East Helena seniors make program history with dual college signings

East Helena’s boys basketball program crossed a new line in the East Helena High School gym when DeonDray Ellis and Talen Thatcher signed national letters of intent together, giving the Vigilantes their first two-person college signing class. For a school that opened in August 2020, the moment was more than a photo opportunity. It marked a program growing fast enough to send two seniors on to college basketball at the same time.

Ellis will continue his career at Columbia Basin College in Washington, while Thatcher is staying close to home at Carroll College in Helena. The pair made the decision official on Monday, June 1, with teammates, family and school supporters looking on inside the gym where their high school careers played out.

Thatcher said the day stood out because he signed beside a teammate he has played with for years. Ellis called the chance to sign with Thatcher “huge” and described it as a “crazy feeling.” Their shared milestone gave East Helena a rare public sign that its young athletic program is creating a direct path to college for more than one player at a time.

Coach Ty Ridgeway said Ellis and Thatcher helped push the Vigilantes into new territory long before the signing tables were set up. He pointed to East Helena reaching divisionals for the first time in the pair’s sophomore year, then making the state tournament for the first time in their junior season, before returning to divisionals last winter. That climb helps explain why this signing mattered beyond the two seniors in the room.

Ellis also leaves behind another benchmark. On Jan. 10, 2026, he became East Helena boys basketball’s first 1,000-point scorer, standing alone in the program record book. That milestone and the dual signing together show how quickly the Vigilantes have moved from a brand-new school to one producing college-bound players. For younger athletes in East Helena, the message is visible and immediate: the route from local court to college roster is no longer abstract.