Kettle Falls Drops Two Games After Christmas

The Kettle Falls boys basketball team dropped two games over the holiday break, falling to 5-7 overall in the early portion of the winter 2025-26 season.

Kettle Falls opened last week with a 67-54 loss to the Medical Lake Cardinals on Dec. 30 at West Valley High School. The Bulldogs led 16-8 after the first quarter, but Medical Lake used a strong middle stretch to seize control, outscoring Kettle Falls 22-13 in the second quarter and 21-12 in the third.

Gabe Smith poured in 20 points to lead the Cardinals, while Hudson Gilbert added 16 points, including four 3-pointers. Kettle Falls was paced by Mace Thivierge, who scored 19 points and hit three shots from beyond the arc. Zac Burch chipped in 12 points, and the Bulldogs knocked down seven 3-pointers as a team, but struggled to keep pace after halftime.

Kettle Falls returned home on Jan. 3 and ran into a hot-shooting Almira/Coulee-Hartline Warriors squad, falling 73-46. After a competitive opening quarter that saw the Bulldogs hold an 18-17 edge, Almira/Coulee-Hartline took control by outscoring Kettle Falls 20-6 in the second quarter and never looked back.

Max Grindy led all scorers with 30 points for the Warriors, including four 3-pointers, while Kettle Falls again leaned on Thivierge, who finished with a game-high 26 points. The Bulldogs hit four 3-pointers in the contest.

The Bulldogs played St. George’s on Tuesday, Jan. 6; results were not available at press time. The team is scheduled to face Chewelah on Friday, Jan. 9, at 7:30 p.m.