Bigfork’s Emslie and Whitefish’s Brist Named Coaches of the Year

Two Flathead Valley coaches have been honored as the best in their sports by the Montana Coaches Association.

Todd Emslie of Bigfork was named the Class B football coach of the year and Bill Brist of Whitefish was named the Class A girls cross country coach of the year. Emslie led Bigfork to the first state title in school history, while Brist led the Bulldogs to their fourth straight Class A crown.

Below is the MCA’s full list of top coaches from the fall season, broken down into Class AA, A, B and C from left to right, with both eight-man and six-man included for football. There are no names for Class B-C golf, because that season is held in the spring.

Football – Troy Purcell, Bozeman; Dan Stanton, Miles City; Todd Emslie, Bigfork; Matt Molyneaux, Chinook; Scott Sparks, Denton
Volleyball – Sheila Williams, Helena; Tara Taylor, Lewistown; Iona Stookey, Huntley Project; Betty Klein, Ennis
Boys cross country – Clint May, Bozeman; Joanne Cleveland, Corvallis; Scott Marron, Missoula Loyola; Alane O’Dore, Joliet
Girls cross country -– Clint May, Bozeman; Bill Brist, Whitefish; Rod Karst, Glasgow; Mark Gerber, Belt-Centerville
Boys golf – Terry Caekaert, Billings Senior; Owen Burch, Hamilton
Girls golf – Brian Halverson, Great Falls CMR; Jim Hawbaker, Billings Central