Ponies set for a busy two days

Some changes have been made to the Havre High softball schedule for this weekend’s action, and the Central A Blue Ponies are also entering somewhat blind, but no matter the weather, and no matter the opponent, the Ponies are looking to play well and earn some wins.

Today, the Ponies (1-3) are in Browning for one conference game against the Indians. And Friday the Ponies will remain on the road, playing in the Conrad Invitational in Conrad. The Conrad Invite was supposed to be Friday and Saturday, but with bad weather moving through the area, all the action was condensed into one day. But the kicker is, due to issues with scheduling and matching up teams, the Ponies have not been told whom they play, and will enter Friday ready for anybody.

But before heading to Conrad, the Ponies will look to take care of the Indians on the road, a week after defeating the Indians at home 21-0.

Hosting the Indians last weekend, the Ponies utilized the junior varsity for most the five inning stretch. But the second time around, the Ponies need the at bats and innings for the varsity lineup, so that is who head coach Danny Wirtzberger is taking on the road trip this evening. If the Ponies can settle into a groove today, they should build come confidence moving forward.

“We are taking a different approach this time,” Wirtzberger said. “And we are just taking our varsity. We need to get some at bats because we are losing at bats with our varsity right now, and we need them to get as many as they can. If we jump out to a huge lead there are ways we can offset that.

“I have noticed we just go up there and start hacking,” Wirtzberger added. ”Which is fine for the first three weeks, but now we need to have an approach at the plate. We need to know our strike zone, and we need to know what to look for with one strike, or no strikes, or with two strikes. That is one thing we really need to work on.”

Paige Henderson has led the Ponies with her hot bat so far this season and should continue to do so through the weekend, as she continues to hit over .500. But Scout Boucher has also stepped up in a big way, as she leads the team with her on base percentage. Rachel Majeres also continues to find ways to earn RBIs with her swing, as the three lead the offense early on this season.

Pitching will also be key this weekend.

Majeres typically handles the brunt of the work, but Tori Mazurkiewicz and Dani Wagner will get their share of the effort. Mazurkiewicz and Wagner may both see time against Browning, but will definitely get their share in Conrad Friday. This gives Majeres some needed rest, as well as work in the outfield.

But if the rest of the HHS lineup can get into a groove, offensively, and defensively, they should get past Browning with ease, as well as maybe grab a couple of wins in Conrad.

But without knowing their opponent, the Blue Ponies are focusing on themselves. Wins are very important, conference or not. And with HHS wanting to grab as many wins as possible from here on out, that is the mindset heading into Friday.

“With this being a tournament, we will have the same philosophy no matter who we play,” Wirtzberger said. “We are treating every game like it is a conference game, and we want to win every game for the rest of the season. We need to build our confidence and roll into our divisional games next week on cloud nine. We want to be the team to beat in our conference, and I want to prove that to the other teams. When they see our scores I want them to know we are a team to be reckoned with.”

Today the Ponies are facing the Indians in Browning. And Friday the Ponies will hopefully play two games at the Conrad Invitational.