H; GIRLS=LEWIS,K
- VOLLEYBALL--BILLINGS CENTRAL; FOOTBALL-FERGUS; TENNIS=GIRLS=MILES CITY; BOYS=POLSON
- TRACK=BOYS=CORVALLIS; GIRLS=CORVALLIS; BBALL--BOYS--DILLON--GIRLS--BIL CENT
- X-COUNTRY--BOYS--BROWNING--GIRLS--HARDIN--WRESTLING--LAUREL--BASEB--FLORENCE
CLASS 'A' HOME
Subscribe to our NewsletterSOCIAL MEDIA SITES FOR MT 'A' SPORTS
TWITTER= @nwmta
FACEBOOK= #nwmta
2024-25 'A' SCHEDULES
2024 FALL 'A' SPORTS SCHEDULES
BIGFORK
https://bigforkhighschool.bigteams.com/
COLUMBIA FALLS
https://www.cfhighschool.org/athletics/team-schedules-by-sport
LIBBY
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pk85dQxP6e9y8-yNO1WOqft_1E4m5cHD1s1RfucazX0/edit?gid=2#gid=2
POLSON
https://www.polson.k12.mt.us/polson-high-school/athletics/teams/fall-sports/index
RONAN
https://www.ronank12.edu/activities/index
THOMPSON FALLS/PLAINS SOCCER
https://www.thompsonfalls.net/blue-hawk-athletics
WHITEFISH
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uQ6RLA7j-9PSGfFdXAmZzZfwQTpNjp0mWR7NBb6ALUo/edit#gid=1513515121
BUTTE CENTRAL
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BlieHAC_QQDaRxTGmu2-ve43AckuR_gR6FsCrzdOng8/edit?gid=0#gid=0
CORVALLIS
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eEyKVaeQj3RwhqjAWxNIn8zJFPd44oiIk3noKgoi6fw/edit#gid=0
DILLON
https://docs.google.com/file/d/1DnjR-eCXxs5XXLIpSA4lCmnqKzNyB8nn/edit?filetype=msword&pli=1
FRENCHTOWN
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/10j9PY5PGqMb4bjCnTKeeThg1BR5PARHYmKAMywlDqH4/edit?gid=133880920#gid=133880920
HAMILTON
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eKrkQSbYsImPameZCjiodiuj-MLvFudwT7TEh2YuGoQ/edit?gid=0#gid=0
LOYOLA GIRLS SOCCER
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RX4LtvoSZMZR3GgJuy3nZ4D2xpK4o1zJviPf1Hdpmow/edit?gid=0#gid=0
STEVENSVILLE
https://www.stevensvilleschools.org/high-school/#
BILLINGS CENTRAL
https://billingscatholicschools.org/admissions/athletics-clubs-and-activities/
HARDIN FB
https://docs.google.com/document/d/12ppJXSFWLRfH3zRDRvjmB10K5-nJi7GJk2ala_dtQpM/edit
HARDIN VBALL
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TOgtrOiLJKIaWVssbGF70XGA5pwcXBuTDPvF765zsuA/edit
EAST HELENA
https://www.ehps.k12.mt.us/Page/2071
LAUREL
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Yb17Y06ZZNNnuH3FGa-eD7sR4gDUPQCRQhuTMLdBV-Q/edit?usp=sharing
Here are Lockwood's Schedules.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YWmni3FgJemlB3nWXRsZLt7L1fZ8GEz6TakAHspPli0/edit?usp=drive_link
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1QSYd4ZuVOmQB9OLsEvbQYZ6I9aei6z5uV8QLVLG3fi0/edit?usp=drive_link
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1KpKGxPqycg20_qSISYATUA2vHj2WK_ihinCCCWXrvi4/edit?usp=drive_link
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eAp9GdFUxC_AR0rwubLlse_ZU7pouEcAiZ7CFLcT9OE/edit?usp=drive_link
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/15IiDQMq8THu6KJEVz5Ty4gStMQb36LiHyWGmjhVbWp8/edit?usp=drive_link
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1qwakt5TUGNNjaP-E79ehej7izs42wxc3BLu3n-OuTVQ/edit?usp=drive_link
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-bKHgEHX-JpE5zsxU7BfM-hFse2Z1e-yQRmVJuntrdM/edit?usp=drive_link
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1V-POnlD2xjdzNp9zewNQGwCacLrrjERE9ytNUYk_LT0/edit?usp=drive_link
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1OzdNvBqxgLAi_T9jltDkPtbGR51bKiexaqOxi1Pdk_U/edit?usp=drive_link
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1g7SvxaEZPeQgZis5CbqiprdrDAkRbH5owOV5t41oox0/edit?usp=drive_link
LONE PEAK SOCCER
https://www.bssd72.org/events?start_date=2024-08-01&end_date=2024-08-31§ion_ids=235977,235977&view=list-month
PARK FB
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1msT5aKIqbeKi_y1gp_TjAcvM_taT9XkSQPI3lxIqcVk/edit?gid=818621826#gid=818621826
PARK SOCCER
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1X5H_bA6fsQV-rBfDy0ptoOZuXDDJDbMOb6birfVq7g4/edit?gid=1903949635#gid=1903949635
PARK VBALL
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1O_-7_tW10wRCSRTal1-z-8wwXnCXoHOHP74xZAutou4/edit?gid=0#gid=0
FERGUS
https://www.lewistown.k12.mt.us/district/calendars
GLENDIVE
https://www.glendiveschools.com/o/dchs/events?start_date=2024-08-01&end_date=2024-08-31§ion_ids=&filter_ids=&search=
HAVRE
https://hhs.blueponyk12.com/hhs-activities-schedules
MILES CITY
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1KOV3SgUMk9SAlrxb_P0uFp_bcrTGp9NbfQx17PvBr9g/edit
SIDNEY
https://www.sidneyps.com/page/calendar-schedules
HARDIN
HS FB Schedule 24 - Google Docs
UPCOMING EVENTS
Contact info
email scores= tjw@centurytel.net
text scores to= 406-471-2263
DUE TO COVID VIRUS AND WEATHER, FOLLOWING SCHEDULES MAY VARY
WEEK OF 8-26-24
FOOTBALL |
Friday, August 30, 2024 |
BIGFORK-POLSON* |
COLUMBIA FALLS/FRENCHTOWN |
STEVENSVILLE/LIBBY |
BUTTE CENT-RONAN |
HAMILTON/WHITEFISH |
CORVALLIS/BROWNING |
E HELENA-FERGUS |
MILES CITY/LOCKWOOD |
HAVRE-HARDIN |
BILLINGS SENIOR/PARK |
BILLINGS CENTRAL/GLENDIVE |
LAUREL-SIDNEY |
SOCCER |
Thursday, August 29, 2024 |
BIGFORK/CORVALLIS |
FRENCHTOWN/STEVENSVILLE |
Friday, August 30, 2024 |
WHITEFISH-LOCKWOOD |
BILLINGS CENTRAL-HAMILTON |
STEVENSVILLE/ E HELENA |
COLUMBIA FALLS=LAUREL |
Saturday, August 31, 2024 |
LAUREL/HAMILTON |
COLUMBIA FALLS-LOCKWOOD |
WHITEFISH-BILLINGS CENTRAL |
THOMPSON FALLS/PLAINS/LONE PEAK |
PARK-POLSON |
VOLLEYBALL |
Friday, August 30, 2024 |
WESTERN 'A' TIP TRNY @ FRENCHTOWN |
EASTERN TIP-OFF TRNY @ E HELENA |
Saturday, August 31, 2024 |
WESTERN 'A' TIP TRNY @ FRENCHTOWN |
EASTERN TIP-OFF TRNY @ E HELENA |
X-COUNTRY |
Friday, August 30, 2024 |
LIBBY |
PARK |
'A' FALL SPORTS PREVIEW
BIGFORK
https://bigforkeagle.com/news/sports/
.
BROWNING
COLUMBIA FALLS
https://hungryhorsenews.com/news/sports/
WHITEFISH
https://whitefishpilot.com/news/sports/
FERGUS
https://www.lewistownnews.com/sports/
GLENDIVE
https://www.rangerreview.com/sports/
SIDNEY
https://www.sidneyherald.com/sports/
BEST OF PREPS--FALL 2023
'A' FALL 2023 SCHEDULES
BIGFORK VIKINGS/VALS
https://bigforkhighschool.bigteams.com/
BROWNING INDIANS
https://bps.k12.mt.us/en-US/high-school-athletics-ebd5f41c/cross-country-c6478e72
COLUMBIA FALLS CATS/KATS
https://www.cfhighschool.org/athletics/team-schedules-by-sport
LIBBY LOGGERS
POLSON PIRATES
Index | Fall Sports (polson.k12.mt.us)
RONAN CHIEFS/MAIDENS
https://www.ronank12.edu/activities/index
WHITEFISH BULLDOGS
https://whs.wsd44.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=192522&type=d&termREC_ID=&pREC_ID=1060584
BUTTE CENTRAL MAROONS
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ohJ_9_x313u01oGeq3iR--ZfjfPj4Jwxo7QqmWX_dFQ/edit#gid=0
CORVALLIS BLUE DEVILS
DILLON BEAVERS
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dlHHMmC_NlIJeyL2FR8jXChYPQbPDtv4/edit
FRENCHTOWN BRONCS
https://www.ftsd.org/page/athleticshttps://www.ftsd.org/page/athletics
HAMILTON BRONCS
https://www.hsd3.org/o/hhs/page/team-pages-info
STEVENSVILLE YELLOWJACKETS
https://www.stevensvilleschools.org/high-school/#
BILLINGS CENTRAL RAMS
EAST HELENA VIGILANTES
https://www.ehps.k12.mt.us/domain/298
HARDIN BULLDOGS
LAUREL LOCOMOTIVES
https://www.laurel.k12.mt.us/departments/activities/schedules
LOCKWOOD LIONS
https://www.lockwoodschool.org/apps/departments/?show=ATH
PARK RANGERS
https://www.parkhigh.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=2057841&type=d&pREC_ID=2198683
FERGUS GOLDEN EAGLES
https://fhs.lewistown.k12.mt.us/athletics/golden-eagle-athletics
GLENDIVE RED DEVILS
https://www.glendiveschools.com/o/dchs/athletics?filter_ids=37990
HAVRE BLUE PONIES
https://hhs.blueponyk12.com/hhs-activities-schedues
MILES CITY COWBOYS/GIRLS
SIDNEY EAGLES
CHANGES TO 'A' SPORTS
REALIGNMENT
2023 'A' COLLEGE SIGNEES/COMMITMENTS
2023 'A' COLLEGE SIGNEES/COMMITMENTS
CLASS 'A' SCHOOL WEBSITES
BIGFORK VIKINGS/VALS
https://bigforkhighschool.bigteams.com/
BROWNING INDIANS
https://www.bps.k12.mt.us/home
COLUMBIA FALLS CATS/KATS
LIBBY LOGGERS
https://www.libbyschools.org/lmhs/
POLSON PIRATES
https://www.polson.k12.mt.us/polson-high-school/
RONAN CHIEFS/MAIDENS
https://www.ronank12.edu/domain/25
WHITEFISH BULLDOGS
BUTTE CENTRAL MAROONS
https://buttecentral.org/high-school/
CORVALLIS BLUE DEVILS
https://corvallisschools.org/corvallis-sports/
DILLON BEAVERS
FRENCHTOWN BRONCS
https://www.ftsd.org/domain/22
HAMILTON BRONCS
STEVENSVILLE YELLOWJACKETS
https://www.stevensvilleschools.org/high-school/
EAST HELENA VIGILANTES
https://www.ehps.k12.mt.us/domain/298
FERGUS GOLDEN EAGLES
https://www.fergus.lewistown.k12.mt.us/5/home
HAVRE BLUE PONIES
https://www.blueponyk12.com/domain/25
LOCKWOOD LIONS
http://www.lockwoodschool.org/
LONE PEAK BIGHORNS
https://www.bssd72.org/athletics?filter_ids=224107,224201
PARK RANGERS
BILLINGS CENTRAL RAMS
https://billingscatholicschools.org/
GLENDIVE RED DEVILS
https://www.glendiveschools.com/o/dchs
HARDIN BULLDOGS
http://www.hardin.k12.mt.us/hardinhighschool_home.aspx
LAUREL LOCOMOTIVES
http://www.laurel.k12.mt.us/1/Home
MILES CITY COWBOYS/GIRLS
https://www.milescityschools.org/athletics--activities.html
SIDNEY EAGLES
https://www.sidneyps.com/domain/411
WINTER 2021-22 ACADEMIC ALL-STATE
LOCKWOOD LIONS
Name Year GPA Sport
Tailey Harris FR 4.0 GBB
Taysha Little Light FR 3.88 GBB
Alexis Potter FR 4.0 GBB
Keauna Rafferty SO 3.76 GBB
Irati Zunzundegui SO 4.0 GBB
Dani Jordan FR 3.83 GBB
Lanee Casterline FR 4.0 GBB
Adeline Rich FR 4.0 GBB
Page Kuntz FR 4.0 GBB
Gracie Kuntz SO 4.0 GBB
Karysn Cookman FR 3.63 GBB
Laney LaRouche FR 3.88 GBB
Dalton Hinebauch FR 3.88 WR
Andrew Strever FR 3.63 WR
Dylan Byrd JR 4.0 WR
Noah Conklin SO 4.0 WR
Holter Reisinger JR 4.0 WR
Nathan Arthur JR 4.0 WR
Brian Escobar Silva SO 4.0 WR
Elizabeth Bieber FR 4.0 WR
Hailey Unrein FR 3.88 WR
Kinley Crane FR 3.57 WR
Tyce Casterline SO 3.95 BBB
D’Kane Grant SO 3.92 BBB
Jey Hofer JR 3.58 BBB
Jaren Knows His Gun JR 3.77 BBB
Kiowa Laverdue SO 4.0 BBB
Matthew Lopez FR 3.57 BBB
Jude Barnett FR 3.88 BBB
Zy Zilkoski FR 3.5 BBB
Alexa Warner SO 3.71 Cheer
Gwynivere Cusak JR 3.53 Cheer
Hailey Barta SO 4.0 Cheer
Isabelle Desmaris FR 3.75 Cheer
Isabelle Jodry SO 3.86 Cheer
Lillian Zahn FR 4.0 Cheer
Rylee Sannon SO 3.95 Cheer
Saryn Sorrels FR 4.0 Cheer
MILES CITY COWBOYS/GIRLS
Name |
Year |
GPA |
Sport |
Dalton Tvedt |
12 |
3.6665 |
WR |
Jackson Miller |
11 |
3.5237 |
WR |
Deegan Tvedt |
09 |
3.7616 |
WR |
2021-22 SPORTS CHAMPIONS
2022 'A' COLLEGE SIGNEES/COMMITMENTS
2022 'A' COLLEGE SIGNEES/COMMITMENTS
UPDATES
RODOLPH, AUDETTE STEVENSVILLE NW COLLEGE (WY) SOCCER
WAGNER, GRACE LAUREL CARROLL SOCCER
STAHLMAN, LEXIE LAUREL WILLISTON SOFTBALL
FALL 2021 FALL COACHES OF THE YEAR
WINTER SPORTS COACHES OF THE YEAR
Wrestling: Jeff Thompson, Kalispell Flathead (AA); Guy Melby, Sidney (A); Jory Casterline, Glasgow (B); Ty Taylor, Circle (C); Thompson, Flathead (Girls).
Boys basketball: Kevin Morales, Billings Skyview (AA); Jim Stergar, Billings Central (A); Josh Stewart, Lodge Grass (B); Jason Wolfe, Scobey (C).
Girls basketball: Katie Garcin-Forba, Helena Capital (AA); Dustin Kraske, Havre (A); Kim Finn, Big Timber (B); Cassie Pimperton, Fort Benton (C).
Boys swimming: Julia Shannon, Helena (AA); Robyn O'Nan, Billings Central (A).
Girls swimming: Ed McNamee, Great Falls (AA); O'Nan, Billings Central (A).
WINTER 2020-21 'A' ACADEMIC ALL-STATE
RONAN
NAME | YEAR | GPA | SPORT |
MCCREA, MADELINE | 2021 | 4.125 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
COFFMAN, DANIELLE | 2021 | 4.00 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
HEINER, OLIVIA | 2021 | 4.00 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
ULUTOA, LEINA | 2021 | 4.00 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
LUNCEFORD, JAYLEA | 2021 | 3.50 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
CORDOVA, LAREINA | 2021 | 3.571 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
WIRZ, ALEXIS | 2021 | 3.571 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
CORDOVA, MARGARET | 2021 | 3.857 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
FETIO. LU;OE | 2021 | 3.857 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
TATUKIVEI,ADRIANNA | 2021 | 3.50 | GIRLS BASKETBALL |
WEBSTER, DORTHY | 2021 | 3.75 | GIRLS BASKETBALL MGR |
SOPKE, KRISTIANA | 2021 | 4.286 | WINTER CHEER |
DECKER, AALIYAH | 2021 | 4.143 | WINTER CHEER |
FUSSELL, HANNAH | 2021 | 4.00 | WINTER CHEER |
RUBEL, KAMBRIE | 2021 | 4.167 | WRESTLING MGR |
WELKER, ASHLEY | 2021 | 4.00 | WRESTLING MGR |
DECKER, BEAUDEAN | 2021 | 4.00 | WRESTLING |
YOUNG, NATHANIEL | 2021 | 4.00 | WRESTLING |
CHEFF, CALAB | 2021 | 3.75 | WRESTLING |
COTE, SIERRA | 2021 | 3.625 | WRESTLING MGR |
KENELTY, JAMES | 2021 | 3.625 | WRESTLING |
FISHER, TRISTAN | 2021 | 3.625 | WRESTLING |
DECKER, AALIYAH | 2021 | 4.143 | SPEECH/DEBATE |
GAUTHIER, LEXIE | 2021 | 4.00 | SPEECH/DEBATE |
CANTLON, ISAAC | 2021 | 4.00 | SPEECH/DEBATE |
SCHOCK, DYLAN | 2021 | 4.00 | SPEECH/DEBATE |
ORTEGA, VICENTE | 2021 | 3.667 | SPEECH/DEBATE |
SANDOVAL, SARIEL | 2021 | 3.75 | SPEECH/DEBATE |
WURSTER, MARGARET | 2021 | 3.667 | SPEECH/DEBATE |
FROST, JASLYN | 2021 | 3.857 | SPEECH/DEBATE |
GAUTHIER, LEXIE | 2021 | 4.00 | BOYS BASKETBALL MGR |
COFFMAN, SAGE | 2021 | 3.60 | BOYS BASKETBALL |
COUTURE, RUBEN | 2021 | 3.833 | BOYS BASKETBALL |
LARIOS, ISABELA | 2021 | 3.60 | BOYS BASKETBALL MGR |
PRETTY ON TOP, DILLON | 2021 | 3.857 | BOYS BASKETBALL |
ALFORD, TROY | 2021 | 3.75 | BOYS BASKETBALL |
TONASKET, ELIJAH | 2021 | 3.625 | BOYS BASKETBALL |
TONASKET, MARLO | 2021 | 3.714 | BOYS BASKETBALL |
MCCREA, ROBERT | 2021 | 4.000 | BOYS BASKETBALL |
CORVALLIS
First Name | Last Name | Term 3 | Sport |
Landen | Conner | 4 | Boys Basketball |
Jacob | Loran | 3.571 | Boys Basketball |
Bryce | Mayn | 3.75 | Boys Basketball |
Aaron | Powell | 3.571 | Boys Basketball |
Mitchell | Spinetta | 4 | Boys Basketball |
Cole | Trexler | 3.5 | Boys Basketball |
Chase | Tucker | 3.571 | Boys Basketball |
Luke | Wolsky | 3.8 | Boys Basketball |
Abigail | Buoy | 3.625 | Cheer |
Brooklyn | Dowd | 3.857 | Cheer |
Rylee | Herbstritt | 4 | Cheer |
Kiana | Rainey | 3.625 | Cheer |
Madeline | Gilder | 3.5 | Girls Basketball |
Tiffany | Ioder | 4 | Girls Basketball Manager |
Jenna | Jordan | 4 | Girls Basketball |
Tahnee | Lewis | 3.857 | Girls Basketball |
Haley | Lords | 4 | Girls Basketball |
Brooklyn | Powell | 4 | Girls Basketball |
Nyssa | Schairer | 4 | Girls Basketball |
Tylin | Sorensen | 4 | Girls Basketball |
Kaitlyn | Weidow | 3.75 | Girls Basketball |
Clay | Barcus | 4 | Wrestling |
Nate | Davis | 3.857 | Wrestling |
Ben | Holtzen | 3.6 | Wrestling |
Sean | Stone | 3.857 | Wrestling |
MILES CITY (BASKETBALL COMING SOON)
Name |
Year |
GPA |
Sport |
Ryan Paxson |
9 |
3.5236 |
WR |
Dalton Tvedt |
11 |
3.7141 |
WR |
Jackson Miller |
10 |
3.5237 |
WR |
Ashton Anderson |
12 |
4.0 |
WR |
2020 'A' COLLEGE SIGNEES/COMMITMENTS
CFALLS 2019 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES
SIX TO BE HONORED AT WILDCAT HALL OF FAME GAME THURSDAY
January 01, 2020 at 8:22 am | By JEREMY WEBER Hungry Horse News
Six Columbia Falls athletes will be the center of attention Thursday as they are inducted into the Wildcat Athletic Hall of Fame during at halftime of the girls basketball game against Bigfork.
This year’s class of inductees includes three girls and three boys who excelled in a number of sports during their time with the Wildcats.
They are:
Colten McPhee, the son of Ronnell Gravelin and Michael McPhee, holds the Montana Class A record for most touchdowns in a football season with 38 and for most rushing touchdowns in a season with 31. He holds the school record for yards in a season and was second in Class A in 2019. He is also the Wildcats all-time leader in career yards with 3,151, including 10.46 yards per carry. McPhee was an All-State selection at linebacker in 2017 and at running back in 2018, an All-Conference linebacker and running back in 2017 and 2018, the Conference Offensive MVP in 2017 and Offensive and Defensive MVP in 2018. A four-year letter winner in football, he was a member of the Wildcat state championship team in 2017, named to the USA Today All-Montana First Team in 2018 and was a selection for the Shrine Game in 2019. In wrestling, McPhee won the 182-pound divisional title in 2018 and 2019, was third at 160 pounds in 2017 and fourth in 2016. A four-year letter winner in the sport, McPhee set the school record with 37 pins during his senior season.
Trista Cowan, the daughter of Karen and Shawn Cowan, was a four-year letter winner in basketball and softball and a three-year letter winning with the Wildkats in volleyball. She was a member of the 2016 state-champion volleyball team and was a two-year Academic All-State selection in the sport. On the basketball court, Cowan was an All-State First Team and All-Conference First Team selection in 2019 and was an All-Conference Second Team selection in 2018. She led the Wildkats in rebounding and shooting percentage in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons, led the team in free throw shooting in 2018-19 and was the recipient of the team’s X-Factor Award for the 2017-18 season and the Most Improved Player Award in 2016-17. On the softball field, Cowan was an All-State and All-Conference First Team selection in 2018 and 2019 and an All-Conference Second Team selection in 2017.
Tanner Gove, the son of Jesse and Naomi Einarson and Jeremy Gove, was an All-State and All-Conference football selection at linebacker in 2017 and 2018 as well as an All Conference selection at right guard. He was a three-year letter winner in the sport and a three-time Academic All-State selection. In track, Gove was a three-year letter winner and three-time Academic All-State selection. He was an All-State javelin thrower in 2016 and All-Conference in 2016 and 2017.
Ryley Kehr, the daughter of Robyn and Dave Kehr, was an All-Conference First Team and All-State volleyball selection in 2017 and 2018. She was an Esmark All-American selection her senior year and is also a member of the Wildkat 100-block and 300-kills club. She was a four-year letter winner in volleyball as well as a four-time Academic All-State winner. In basketball Kehr was an All-State and All-Conference First Team selection in 2019 and an All-Conference Second Team member in 2018. She was named to the USA Today All-Montana Second Team in 2019 and hold the state record with 16 steals in a game. She was a four-year letter winner and Academic All-State member. In softball, Kehr was an All-State and All-Conference First Team selection in 2018 and an All-Conference Second Team selection in 2019. She was a four-year letter winner and Academic All-State member.
Drew Morgan, the son of Pam and Eric Morgan, was an All-Conference wide receiver in 2017 and cornerback in 2018. He was an All-Conference and All-State quarterback in 2018. He was the team Offensive Back of the Year in 2018, an East-West Shrine Game selection and a member of the Wildcat state championship team in 2017. In basketball, Morgan was named the Team MVP and Defensive Leader in 2019 after leading the Wildcats in scoring, three-point and free throw shooting. He was also an All-Conference selection in his senior season. In track, Morgan was All-Conference in the 200, 400 and javelin in 2018 and 2019, the 100 in 2019 and the 400 and 1,600 relays in 2018. He was All-State in the javelin in 2019 (3rd), 100 (2nd), 200 (4th), 400 (6th). He was a member of the 2019 Wildcat state champion 400 relay team. He was All-State in 2018 in the 400 relay (6th) and 1,600 relay (2nd). He was named the team’s most improved member in 2019 and won the Powerhouse and Rocket Awards in 2019. He was a nine-time letter winner and Academic All-State selection across all of his sports in high school.
The 2019 Tom Dumay Award winner, Genevieve DeLorme, is the daughter of Violy Ihnot and Dean DeLorme. She was a three-time All-Conference Cross Country runner, finishing 13th in 2015 and 2018 and 15th in 2016. She was a four-year letter winner and Academic All-State member in the sport. In track, DeLorme was All-State in the 1,600 relay (4th) in 2017, the 800 (3rd) in 2018 and the 1,600 relay (3rd) in 2019. She was All-Conference in the 800 and 3,200 in 2016, the 800, 3,200, 400 and 1,600 relay in 2017, 800 and 1,600 relay in 2018 and the 800, 400 and 1,600 relay in 2019. DeLorme was a four-year letter winner and Academic All-State member in track. She was also a member of the Student Council, Student Body President in 2019, Junior Class Vice President in 2018, Sophomore Class Representative in 2017 and a National Honor Society member 2017-19.
TRISTA COWAN
RYLEY KEHR
DREW MORGAN
COLTON MCPHEE
TANNER GOVE
GENEVIEVE DELORME
MONTANA'S REFEREE PROBLEM
The Disappearing Referee
Overscheduling, poor treatment and apathy have depleted the pool of prep sports officials to a dangerous new low, but can anything be done to turn the trend around?
BY ANDY VIANO // AUG 28, 2019
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Photo illustration by Dwayne Harris | Flathead Beacon
High school sports have a big problem, and it has nothing to do with the players on the field. It has nothing to do with the fields and gyms where the games are played, with the hours required of stretched-thin student-athletes and coaches, with the increasing costs of equipment, travel and private coaching, with the inherent injury risks associated with sports, and with big-money outside forces threatening to undermine the entire prep sports construct, although those remain concerns.
No, the most critical problem with high school sports is with officiating and, no, it isn’t that they blow every call, don’t know the rules or are out to get your son/daughter/niece/nephew/friend/neighbor’s team because of some unseen bias.
But the problem with officiating is so dire that it could change some of the fundamental ground on which prep sports is built. It could move football’s famed Friday night lights to other nights of the week, could jeopardize the safety of the student-athletes on the field of play and could put at risk the tenuous order of game competition that helps teach the lifelong lessons learned through sport.
It’s a problem that is not new to the people who are part of the profession, and one completely lacking a clear solution. And it’s one that has been getting worse, in the minds of almost every prep sports stakeholder, and putting so much pressure on the piping that connects schools and athletics to the community they serve that the whole system is threatening to burst.
There is a persistent and pervasive problem in modern refereeing: There just aren’t enough of them to go around.
“As I have stated before, I don’t think that the schools … will begin to change until the system crashes and we have games cancelled because we no longer have officials to cover them,” one regional referee director in Montana put it, in an email to the officials in his area.
“I believe we are right on the edge of the cliff statewide, and the edge is crumbling right now.”
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Former Polson boys basketball head coach Karl Tait, left, discusses a call with official Ray Bamgarner during a Northwestern A Divisional Tournament game at Glacier High School. Beacon file photo
The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) launched a major campaign to attract new officials in 2017, including a website (www.highschoolofficials.com), hashtag (#becomeanofficial) and targeted outreach, and while the program has been modestly successful, the country still faces a drastic officiating shortage from coast to coast.
“We talk, nationally, all the time when we get the 50 state directors get together, about officials,” said Mark Beckman, the executive director of the Montana High School Association, commissioner of the Montana Officials Association (MOA), current NFHS president and a former official himself.
As of Aug. 23, there were 1,319 officials registered to work in the state of Montana for the 2019-20 season, a number that should rise to approach the 1,630 officials registered last year once additional winter and spring sports officials sign up. It’s an improvement insomuch that the numbers are not in decline, but even 1,600 puts an undue burden on referees who need to cover games at the more than 170 member schools in the state, and it’s a stark drop from the 1,947 officials who were registered for the 2016-17 season. Worse still, officiating shortages exist in just about every sport and in just about all of the 11 geographical areas by which Montana officials are divided.
The state’s officials in the six sports that require sanctioned judges — football, basketball, wrestling, volleyball, soccer and softball — are overseen by the MHSA, MOA and the 11 regional directors, but the actual game assignments come from local, sport-specific pools. The Kalispell pool falls within Region 1, and its malleable footprint can mean those officials are responsible for games at Flathead, Glacier, Whitefish, Columbia Falls, Bigfork, Eureka, Thompson Falls, Plains, Polson, Ronan, Libby, Troy, Hot Springs and Noxon high schools, sometimes assisting other pools and sometimes asking other pools to chip in here. Further complicating matters, certified officials also work nearly every junior varsity, freshman, sophomore and middle school game — those contests are vital for training the next generation of referees — plus contests at non-MHSA schools like Stillwater Christian.
As the 2019-20 season gets set to kick off, there are only 158 total officials, spanning the six sports, registered in Region 1. There were 191 officials in Region 1 at the end of last season, and while the local total may approach that number again by the end this year, it still represents a total well below a level that would make everyone comfortable and confident in the pool’s ability to cover all the games.
There are three levels of officials in Montana — apprentice, certified and master — and only the top two levels, certified and master, are recommended to work varsity contests, according to the MOA handbook. In football, the state’s most popular sport, which kicks off on Aug. 30, the officiating shortage is at a critical level. The Kalispell pool has only 17 certified and master officials, and five-man crews are the absolute minimum required in a varsity game to maintain order and player safety. Having only 17 available varsity officials is as low of a number as Warren Dobler, a veteran referee gearing up for his 31st season and a former head of the Kaispell pool, can remember.
“That’s getting right down there,” Dobler said. “When I first started I think we were upwards of 25 plus, and usually 22-23. That was pretty good, but the last few years it just keeps bumping down.”
Activities directors around the Flathead Valley are used to having to go outside of the local pool to find officials, but this year even that might be a struggle. Officials prefer not to have mixed crews — some from one pool and some from another — because of familiarity concerns, and that means the 17 Flathead Valley officials can only work three games per week, likely all of which are scheduled at the same time, on Friday nights. Kalispell pool scheduler Joe Sullivan said there are 198 football games in the Kalispell pool’s coverage area this year.
As of the morning of Aug. 26, Bigfork High School Activities Director Matt Porrovecchio was still confirming officials for his team’s opening game (on Aug. 30), and Sullivan added that because of extreme shortages in Missoula, dipping into that pool, as is routinely done, may be a challenge this fall.
“(Missoula) lost seven officials, four of which who were master officials, and that’s devastating,” Sullivan said. “I texted (the Missoula pool scheduler) and asked, ‘You have any idea which dates you’ll need us?’ He said, ‘Every day.’ … They’ve gone so far as to tell schools down there you have to go Thursday or Saturday, or we can’t service you. And I’m afraid that we’re headed in that direction.”
And those fears are just over varsity games. Factor in sub-varsity contests, travel outside the pool area, conflicts with day jobs, injuries, illness, or the occasional request for a day off, and the numbers get tighter. In recent years, schools have had to regularly move game times or dates, and some sub-varsity games have had to be skipped entirely by MOA-recognized officials, instead either canceled or refereed by non-MOA officials, sometimes even parents from the crowd.
On top of the 17 certified and master officials, there are only five additional apprentices to help at the lower levels, even with three new refs signed up this year. It’s an equation that requires master officials to work not just varsity contests but almost all sub-varsity ones as well. Officials like Sullivan and Chris Parson, the head of the Kalispell football pool, a former helicopter pilot in the Marine Corps, the director of Flathead Valley Community College’s Continuing Education department, and a 10-year veteran football official, have to go to extreme lengths to balance refereeing with personal and work commitments.
“I typically do a double-header (on Fridays),” Parson said. “I’ll do a freshman game and then I’ll roll right into the varsity game. (You’ve) just got to; there’s not a lot of options.”
Parson said it’s not unusual for a football official to work a sub-varsity game on Monday night, another on Tuesday night, attend a study group with other officials on Wednesday night, add a third game on Thursday night and then work a doubleheader Friday. And they do all that in a job that requires good physical conditioning and even more mental discipline, even for a former Marine.
“It makes for a long afternoon and evening,” Parson said. “You’ve got to keep yourself focused in that second game, which is a key element, and that’s not easy.”
Todd Fiske, the Region 1 all-sport director and a basketball official with 30 years experience, says days can be even longer for hoops crews. He recounted the story of a three-man team from Kalispell being called to Noxon for a night, driving the nearly 150 miles to get there, then working the junior varsity girls game, varsity girls game, junior varsity boys game and varsity boys game, before getting back in the car and driving home. Officials make $60 for varsity contests — pay is less for sub-varsity and middle school games — and receive a travel stipend, but no matter the money, such a scenario is still far from ideal.
“We do four games on the same night; you come home, you’re just dead-ass tired,” he said. “Well, that’s not effective.”
Fiske said he sets aside the money he makes every year from refereeing for his family, and has used that money to pay for family vacations and outings with his wife. And that’s important, because since officials all work separate day jobs, then get taken away sometimes every night of the week, personal relationships can be difficult to maintain.
“I got to give kudos to my wife,” Dobler, the veteran football referee, said. “I mean, for 30 years she has let me, on Friday nights, go do my thing, and many other nights during the week. So that’s a family dynamic that each individual has to wrestle with as well.”
Dobler and Sullivan are both on the other side of 60, and Fiske has the scars of his own three-decade career, and their age makes them more the rule than the exception. Older referees have made it through the struggles of raising a family or advancing in their career while making time for officiating, two factors that cause loads of promising young officials to walk away from the job. But every year officials get older is a year they get closer to retirement, or face difficulty because of the physical realities of aging. Sullivan said two officials in the football pool have come back to work after bouts with cancer, and called he and Dobler’s generation “a Medicare group” while referencing his own two hip replacements and a knee surgery in recent years as evidence of the physical toll the work takes.
“You look at these guys reffing football, 90 percent of them have some fake joint or fake limb,” Porrovecchio said with a grim laugh. “They’re a dying breed and it’s hard to find people who want to put the time in. It’s a tough gig and it’s gotten tougher.”
Data on referee ages is not available in Montana, but no one is particularly encouraged about the current age breakdown that skews much more toward the gray-haired types. The primary stakeholders in prep sports identify two main areas of focus to change that: recruitment and retention. And the major impediment to improving either of those isn’t the schedule, isn’t conflicts with work — some games, particularly sub-varsity games, are played in the afternoon, before many employers are comfortable excusing their employees — and isn’t injury, although those all contribute. The main impediment is one you already know without reading another word.
“Why would I go make 35 bucks to get screamed at?” Grady Bennett asks, rhetorically, through a laugh. (Some sub-varsity games can pay as little as $25)
acier High School football coach since 2007 (and teaching at the school). Three years ago, Bennett stopped coaching basketball, decided to “make 35 bucks to get screamed at” and took the test to become a basketball a referee. His friends thought he was crazy.
“The first time I told them I’m going to get into officiating, they said, ‘Why in the world would you ever do that? Why would any human being want to do that?’” he said.
It’s a given, today anyway, that officials must deal with verbal abuse during games as a reality of the job. Fans, coaches and players, in descending order, are the primary offenders, and while it varies from sport to sport, it’s always there. Like the shortage in officials, it’s not a new problem, but it is one that is trending in the wrong direction.
The National Association of Sports Officials National Officiating Survey, completed by more than 17,000 officials from all levels and all sports in 2017, found that almost 57 percent of officials believe sportsmanship is getting worse, more than 64 percent had removed a spectator from a game, and a whopping 84 percent believe they are treated unfairly by spectators. (Coaches were not immune either, checking in at over 70 percent on the “treated unfairly” question.) Perhaps most troubling of all, an astounding 46 percent of officials reported they have “felt unsafe or feared for (their) safety” because of the behavior of players, coaches, administrators or fans.
“The work around good sportsmanship is a really big factor,” Fiske said.
No local official interviewed for this story recounted feeling unsafe in a game environment, but all of them had stories of out-of-control fans. Somewhat counter intuitively, they also reported that the abuse they receive is worse in middle school and sub-varsity games, a factor exacerbating retention problems.
“I had a couple of games this last year where our varsity refs helped out with sub-varsity basketball,” Bryce Wilson, Flathead High School’s activities director, said. “They came back afterward and said, ‘That’s worse than any varsity game I do.’ … One guy, he told me right then that, ‘I refuse to do a sub-varsity game again.’”
“You cut your teeth in the fifth, sixth, seven and eighth grade gyms,” Fiske said. “These little junior high games where there’s like 14 people and dad or mom are up there complaining, or a coach that’s complaining, you hear it all.”
Every official knows criticism comes with the job, and officials are fairly sympathetic to the hyper-competitive coaches, players, parents and fans who spit fire their way. Competitiveness is baked into sports, and when someone’s flesh and blood is involved, officials are patient so long as the offenders avoid personal attacks. But being insulted for hours can’t help but wear on everyone, especially officials who are new to the profession.
“When you look at it from the majority of people, it’s a good thing, because they’re supporting their sons or daughters in their activities,” Beckman, the MHSA commissioner, said. “But then always what happens, when there’s that intimate involvement, there can be ones that are saying, ‘I’m so tied up in this I’ve let myself go across the boundary line a little bit.’ They paid their money and they’re really invested and they’re emotionally tied to it.”
Ross Gustafson, the normally mild-mannered head coach of the Flathead basketball team, said he makes a goal every year of maintaining his composure when interacting with officials during a game. But even he is not immune to falling prey to his emotions.
“If you walked up and met (a referee) on the street, you’d never act that way,” he said. “That’s one thing I try to keep in mind because I run into these guys around town and they’re all great guys and gals, and you’ve got to remember that. That’s the challenge for me, is remembering that aspect in the heat of the moment.”
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Columbia Falls head coach Cary Finberg has words with a referee during a Wildcats’ game against Dillon. Beacon file photo
Through it all, the MHSA, the activities directors, schedulers, and referees have found a way to make it work, sometimes by shifting games to other nights of the week, sometimes by subbing in a parent on a sub-varsity game, and sometimes by paying extra mileage to bring in officials from out of the area. But something has to give.
Those working today in Northwest Montana do their best to sell the perks of the job, beyond just the extra walking-around money. Through officiating, they say they remain involved in the sport they love, stay in shape, impact the lives of young men and women by teaching the sport and teaching sportsmanship, and sharpen life skills like working under pressure, acting decisively and exercising patience. And above all, they boast about the camaraderie; officials run in tight circles socially, routinely gathering after games to swap stories over a burger and a beverage.
But no one has a good answer to the question of how this trend will turn around. The default seems to be that there will always be enough referees because, well, there have to be. Sure, the numbers have been declining, and the refs are getting older, and some day they’re all going to retire, and people don’t want to get screamed at for three hours, but there just can’t be competitive sports without them. And no one is predicting the end of competitive sports. The MHSA has a slogan it uses on materials to drive up referee recruitment: “Without referees, it’s just recess.” That’s a clever one-liner but unwittingly portends a future where games are conducted under the nearly lawless dog-eat-dog rule of the schoolyard.
All hope is not lost, however. Bennett, the Glacier football coach and newbie basketball referee, is one of the success stories. He’s someone who decided to take the plunge and do this, despite the busy schedule, despite knowing what the worst impulses of some coaches and fans can be, and says he expects to continue doing it for the foreseeable future.
“I really can’t convince anybody (else to do this) — I’m not kidding you,” Bennett said. “For me, it’s the passion of loving education and caring about young people so much and wanting to be part of the sport. I just like to help the kids out … It’s just kind of my passion in life.”
And maybe there are more people like that, and maybe there will always be, to keep the fields and courts of high school sports safe and orderly. Because without more people like him, the next time you load the car to enjoy a football Friday night, you might just be going to watch recess.
So You Want to Referee?
The Montana High School Association wants you to give officiating a shot, in one of the six sports — volleyball, football, wrestling, soccer, basketball and softball — that fall under the Montana Officials Association. To get started, fill out the brief questionnaire at www.highschoolofficials.com or call the MHSA at (406) 442-6010.
To become a member of the MOA, officials must pay annual dues ($65 for one sport; $30 for each additional sport), be at least 18 years old, and score 60 percent or higher on a rules examination. Officials must also purchase a uniform compliant with their sport and be “of good moral character.” To maintain membership, officials must attend at least six “study club” sessions annually in most sports. Officials in soccer and softball need only four study clubs per year.
In Montana, referees are paid $60 for varsity contests and are compensated 12 cents per mile for their travel. Drivers receive additional mileage for travel to games, paid at the federal rate.
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SCORES, PICS AND VIDEOS
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