The Columbia Falls boys basketball team suffered its first losses of the year over the weekend, dropping back-to-back games to Glacier (65-63 in overtime) and Missoula Loyola (67-52). Since neither Class AA Glacier nor Class B Loyola is in Columbia Falls’ league, the Wildcats’ Northwestern A record remains unblemished. Columbia Falls is 10-2 overall and 3-0 in the conference.
As of Jan. 26, the Wildcats rank first as a team in nearly every major statistical category in the conference. They rank first in scoring (59.4 per game), rebounding (33.4), field-goal percentage (46 percent), blocks (4.8), free-throw percentage (64.4) and assists (16.6). Despite leading the league in scoring, their highest individual scorer is senior Mitchell Wassam, who ranks sixth in the conference with 10.2 points per game. More than anything this illustrates the team’s tremendous balance, which makes the Wildcats so hard to defend.
Here are the full Northwestern A standings for boys and girls, followed by individual statistical leaders, as of Jan. 26.
Boys
Columbia Falls – 10-2; 3-0
Polson – 7-4; 3-1
Libby – 5-6; 2-1
Whitefish – 3-8; 1-3
Ronan – 2-10; 0-4Girls
Polson – 9-2; 4-0
Columbia Falls – 7-5; 3-0
Libby – 5-5; 1-2
Ronan – 1-11; 1-3
Whitefish – 0-11; 0-4
Top 10 individual statistical leaders:
Boys
Points:
1. Kyle Bagnell, Jr., Polson – 16.5
2. Tim Rausch, Sr., Polson – 15.2
3. Connor Silliker, Sr., Whitefish – 12.6
4. Gage Vasquez, Sr. Whitefish – 10.9
5. Kevin Wroblewski, Jr., Ronan – 10.3
6. Mitchell Wassam, Sr., Columbia Falls – 10.2
7. Kaleb Johnson, Jr., Columbia Falls – 10.1
8. Colton Cannon, Sr., Libby – 9.9
9. Vince DiGiallonardo, So., Polson – 9.5
t-9. Kelly May, Jr., Libby – 9.5Rebounds:
1. Kaleb Johnson, Jr., Columbia Falls – 8.7
2. Derrick Rathe, Sr., Polson – 7.5
3. Alex Cislo, Jr., Libby – 7.3
4. Connor Silliker, Sr., Whitefish – 7.1
5. Tyler Krell, So., Polson – 6.4
6. Austin Barth, So., Columbia Falls – 5.8
7. Kevin Wroblewski, Jr., Ronan – 5.2
8. Tim Rausch, Sr., Polson – 5.1
9. Lucas Black, Jr., Ronan – 4.8
10. Vince DiGiallonardo, So., Polson – 4.6Girls
Points:
1. Jackie Mee, Sr., Libby – 20.1
2. Kayla DeWit, Jr., Columbia Falls – 19.3
3. Kelsey DeWit, Sr., Columbia Falls – 13.6
4. Breanne Kelley, Jr., Polson – 12.0
5. Nicole Davey, Sr., Polson – 11.3
6. Jaime Gilden, Jr., Libby – 10.1
7. Riley Kenney, So., Polson – 10.1
8. Sierra Pete, Jr., Polson – 9.6
9. Nina Orozco, Jr., Ronan – 8.2
10. Jonna Grant, Jr., Ronan – 8.1
Rebounds:1. Kelsey DeWit, Sr., Columbia Falls – 12.8
2. Kayla DeWit, Jr., Columbia Falls – 12.0
3. Jackie Mee, Sr., Libby – 9.1
4. Nicole Davey, Sr., Polson – 8.7
5. Riley Kenney, So., Polson – 7.8
6. Jaime Gilden, Jr., Libby – 6.5
7. Shelby Backer, So., Whitefish – 6.3
8. Brooke Cady, Sr., Columbia Falls – 5.1
9. Olivia Nagler, Jr., Whitefish – 4.6
10. Shay Grilley, Sr., Columbia Falls – 4.3