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Flight Squad headed to Malta!!!

A few local basketball standouts are trying to prove they still have plenty in the tank while using their talents to raise money for the Malta Area Chamber of Commerce.

On Monday, April 23 at 7 p.m., the Phillips County Air Ballers will take on the Flight Squad, a Professional Exhibition Basketball team as part of a Spring fundraiser for Malta's Chamber. The event will be held at the Malta High School Gymnasium.

The Air Ballers will consist of Jesse Simonson, Carly Bishop, Shane Anderson, Jace Anderson, Tanner Anderson, Caitlyn Anderson, Tia Stiles, Nate Hammond, Amber Erickson, Kirk Stiles, Larimie Schwenke, Jim Benn, Tanner Kelly, Lance Webb, and Deserae Kill Eagle.

The local team will be coached by Jake Stuart, Julie Snellman, Art Lundstrom and Greg Kielb. Tom Niebur and Tony Boos will be the event's referees.

The Flight squad consists of guards Brittany Dorsey, Yoshives Belizaire, Andre Rivers, and Darron Claton and forward Kevin Currington.

Dorsey had been to Malta nearly two years ago with the high-flying Harlem Ambassadors, an event that hosted over 1,000 spectators in the Malta High School Gymnasium.

Stuart had played for the Montana Grizzlies and Rocky Mountain Bears in his college years but he won't play in the event due to an upper groin injury. He remembers that night in the May of 2016, an event where the Hi-Line Has Beens lost 92-89.

"I know it's a different team with a different name but we are all viewing this as a good chance for vengeance," Stuart said. "They got us the first time and caught us off-guard. They were a little more athletic than we expected but this go-around we are ready."

Though he doesn't have a ton of coaching experience, Stuart believes that his current success as a youth coach played a role in the Chamber selecting him to coach.

"I think that I was asked to coach this team because of my recent Swishfest championships coaching the fourth-grade girls and fifth-grade boys," Stuart said. "We had a lot of success that weekend."

Stuart and the Chamber have enlisted the help of Snellman, who was a manager under legendary coaches Del Fried and Terry Lindgren, who led the M-ettes to many State Titles. Snellman helped manage the M-ettes for a couple of years between 1993 through 1997.

Snellman knows that she isn't a manager helping a young high school team reach a State B title. These days she just wants her players to make it out of the game in one piece.

"I think the strategy is to keep the player injuries to a minimum and have fun," Snellman said. "They are past their competitive years."

Tickets for this entertaining yet competitive event are available at local banks in Malta, Westside Self-Service as well as at the door of the event.

 

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