McQueary Returns as Maroons Roll at Home
BUTTE — It was a wire-to-wire night at home for the Butte Central Maroons, who completed a convincing sweep of Stevensville as the boys cruised to a 74–45 win and the girls followed with a 60–42 victory Tuesday night.
Boys: Central 74, Stevensville 45
The Butte Central boys continued their dominant start to the season, improving to 11-1 overall and 6-0 in Southwestern A behind a balanced offensive attack and relentless defensive pressure.
Joshua Sutton poured in a game-high 29 points, hitting five three-pointers and setting the tone early as Central jumped out to a 17–11 first-quarter lead and never looked back. Ryan Peoples added 22 points, knocking down three triples of his own as the Maroons steadily stretched the margin in every quarter.
Central shot 26-of-54 from the field and buried 10 three-pointers, using pace and ball movement to wear down the Yellowjackets. Noah Sutton chipped in 7 points, while GG Fantini and Jaxon Hiatt each scored 4 as the Maroons built a 38–19 halftime lead and cruised home.
Stevensville was led by Taeshawn Luster with 13 points, but the Yellowjackets struggled to find consistency against Central’s pressure, finishing just 16-of-48 from the floor.
Stevensville 11 8 15 11 — 45
Butte Central 17 21 20 16 — 74
Stevensville box score: Kaden Wyant 10, McCoy Endres 6, Jake Tschida 7, Gage Bierer 2, Taeshawn Luster 13, Luca Schmidt 3, Trenton Scharff 3, Luis Eberhardt 1.
Butte Central box score: Ryan Peoples 22, Joshua Sutton 29, Noah Sutton 7, GG Fantini 4, Jaxon Hiatt 4, Burkley Lakkala 2, Henly Mansanti 3, Grady Button 3.
Girls: Central 60, Stevensville 42
The nightcap marked the return of Kenzie McQueary, and the senior guard wasted no time making her presence felt.
McQueary scored 16 points, providing stability on both ends as Central jumped out to a 21–8 first-quarter lead and controlled the game throughout. Luci Fantini led all scorers with 18 points, including four three-pointers, while Zayonna Otherbull added 11.
Central’s balance and defensive discipline proved too much for Stevensville, as the Maroons maintained their lead through each quarter and closed strong with a 17-point fourth quarter to seal the win.
Stevensville was paced by Addi Drye with 20 points and Emma Tan with 14, but foul trouble and Central’s depth limited any sustained comeback.
Butte Central 21 9 13 17 — 60
Stevensville 8 7 8 19 — 42
Butte Central box score: Kenzie McQueary 16, Luci Fantini 18, Zayonna Otherbull 11, Rylee Forbes 5, Braelyn Schelin 5, Arika Stajcar 4, Evyn Smith 2.
Stevensville box score: Addi Drye 20, Emma Tan 14, Kayden Tolley 1, Amy Donaldson 5.
