Montana Coaches Association announces 2025 hall of fame class

Inductees are Ricknold Thompson (Helena Capital), Wayne Beddow (Missoula Hellgate), Brian Kavanagh (Cut Bank), Cary Finberg (Columbia Falls) and Robb Lott (Twin Bridges).

The induction ceremony will be part of the 2025 MCA Awards Ceremony (with the MCA Coaches Clinic), on Thursday, July 31, at 11:30 a.m. at the Great Falls CMR auxiliary gym. Family and friends are invited to attend the ceremony and a complimentary luncheon in the CMR cafeteria immediately following the ceremony.  

Ricknold Thompson, Helena Capital

Thompson began his coaching career at Capital High School in 1992. He has spent 23 years as the head girls soccer coach, along with five years as the assistant (four girls, one boy). He has also served as the assistant boys track and field coach for 34 years.

As the head coach of the girls soccer teams, Thompson has earned 12 state trophies winning eight state championships along with two second-place finishes and two third-place finishes. He was also on the staff of the boys track teams that had won another four state championships.

Thompson earned the title of MCA coach of the year in girls soccer in 1996 and 2000. He was a National High School Athletic Coaches Association finalist in 2000 and 2004. As an all-star coach he has been the head coach of the Shodair All-Stars three times.

Wayne Beddow, Missoula Hellgate

A 30-plus year member of the Montana Coaches Association, Beddow began his coaching career in Wibaux (1972-75), where he was the head football, boys track and field, and assistant boys basketball coach. He spent one year at Miles City before moving to Missoula Hellgate, where he coached for 35 years; coaching football and boys basketball as an assistant and the head coach of the girls basketball team

Beddow's girls basketball team at Hellgate earned a state championship in 1994, along with three runner-up finishes in 1992, 1995 and 2003.

Beddow was nominated as MCA coach of the year four times, being selected as the Coach of the Year for AA Girls Basketball in 1994. He has coached in the Treasure State Girls’ Basketball tournament seven times and twice in the Raddison Classic tournament for boys.

Brian Kavanagh, Cut Bank

Coach Kavanagh spent his 24 years coaching basketball all at Cut Bank. Twenty-one of those years he was the head coach, collecting 386 wins to only 150 losses. He has been a member of the Montana Coaches Association for 37 years.

Kavanagh's teams achieved a tremendous amount of success, winning four state championships (1993, 2005, and 2006) along with three runner-up finishes (1989, 1998, and 2000).

Brian was nominated for the MCA coach of the year eight times and was selected four times (1993, 2003, 2005 and 2006). He was also nominated four times for the National High School Coach of the Year in 2007, 2010, 2011, and 2012. He coached 19 years at the Radisson Classic All-Star Tournament and another four years coaching the Billings Hotel Senior Classic All-Star games.

Cary Finberg, Columbia Falls

Finberg is a 33-year veteran in the Montana coaching ranks. He started his coaching career in Dillon as a freshman basketball coach (1991-1993) before moving back home to Columbia Falls (1993-2024) where he was the head boys basketball coach for 19 years and the girls head basketball coach for 13. His teams garnered 533 wins compared to only 204 losses at Columbia Falls.

Finberg's teams have earned an astonishing 17 top-three finishes at the state tournament. Winning six state championships (five in boys 2003, 2005, 2006, 2001, and 2014 and one in girls 2017) to go along with four runner-up finishes (three boys and one girls) and seven third-place trophies.

He was nominated 17 times for the Montana Coach of the Year (11 times for boys and six times for girls). In 2014 and 2015 he was nominated for both boys and girls in the same year. He held the title of MCA Boys Basketball Coach of the Year five times in 2003, 2005, 2006, 2011 and 2014 along with his 2017 Girls MCA Coach of the Year honor.

Coach Finberg has been a member of the Montana Coaches Association for 33 years.

Rob Lott, Twin Bridges

Coach Lott has spent 38 years in the coaching ranks in Montana, all in Madison County. Ennis (1981-1982), Sheridan (1982-1993) and Twin Bridges (1993-2016 and 2018-2021) were all stops in his coaching career.

Lott spent 22 years as a head football coach winning 125 games (49 losses), 20 years as a girls basketball head coach winning 384 times (112 losses), 14 years as a head boys basketball coach with a 143-134 winning record. He also spent 11 years as a head boys track coach and four years mentoring junior high football players.

As a track coach Rob’s teams earned four state trophies with championships in 1984, 1985 and 1986. His football team reached the state semifinals four times along with winning the state championship in 2011. Lott's girls basketball teams garnered four state trophies (three third place trophies and one runner-up in 2012).

Lott, a 20-year member of the Montana Coaches Association, was selected as the MCA Coach of the Year in Boys track and field twice, 1985 and 1986.