The Shelby boys basketball team improved their record to 4-0 after last week’s action. The Coyotes defeated Fairfield, 62-44, on Jan. 5, followed by Choteau, 79-26, on Jan. 8, and Great Falls Central, 70-29, on Jan. 9.

The Tipi Dome in Browning was host to Libby on Saturday, Jan. 9, complete with cheerleaders, athletes, officials and coaches, but absent fans in the stands. Nonetheless, the event was televised on the NFHS Network and watched by many as Browning was kept just out of reach of catching and ove…

The Valier Panthers went 0-2 in a pair of conference games last week as they fell to Sunburst and Simms. The Panthers have a trio of games this week as they look to get in the win column. 

The Sunburst Refiners boys basketball team opened their season last week posting a 2-1 record. They defeated Valier 64-44 and then Centerville 68-28, before losing to Heart Butte 71-58. 

The mat men of Cut Bank High School went 2-0 in their dual matches with Mission and Thompson Falls to open the season. The Wolves dominated both matches as they defeated Mission 60-6 and Thompson Falls 45-28. In both duals, the Wolves’ large roster came into play as both the Bulldogs and Blu…

Wrestling season has finally begun! Four Shelby Coyotes got their first chance to compete this past weekend in Cascade. Harold Miller (145 lbs.), Cameron Brusven (182 lbs.), Bryant Mertz (205 lbs.), and Ryan Simpson (HWT). Other teams in attendance included Fort Benton/Big Sandy, White Sulph…

The Browning Lady Indians basketball team took the first half of the Saturday, Jan. 2, game in Shelby to warm up to the idea of being a full-on varsity team in 2021. 

The Valier girls basketball team opened the 2021 season with a thrilling 49-47 victory over Geraldine/Highwood. The Panthers trailed by four entering the final period of the game before rallying to start the year 1-0. 

Heart Butte basketball coach Kellen Hall reports the Warriors’ first contest of 2021 came after a “bare bones” set of practices and a relatively small number of athletes turning out for the sport.

The Cut Bank Lady Wolves will open their 2020-21 season Jan. 2 at home against the Harlem Lady Cats. The Lady Wolves lost two All-Conference post players from last year’s squad but return six letter winners including seniors Sienna Spotted Bear and Sadie Pepion. 

The Cut Bank Wolves wrestling team will get their season underway Jan. 2 with a pair of duals in Thompson Falls. Head coach Cody Fetters’ team is led by Austin Vanek, a returning state qualifier. Vanek, a junior, placed at state last year and will look to improve on last season’s third place…

The Cut Bank Wolves boys basketball team has begun practicing and getting ready for their 2021 season. Coach Josh Larson begins his third season as the Wolves’ head coach and is excited to get things going. “We are really excited to finally be able to practice and to start getting ready for …

A total of 16 athletes turned out for Browning wrestling this year, with several returning veterans and some newcomers as well. “The kids adjusted super easy,” Coach Casey McDonald said of the COVID-19 restrictions. “They wear masks when running and during cardio…we check temperatures daily …

The Blackfeet Fish and Wildlife Department was notified by Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks (MFWP) that a tribal hunter harvested a whitetail deer from the Meriwether Road area on Nov. 11, which tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). The tribal hunter had voluntarily provided a sa…

As of Thursday, Dec. 10, Browning basketball coach Dan Connelly said he was “getting ready for tryouts,” as the Browning School Board voted to approve winter sports. The approval came with stringent COVID-19 requirements, some insisted upon by Coach Connelly, and the season begins weeks behi…

The Lady Indians basketball season got underway last week as COVID-19 testing was held on a drive-through basis. Tryouts will be conducted once the results are received and players cleared. On the coaching end of things, Darryl “Poorboy” Croff comes in as a first-year varsity coach with seve…

A pair of Sunburst Re-finers and a Valier Panther football player were named to the Northern C six-man All-Conference team for the 2020 season.

The Shelby Coyotes boys basketball team opened practice 2020-21 season on  Dec. 7, with 14 athletes. They are returning 10 lettermen from last year’s state qualifying team. Two of those returners, senior Logan Leck and junior Rhett Reynolds, are all-conference and all state players. 

The Sunburst Refiners girls basketball team will have a new face at the helm this year. Former assistant coach Tyler Tharp will take over the reins as head coach for the 2020-21 season. He is looking forward to the challenge and the experiences. 

Cut Bank High School fall sports teams recently held their awards banquets, officially ending the 2020 season. 

(Editor’s Note: Cut Bank 4-Her Grace Rooney submitted this update on her recent food drive challenge in honor of Kyona Yeager of Fairfield, another 4-Her.)

The Valier junior high basketball season may not have had an end of season tournament, but according to coach Michelle Beck, “It was great to complete the season this year. Every one of these athletes improved from day one.”

Cut Bank parents and friends of elementary, middle and high school students may not be able to attend the Christmas programs and concerts this year, but school officials are making them available virtually to those would like to watch.

The Browning Parade of Lights will be held on Dec. 17, and all participants will have to be with their cohorts unless you are social distancing in the back of vehicles. Masks will be a requirement, and we ask that all observers please remain in their vehicles. The motorcade will leave BCC at…

The Shelby Coyotes were well represented on the 8-Man North All-Conference and All-State squads. The Coyotes, who reached the 8-Man semifinal round this season, placed nine athletes on the North’s ‘B’ subdivision. 

Five Cut Bank football players ended the 2020 season with Northern B All-Conference honors led by junior kicker Eddie Dewert, who received First Team accolades.

Three area athletes were named to the District 1B All-Conference Volleyball squad with Shelby senior Maddison Underdal earning both All-Conference and All-State accolades. Shelby’s Vivi McDermott and Camille Bradley of Cut Bank were both named to the Second Team for the 2020 season. 

The Valier Panthers put all three of their senior athletes on the 6C All-Conference volleyball team to end the 2020 season led by Erica Ramsey’s First Team selection. 

Montanans earning minimum wage will see the rate increase to $8.75 per hour beginning Jan. 1, 2021. 

The importance of shopping locally has been emphasized with increasing urgency in recent years. Events like Small Business Saturday needed attention to the importance of shopping local, which is even more crucial now as so many small businesses try to survive the pandemic. 

The Deli Express float by the Garden of Eat-In was the 1st place winner of Cut Bank’s Parade of Lights this year. The gang was all smiles at the start of the parade and they didn’t even know they had won yet. Click on the arrow above for more photos. Pick up a copy of the newspaper to see th…

The Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation has selected 96 food banks, food pantries, rescue missions, homeless shelters, United Way and Salvation Army organizations across Montana to receive a combined $307,500 in additional grant funds to aid them in helping Montana’s most vulnerable cit…

A cold snap in October is not unusual in Montana. No big deal, right? That is, until you consider all your neighbors who struggle daily to make ends meet, pay their bills and keep their homes warm.  

Looking outside

The Shelby Coyote Football Season came to a bitter end, losing to the Spartans 44-28, in Scobey on Saturday, Nov. 14, in post-season play.

Cut Bank Trails will be hosting hot cocoa, coffee, and cookies at the Rose Petal Floral & Gifts on Friday, Nov. 20, from 5:30-8 p.m., in conjunction with the annual Parade of Lights. Stop by and pick out your fresh Christmas tree and enjoy some goodies from the Cut Bank Trails. The Rose …

WIC offices will be closed to the public. Services will be available remotely and benefits will continue to be issued for anyone currently on the program. Clients should reach out to their local WIC clinic, www.signupwic.com, to inquire about WIC benefits. If your local WIC clinic is unavail…

 The Cut Bank Area Chamber of Commerce recently presented its Business Improvement Award to Ann Clark, owner of Glacier Pharmacy. Clark received the award for the pharmacy’s continued investment in the Cut Bank community. Glacier Pharmacy, which is located inside Big Sky Foods in the Norther…

According to Montana State University Extension, an important goal for many Montana family farm and ranch enterprises is to transfer land and businesses to the next generation, but the process can be challenging.

The Shelby Coyotes foot­ball team moved on in the eight-man football playoffs by defeating Park City 87-68, in one of the highest scoring Coyote football games in re­cent history.

The Shelby Coyotes volleyball Team wrapped up their season with a third place finish at the divisional tournament, posting a 3-2 record. The Lady Yotes beat Wolf Point 25-14, 25-14, and 15-11; Glasgow, 23-25, 27-25, 25-22, 24-16, and 15-10; and Malta 22-25, 25-18, 25-18, 21-25, and 15-10. Th…

The Cut Bank Lady Wolves saw their season come to an end at the Northern “B” Divisional Volleyball Tournament Thursday, Nov. 5, in Shelby. The Lady Wolves went 0-2 with losses to Choteau and Wolf Point to close out the 2020 season. 

A couple dozen spirited walkers and runners turned out for the Spooky Sprint held at the Stone School Inn in Valier on Halloween morning. Once again, the weather cooperated to allow for a sunny and safe event.

Having retired June 30 after six years at the Blackfeet Community College (BCC) with the nursing program and 31 years with the Indian Health Service, 28 of those at Blackfeet Community Hospital in Browning, Keith McDivitt set out to enter a bicycle race.

The Shelby Coyotes football team returned from a three-week hiatus to stomp Clark Fork, 60-14 on Halloween. The Coyotes spent the last three weeks waiting to get back to work and it didn’t take long for them to dominate their opponent. 

The Shelby Coyotes volleyball team finished in third place at the District Volleyball tournament last weekend. Shelby and Conrad will host the Northern “B” Divisional Tournament on Thursday. Friday and Saturday Conrad will host all the tourney matches. The Lady Yotes are scheduled to play Wo…

The Cut Bank Lady Wolves went 0-2 at last weekend’s District 1B Volleyball Tournament but will advance to the Northern B Divisional Tournament as the fifth seed to take on top-seeded Choteau this Thursday in Shelbyat 9:30 a.m. 

The Valier Panther volleyball squad went 1-3 at last weekend’s District 6-C Tournament to wrap up their 2020 season. 

Lauren Luse did not grow up in a house of hunters. “We didn’t have anything against it, it just wasn’t what we did,” she explained. But then she married Jason Luse, who not only was a hunter from multiple generations back but has also been a guide for other hunters. 

The Shelby Lady Coyotes volleyball team returned to the court after a two-week absence due to COVID-19 and split a pair of games. They lost to Choteau on Friday, Oct. 23, 25-13, 25-18, and 25-15. Saturday, they defeated Great Falls Central, 25-15, 25-10, 15-25, and 25-15.