Helena Invite will test Pony tennis teams

There’s nothing like testing yourself and your team against the best. There’s nothing like going up against the elite that your sport has to offer.

And that’s exactly what the Havre High tennis teams will do this weekend when the Blue Ponies play in the annual Helena Invitational. The tournament brings together all 14 Class AA schools, as well as the Blue Ponies and Livingston, for what is considered the best prep tennis tourney in the state each year. And typically, the Ponies do quite well.

"For me, this is my favorite tournament,” HHS head coach George Ferguson said. “It’s the best of the best, and with our divisional tournament two weeks away, there’s no better preparation than the Helena Invite. And against the AA’s, we might not look like a powerful squad every year, but every year, we seem to be in one of the very last matches of the tournament. We were last year when Jerod Boles took third in his singles bracket. So, our kids always seem to raise their game for this tournament, and that’s exactly what we’re looking for again this weekend.”

The Helena Invite is a bracket format where all of the No. 1s play together, as well as No. 2s and No. 3s in singles and doubles. Because of the size of the event, there are no brackets for No. 4 singles or No. 4 doubles. And though Ferguson is looking forward to going up against the elite players from Class AA, he is also bringing a few of his own.

Blue Pony junior Jeff Miller is the defending Class A state champion and has spent time at USTA tournaments with all of the Class AA’s top players. So he will be right at home this weekend. Meanwhile, the Pony boys also have a doubles team in Boles and Noah Landgraf who are undefeated this season, and this tournament will give them a chance to test themselves even further. On the girls side, senior Tatiana Ralph will come in under the radar in the No. 1 bracket this weekend, but she will be a tough out for anyone in the draw.

“Jeff is one of the elite players in this tournament,” Ferguson said. “That’s one situation where we are not necessarily the underdog. And no matter what, this weekend will be great for him because he hasn’t been pushed a lot this season. And overall, I think we have a number of kids who can do quite well. The draws are really, really tough, but we have good players across the board, and tough is what we need right now anyway. So no matter the results, we’re going to be better when we leave Helena and that’s the main goal.”

Sophomore Jake Sedahl will play No. 2 singles for the Pony boys, while senior Jamie Lieberg is at No. 3. Wyatt Lindbloom and Nate Korb will play No. 2 doubles for the boys, while sophomores Trey Hanson and Jeffrey Ralph are at No. 3.

On the girls side, the Ponies will be somewhat shorthanded due to State Music Festival. But Ferguson’s doubles teams are back intact with the return of Alara Vogel. She will team with fellow junior Reggie Bernard at the No. 2 spot, while Madison Huebsch and Rainey Stoner are at No. 1. Freshmen Alex Donaldson and Megan Lindbloom will play No. 3 doubles, while freshman Paige Nelson plays No. 3 singles.

“This will be a difficult tournament for some of our girls,” Ferguson said. “We are taking five girls who have not only not played in this tournament before, but weren’t even playing high school tennis a year ago. So it will be an eye-opener for them. But again, that’s a good thing. We want them to keep learning, keep growing ad keep improving, and there’s no better place to do that than in Helena.”

And with the divisional tournament now in sight, Ferguson said this weekend, win or lose, it’s extremely critical to his team’s preparation for what they’ll face in Bozeman in a mere two weeks.

“We’re getting there,” Ferguson said. “We’ve been pushing really hard in practice the last three weeks. We’ve really raised the intensity level in our practices and this tournament will do the same for us in matches. It’s a big advantage for us to be able to play in a tournament of this caliber, and it should make each and every player on our team better. So it’s a big, exciting weekend for us.”

The Blue Ponies will play in the Helena Invite Friday and Saturday at four different locations around the Capital City.