Pony track teams look to build in Belgrade

The Havre High track teams are riding high after good showings at their past few track meets. But this Saturday in Belgrade both Blue Pony teams will get to see how they stack up against some of the top teams in Class A at the Belgrade Invitational.

The Havre boys in particular have been lighting it up and scoring plenty of points recently and have come away with first-place finishes in three straight meets. But, the HHS girls shouldn't be overlooked either after a second-place finish in the Havre Lions Invitational as well as a win in a triangular with Chinook and North Star on Tuesday.

Yet, despite the success, the Ponies have only competed in one meet that included some Class A competition and that was in the first meet of the season in Lewistown back in March. So with team like Dillon, Butte Central, Livingston, Belgrade and others set to be in attendance, it will be a great chance for the Ponies to see how they stack up

"It will be good for us to see how we do against some other Class A schools," HHS head coach John Ita said. "We have competed against some good teams but not against anybody like we will see in Belgrade. So it will be good for us to see how we measure up."

As far as the Pony boys are concerned, the strength of the team thus far this season has been the sprints and relays. Havre has become accustomed to finishing first in the 400 and 1600-meter relays but HHS has also gotten consistent points from Michael Loftus and Nate Rismon in sprint events like the 100, 200 and 400.

"I feel good about our relay teams going down to Belgrade," Ita said. "I really think that we can go down there and be very competitive in those."

The Pony boys will also be looking to get points out of other events such as the pole vault, where senior Gunnar Aageson has been a solid performer this season. His brother Ivar Aageson has also done well pole vaulting and has contributed in the sprints as well. Others that should have a chance to score points are Nick Keller in the high jump, Jacob LaBrie in sprints and Richard Belcourt in jumps.

The Pony girls have also developed a core of consistent point scorers and one of those is junior distance runner Rachel David, who is a staple in the 400 and the 800. She is also an essential part of the 1600 relay team that is another strength.

In addition to David, another key contributor for Havre this weekend on the girls team will be Naomi Terry, who runs both the 100 and the 200. Megan Erickson, who runs the 400 and 800 along with David, should also compete for points.

However, as good as David, Terry and Erickson have been this season, there has been no HHS girl who has made a bigger contribution Logan Huebsch. Huebsch, who is just a freshmen has become the top hurdler for the Pony girls and is also a proven point-getter in the triple jump.

"Logan has really performed well," Ita said. "She has done a great job in the hurdles and it will be interesting to see how she goes this weekend against some tougher competition.

"Naomi has also been running really well," He added. "She ran a really good time on Tuesday, so I am adjusting my expectations for her because she is already running better times than I thought she would at this point, so that's exciting."

The Havre girls also have some throwers that should have a chance to score points, stating with Kristen Nash, who does all three throwing events. She is joined by Jordan Keith and Carleigh Rennick.

"We have some throwers that are coming along and scoring points," Ita said. "The girls just keep getting points different events, so hopefully we can keep that up."

Both Havre teams will be in Belgrade Saturday for the Belgrade Invitational.