George Ferguson Column: Just another great day in Havre

If you've lived in Havre long enough, then you probably have plenty of sports memories because there's been some very exciting days in this town over the years.

I've certainly been lucky enough to see my share.

And Saturday was another one of those days. It was a day that makes you glad you live where you do.

For me, the day began as the Havre High wrestling team mounted a monumental comeback to capture the Central A Divisional championship, and in the process, make the Belgrade Panthers remember just who the best wrestling program in Montana still is.

The Panthers have been the talk of the Class A wrestling season, and rightfully so. They are deep and talented and have a pair of dual wins over the Ponies. But it's HHS which is still the four-time defending state champions and it's the Ponies who are still the eight-time defending Central A champions.

And they emphatically reminded Belgrade of that fact on Saturday afternoon. Moments like Dillon Seely's dominating victory at 135 pounds, Casey Schaub's body slam of his finals opponent and Josh Salapich's dramatic pin of Belgrade's Austin Reyher in the 215-pound final got Saturday off to a great start.

And while I wasn't there to see it myself, how fitting was it that the Havre High boys basketball team beat the highly-touted Butte Central Maroons? And the win came in a fitting place, the Havre Central Gym, one of my old stomping grounds and one of my favorite sports venues in all of Montana.

Then came Saturday night at the MSU-Northern Fieldhouse.

First, a return by Skylight senior Taylor Keller. Keller injured her knee nearly two months ago, and give the fact that she had severely injured a knee back in high school, I wasn't sure Northern fans would ever see Keller in a Skylight uniform again.

But Keller is tough and she rejoined the Skylights Saturday night, hit the game-opening 3-pointer, and the Skylights romped to a revenge victory over the University of Great Falls Argos.

Saturday night was turning out to be just as good as the afternoon was.

And to top it all off, the Lights pounced on the Argos in the nightcap and for the third straight home game, the crowd at Northern, specifically the student section made it a raucous atmosphere.

Yes, Saturday was one of those days in Havre. A day that makes it very fun to be a sports fan in this town. And while it was a day a lot of us won't soon forget, because of where we live, because of the kids, the athletes, the competitors and the coaches, it won't be the last day like that either.