It had been six years since the Bravettes basketball team had beaten Hellgate in Missoula. But Nov. 7, the Bravettes changed that pattern with a convincing 51-36 victory over the lady Knights and then followed the next night at home with a 69-52 win over the Butte Bulldogs. The win against Butte secured Flathead an automatic bye into the state tournament in Billings, Thursday through Saturday.
Against Hellgate, the Bravettes trailed 14-12 at halftime before exploding for 39 points in the second half behind a balanced scoring attack of Shannon Grace, Darcy James, and Stacie Shelt, who each had with 14 points.
"We couldn't get in (our) offense," explained coach Dennis Lattimer of the first half scoring drought. "We decided to put our to big people in the blocks and punch it inside. We took a few shots on perimeter. It spread the defense and opened up things inside."
Scoring wasn't a problem in the Bravettes 69-52 win over Butte James led the team with 21 points and Shannon Grace added 18 points and 10 rebounds of her own. The Bravettes take their 15-5 record, 7-5 in conference play, into the state tournament in Billings as the number 2 seed from the west.
"Really important," Lattimer said of the team's wins. "Looking back two to three weeks ago, we didn't think we had a chance. A few teams had to lose to make it possible."
According to Lattimer, the outcome of the Butte game decided who was going to host a playoff game. As a result of the Bravettes win against Butte, they have a week off and a bye into the tournament.
"Over in the east, Bozeman and Billings Skyview are pretty tough," said Lattimer. "They're rated number 1 and number 2. We'll be on the same side (of the draw) as Bozeman."
As for the Bravettes chances, the state tournament should be very unpredictable.
"Usually one or two teams stand out," said Lattimer. "This year everybody has beat everybody."