Bison pin Ponies

When the two premier wrestling programs in the state of Montana bump heads, it’s usually pretty entertaining. And that was the case Thursday night in Great Falls.

However, for the Havre Blue Ponies, the fun was short-lived.

The top-ranked Class A Ponies came out on the losing end of their high-profile dual with the top-ranked Class AA Great Falls High Bison Thursday night in Great Falls. In a dual that was much closer than the final score indicated, the Bison beat the Ponies 40-20.

But even though the Ponies suffered their first dual loss of the season, as the Bison avenged Havre’s win at last month’s Mining City Duals in Butte, HHS head coach Scott Filius knows his team is better for having faced the Bison for a second time this season.

“They (Bison) are great competition,” Filius said earlier this week. “They are the best team in the state, so it's the perfect dual for us at this time of year.”

And the competition was fierce from start to finish Thursday night. But, unlike in Butte, it was the Bison who seemed to earn the big points and big wins this time around. In a critical 126-pound match, Jarren Komac defeated Havre’s Logan Pleninger 4-0, while Gage Bentley earned a surprising 12-2 major decision over Kody Pribyl at 152. The Bison backed that win up with the a victory in the match of the night. In a meeting of returning state champions, GFH’s Kessler Leonard knocked off Havre’s Jase Stokes at 160 pounds, in a wild 11-10 decision.

GFH also earned the majority of the bonus points Thursday night. The Bison got pins at 103 pounds, as well as at 138, 170 and 182. Havre did get a huge win from Parker Filius at 145 pounds as he bested GFH star Casey Dobson, 5-2, and Jace Billy (205) and Travis Adams (HWT) picked up pins as well. But in the end, even major decision wins from Grayson Brenna (132) and Keegan Kennelly (120) weren’t enough to get the Blue Ponies over the hump.

Havre will quickly look to shrug off Thursday night’s loss as the Ponies move on to the prestigious Rocky Mountain Classic today and Saturday in Missoula. The Ponies will return home to dual CMR on Tuesday night at the HHS gymnasium.

Great Falls High 40, Havre 20

103-Caleb McMillen, GFH, pin Ryan Stewart, 3:29; 113-Russell Wienholz, GFH, win by forfeit; 120-Keegan Kinnelly, Hav, maj. def. Taylor Schilling, 12-1; 126-Jarren Komac, GFH, def. Logan Pleninger, 4-0; 132-Grayson Brenna, Hav, maj. def. Jordan Komac, 9-1; 138-Tommy McMillen, GFH, pin Dane Flammond, 4:53; 145-Parker Filius, Hav, def. Casey Dobson, 5-2; 152-Gage Bentley, GFH, maj. def. Kody Pribyl, 12-2; 160-Kessler Leonard, GFH, def. Jase Stokes, 11-10; 170-Walker Ferda, GFH, pin Tyler Schaub, 1:23; 182-Randy Keesler, GFH, pin John Chinadle, 1:02; 205-Jace Billy, Hav, pin Pierceston Crawford, 0:43; Hwt-Travis Adams, Hav, def. Colton Rue-Zindell, 2-0.