BILLINGS — Roberts junior Taylee Chirrick recorded a triple-double to lead the Rockets to a Southern C title on Saturday night inside Lockwood High School, while the Broadus boys topped Melstone for the first time this season to hoist the first-place trophy.
Roberts 64, Ekalaka 54
Taylee Chirrick scored 24 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and dished out 10 assists to lead Roberts to its first Southern C girls divisional title in program history, a 64-54 win over Ekalaka.
Roberts built a 26-9 lead after the first quarter, but Ekalaka began to chip away in the second when the Bulldogs switched to a diamond-and-one on Chirrick, trimming the deficit to four, 38-34, at halftime.
"(Head coach Sarah Shoopman) was direct with us," Chirrick told MTN Sports. "She told us we had to shut them down and step up our defense, and I thought we executed better all-around."
Roberts saw its lead dwindle to three after three quarters, but the Rockets extended it to double-figures in the fourth quarter thanks to timely shooting from their role players. TJ Chirrick finished with 15 points and Hailey Croft had 11.
"It makes me feel a lot more relaxed," Chirrick said of her teammates burying shots. "It makes me so excited when they hit those shots. I honestly like assists more than points. It's the best feeling when I pass it and they make that shot."
Roberts will make its first appearance at the State C tournament next weekend at First Interstate Arena in Billings where the Rockets will face Manhattan Christian, the No. 2 seed from the Western C.
"Just having our community behind us, it was a super cool feeling. The final buzzer sounded and it's just like, it happened and we're going to state. It's a great feeling," Chirrick said.
There is no challenge game, as Melstone finished third and lost to runner-up Ekalaka in Friday's semifinals. Ekalaka will play Western C champion Twin Bridges in the opening round of the State C tournament.
Broadus 38, Melstone 25
A Marcus Mader layup as time expired in the first half completely flipped momentum in the favor of Broadus, as the Hawks took a two-point halftime deficit and turned it into a 38-25 win over Melstone in the Southern C boys divisional title game.
The Hawks were a different team in the second half, as they out-scored Melstone 23-8 and led by eight entering the final eight minutes. Broadus had lost the first two meetings with Melstone this season by 13 points and 19 points, respectively.
"We moved the ball, found open shots and got out in transition," Dillon Gee told MTN Sports. "Good defense helped us out a lot. ... It's 100 percent a team effort. It takes all of us to have defense like that."
Gee had a game-high 14 points to lead the Hawks. He also ripped down nine rebounds as Broadus will make a return trip to the State C tournament. Bryce Grebe had 12 to lead Melstone.
"This is really special. We love to extend our season. It feels great to make it to another state tournament," Gee said.
Broadview-Lavina and Melstone will play a challenge game on Monday at 6:30 in Lockwood to determine the Southern C's second representative.
