:03, :02, :01, the buzzer sounds and it finally happens. Countless hours of open gyms in the summer, shot after shot in empty gyms, sweat hitting the court after running that last set of lines. The Lady Hawks basketball team put in work since last spring, and with a young team heading into the 2009-2010 season, the girls finished with a 21-2 record and a state championship.

The team only consisted of only two seniors, University of Montana-bound guard Kellie Cole, and fellow guard Kylie Gagnon. Cole showed her value as an all-around player and finished the regular season averaging 16.3 points per game (2nd in the state), 5.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists (3rd), and 2.45 steals (7th). Despite the lack of seniors on the team, the Hawks did have a promising group of underclassmen. Talented sophomores Shanae Gilham and Lexi Dawkins proved to be integral parts of the team’s success. During the regular season, Gilham averaged 11.2 points and led the team with 6.1 rebounds per game. Dawkins contributed with 7.6 points, leading the state in points per field goal attempt and averaging 1.08 blocks. Senior Kylie Gagnon and juniors Taylor Parker, Lindsey Manning, Jenna Banks, and Kayla Hefty all kept the Hawks grounded on the defensive end and all were key players in the Hawks offensive power. Parker was a strong inside presence with 7.1 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. Banks dished out 3.2 assists per game, Manning and Hefty were the team’s lock down defenders, and sophomores Rosi Nickelson and Mikaela McLeod both were three point threats.

After finishing the 2008-2009 season with a respectable record in Coach Brad Rustan’s first season as head coach, the girls came back this year with a new drive for success, and vowed to prove to the state that they were a force to be reckoned with.

As a team, the Hawks went 18-2 during the regular season, heading into state with an 11-1 conference record, a number one seed in the state, and an automatic bye into the state tournament in Billings. Their only two losses came to Missoula Sentinel in a tough 44 to 49 loss, the top team in the west, and an unbelievable loss on a last second heave to CM Russell high school at home 39 to 41.

The strong regular season performance meant high expectations for state. The Lady Hawks had two full weeks of practice without a game before the tournament because they didn’t have a playoff game. This had its ups and downs. The negative side of the equation was that the team would be without game experience for a couple weeks, but it was also a great chance to rest up and give injured players on the team time to recover. During the last few games of the season, Shanae Gilham and Rosi Nickelson both went down with injuries, but made it back in time for state.

State in Billings finally arrived on Thursday March 11th and the Lady Hawks first game was against a very capable Missoula Big Sky Team ranked 4th in the Western conference. The 10:30 a.m. game was somewhat close at first, but the girls came out with a 41 to 26 win in a low scoring contest.

“After a stressful and nerve racking first half, we came together as a team and did what we had to do to win the game. Shots were falling, and things started to go more smoothly,” explained junior guard Lindsey Manning. “We were really excited about the win, and ready to continue winning with the ultimate goal of taking the state championship in our minds.”

The second game, the semi-final was against 3rd seed conference rival Butte, and the state’s top scorer Lexi Nelson, also University of Montana bound. The energy in the building was high at Billings Metrapark for the Friday game, and the Hawks had a convincing lead at halftime, and their defense was able to limit Nelson to only a few points in the entire game. Bozeman won in convincing 57 to 43 fashion, and earned a trip the AA State championship to face off against their biggest rival for the third time during the season, CMR.

Taylor Parker reflected back on the team’s attitude heading into the final game.

“At the beginning of the year Coach Rustan said that we were going to win a state championship, so we were ready to work for it. Once we got to that position we were confident, and we knew we could do it. We had practiced hard for two weeks, and won the first two games of the tournament, so we were ready.”

The state championship had finally arrived, the moment that every young basketball player dreams of. At 6:30 p.m., the game started, and the battle for the title was in full swing. The game was low scoring, and quickly turned into a defensive battle. With 3:35 left in the second quarter, Kellie Cole went down with a wrist injury, but that didn’t stop her from coming back and playing. The Hawks took a comfortable lead in the first half, and went into halftime with a 25 to 16 lead. They had CMR on their heels, but the Rustlers came out as a different team in the second half and scored 11 in the third quarter, and limited the Hawks to a mere 4 points to cut the deficit to 29 to 27, Bozeman. Throughout the entire game, no one on either team shot particularly well, with the exception of Rosi Nickelson, who’s two three pointers and eight points kept the Hawks in the game. After going back and forth in the 4th quarter, Bozeman finally pulled away to win 39-33 despite CMR’s Jordan Bagley’s 12 points and 5 steals. Cole finished with ten points and seven rebounds, all while playing through a broken wrist.

“Despite my wrist injury, I wasn’t going to sit out no matter what, so I sucked it up and did what I could to help the team out,” said senior Kellie Cole. “Winning was a dream come true. Our team worked really hard all season, so it was nice to have it pay off in the end, and it was a perfect way to finish a really fun season and high school career.”

The Lady Hawks could finally let out all their emotions, as they claimed Bozeman High’s third state AA basketball title in five years.