HHS track teams get a look at Central A foes

Though they haven't seen a lot of Class A talent this season, the Havre High Blue Pony boys and girls track teams have performed very well. And as the Central A Blue Ponies prepare for what will hopefully be another successful weekend, they prepare for a meet packed with Class A talent. On Saturday, the Ponies will face four Central A programs at the Belgrade track meet in Belgrade. Anaconda as well as a handful of local Class C and B schools will also be in attendance, but the Ponies are focused on Belgrade, Livingston, Lewistown and Butte Central, all coming out of the Central A. "You are always going to pay attention to those schools," Havre High head coach Roger Larson said. "For us, we haven't really seen any of them this year so this weekend is really going to kick off the first of our major track meets. It's a big meet." With a meet in Whitefish and divisionals in Lewistown the Ponies still have a few opportunities to face some Central A and Class A talent. But until this point, HHS has only had a glimpse of a depleted Lewistown squad earlier in the month. Both Havre and the Golden Eagles were down in numbers because of athletes also participating in a music festival. But now, the HHS girls have found their strong suits. Sammy Evans and Karla Hellegaard have dominated the jumping events this season, and they should find themselves near the top this weekend. Katie Christianson, Brooke Jappe and Shelby O'Neil have also turned in start performances, bringing in points in the long distance running events. Freshman Alexia Olson should also be a bright spot on Saturday. She is still young, and still getting the hang of things. Attending a big meet like the one in Belgrade should be good for her growth, as she will gain a lot of crucial experience against some of the state's top talent. "With each meet she has just gotten better," Larson said. "She is as talented as they come, she just needs to figure out how to do the events. She is fast enough and strong enough, it's just figuring them out." The Blue Pony boys should also be contenders this weekend. Corderro Strickland has done well in the sprints, short relay and jumping events. He too should perform well and gain much-needed experience, facing Central A talent he will see later down the line. Sophomore Tyson Kultgen will also be a factor in the sprints this weekend. Pole vaulters Tyson Gruber, Layne Waid and Jake Myers have continually come through as three of the Ponies top point getters this season. Larson says they are at the top of their game as well as the Central A, so three good performances by them shouldn't be a surprise to anybody. Facing CMR on Tuesday, it looked as if John Perrodin came away with an injury. He took second place in the 110 hurdles, but didn't attempt the 300 hurdles, his known specialty. But with a lot on the line, and some of the state's top hurdle runners in attendance, Perrodin will be ready to compete. "John will be ready for this weekend," Larson said. "This is his main competition. This is the meet he has circled on the calendar." Overall the Ponies' confidence is high. The boys have performed well all season long, and the girls are coming off of an outstanding dual against the Class AA CMR Rustlers. "We are going to go out there and try to beat everybody," Larson said. "Whether we do that or not is another thing, but we are going to go out there and give it 100 percent. We are going to be gunning for everybody and they are doing the same thing for us. It's going to be a great stepping stone." The Ponies will be in Belgrade on Saturday morning.