Just this past Friday, Big Sky High School won the seventh annual GOAT award, beating Hellgate High School, their crosstown rival, 472 to 469 – only a three point difference.
Big Sky has now won the golden goat trophy, known as Gertie, for two years in a row. The game was played at the Dahlberg Arena inside the University of Montana Adams Center.
Last year, Big Sky played Sentinel High School in the GOAT game, beating them with a final score of 466-439.
After Big Sky’s win this year, they will go on to play Sentinel High School again next year. Emma Keffeler, Big Sky’s student government advisor and Spanish teacher, oversees the whole GOAT Game event.
“We are already making plans and figuring out our theme for next year,” Keffeler said.
Keffeler and Big Sky’s student government officers have been planning this year’s GOAT Game since they won last year, Keffeler stated. They had narrowed down their theme right after homecoming, but have been working on it since last February.
Each year, the golden goat is awarded to the school who shows the most positivity and school spirit at the crosstown boys’ and girls’ basketball games. The point of the GOAT game is to cheer on both teams and to be louder and prouder than the other team. The win of the actual basketball games has no correlation with who wins the game.
After looking at the judges’ scoring sheet, the two participating schools are graded on five different categories: sportsmanship, theme and shirts, posters, props and decorations, cheering, and halftime performance.
The rules also state that both schools must have a theme for their student section and halftime show. This year, Big Sky’s theme was Top Gun, while Hellgate’s theme was Star Wars. The arena was packed with camo and jedis everywhere. The energy was high the whole game. If one team scored then the whole place would erupt.
Gertie was awarded to Big Sky after two very close basketball games and two well organized and clearly themed halftime shows. Both halftime shows had their own positive aspects, with Hellgate’s cheer and dance teams dressed as stormtroopers and all marching in an organized fashion. Big Sky’s halftime show also featured on-theme performances from cheer and dance, and also included parents, students, and faculty members.
This year, Big Skys’ boys team was in a tricky situation with the head coach, Zack Murphy, not being at the game due to a sickness. So, Casey Rogers, the assistant coach and JV coach, had to step in.
The boys varsity teams started the GOAT night off with a very close first game.
The game came all the way to its very final moments, with the game being tied at 48-48 in the last 30 seconds. Parker Link, a Hellgate player, was fouled with under a second left. He went to the free throw line, missing his first but making his second with .8 left on the clock. Big Sky was unable to add another point on and Hellgate won the first game with a one point difference, 49-48.
The girls’ game, which tipped off just before 8 p.m., was just as close as the boys’, with Big Sky winning 43-40.
Avory DeCoite, a senior and Lady Griz commit, led the Eagles to victory, putting up 20 points during the game. Hellgate went into the second half leading 20-18, but after a lot of back and forth, the Eagles put up a battle in the fourth quarter, pulling off the win.
There are five different judges who grade both the teams throughout both of the games. A team must have a majority vote from the judges to be declared as the golden goat winner. Big Sky had three of the five judges’ votes by a total of only three points.
After the girls game ended, both schools rushed the court in anticipation of winning Gertie. As the announcement came, the entire facility went quiet. A very eager fan from Big Sky in the crowd shouted “Big Sky!” Then the announcer yelled and exclaimed that Big Sky was the winner once again of the golden goat, Gertie. Big Sky grabbed hold of the goat and was as loud as they had been the whole night.
Keffeler called herself a yes man, saying that seniors and class officers tell her what they want, and what their plans are, and she does what she can to make that happen.
When asked how the Big Sky student government team celebrated, Keffeler said, “I think everybody slept in, I think it was nice to be able to take a breath.”
The whole school is happy to keep Gertie safe for two years in a row.
