Pony golfers on a quest for hardware

Everything about the high school golf season is a prelude to what the Havre High boys and girls golf teams are about to face. Every round, every swing, every putt, it's all been a warmup for the 2014 Central A Divisional tournament.

Now that tournament is finally upon the Blue Ponies. Havre will play in the divisional tourney Saturday at Cottonwood Hills Golf Club in Bozeman. The tournament is 18 holes, and at the end of it, two boys teams, two girls teams and 30 individual players will have qualified for next week's Class A state tournament in Hamilton.

For the HHS boys, the goal is simple, win a divisional team title, something Havre fell short of doing last fall at Prairie Farms Golf Course. Havre has the best lineup in the field this week, with Lewistown being its closest pursuer. Belgrade is the defending champion, but is down a few players this season, while Livingston and Browning have also struggled to keep pace with the Ponies and Eagles.

"I do feel confident in what the boys can accomplish this weekend," Havre High head coach Brett Gilman said. "They're playing well right now. They're focused on wanting to win the divisional championship. And individually, I think they're all capable of finishing in the Top 15. I think we have guys who could even go 1-2-3, but I think all five, if they play well, can finish in the Top 15. So they have a chance to accomplish a lot."

All five Blue Ponies are now veterans of the divisional tournament as well. Juniors Jerod Boles and Jeff Miller are already two-time All-Conference performers and are making their third straight divisional tourney. Both have led HHS at one point or another this season, and both have to be considered medalist contenders Saturday. Dustin Haas earned All-Conference honors last season and, as a sophomore, he has been Havre's most consistent scorer this season. Haas has shot some outstanding scores throughout the fall and, like Miller and Boles, is a strong contender for medalist honors in Bozeman. Fellow sophomore Kane Gabrielsen also qualified for state as a freshman, and will likely do so again Saturday, while senior Wyatt Lindbloom, who fell one stroke short of reaching the state tourney a year ago, has improved a ton this season and will also be a Top 15 contender this weekend.

While the Pony boys are a favorite to claim a Central A team title Saturday, the young HHS girls come in as the defending champions. But only one player, junior Randi Gabrielsen was on that championship team a year ago. Gabrielsen has led the HHS girls from start to finish this season. She posted a second-place finish at Prairie Farms a year ago and will battle with Browning's Summer Kennerly for medalist honors in Bozeman.

"Randi, she's our team leader," Gilman said. "She's done a really good job of that this year. She's taken the new girls under her wing and showed them the ropes."

The rest of the HHS girls lineup is made up of first-year varsity players. Regan Lammers, Grace Litzinger, Jordan Keith and MacKenzie Tilleman are all playing in their first divisional tournament, yet, the Ponies have a chance to qualify for the state meet as a team, according to Gilman.

"It's going to be pretty close with Lewistown," Gilman said. "Browning is the favorite, but we should have a chance to get second. The girls have improved a lot from the beginning of the season, and they've been working really hard on their short game, to eliminate some of the lost strokes. If they can do that, they should have a chance to qualify as a team."

And that's the goal, getting to the state tournament. Nothing else Saturday matters. And with how things are shaping up, both the Blue Pony squads could very well come home from Bozeman with trophies in hand, and with all 10 moving on to Hamilton.

The 2014 Central A golf tournament will get underway at 10 a.m. at Cottonwood Hills Golf Club Saturday in Bozeman. The 2014 Class A state tournament is set for next Friday and Saturday at the Hamilton Country Club.