Pony harriers in action today at Helena Invite

It seems like just yesterday that the Havre High cross country teams were running their first race, but, already, the Central A divisional meet is little more than a week away.

Before both Blue Pony teams travel to Browning for divisionals next Saturday, though, they will head to Helena today where they will compete in the annual preview meet at Bill Roberts Golf Course.

One thing that is different about the preview meet is that unlike in years past, Helena will not be hosting the the state meet. That distinction lies with Great Falls. Nevertheless, both HHS teams will see plenty of teams that they will run against at both divisional and state, so regardless of where it's held, it will give the Ponies a good idea of where they stand.

"It will be really good for us," HHS head coach Josh Holt said. "Hopefully we will get to see a lot of Class A teams. There will probably be plenty of Class AA teams as well as teams from Class B and Class C as well. It will give us a good idea of where we (are). The No. 7 runners will run against the No. 7 runners and so on, so the kids will kind of know where they stand against the competition."

Last week, both teams performed well at the Havre Invitational as the Pony boys took home a fourth-place finish on their home course, while the Havre girls managed to finish in fifth.

The top individual performer from a week ago was Rachel David, who put together a solid fourth-place finish, which adds to a season that has already been impressive. David will once again hold down the top spot this week for the HHS girls.

David will be joined at the meet by fellow varsity competitors Nicole Parsons, Rainey Stoner, Amelia Miller, Meggie Zook, Hannah Lunak and Marca Herron.

On the boys side of the things, the team will still be counting on Austin Jones to be the top runner after he finished 20th a week ago. Freshman Jakob Keller has put together a solid season and will be in the second spot along with others such as Brock Ross, Lane Paulson, Luke Karnauskas, Bobby O'Leary and Barrett Kilgore.

"I think the kids have done a good job this season," Holt said. "They have competed hard and run well. Right now we are just trying to get better. For the most part, our spots are set. There could be some changes at the seventh spot, but other than that there won't be a lot of changes between now and divisionals."

While Holt has been happy with the way his team has performed this season, the preview meet will provide one more challenge for Havre before both teams embark on the divisional meet next week. Yet, at the end of the day, it's just another meet for Havre and the goal, according to Holt, is simply to have fun.

"We want to run hard and have fun," Holt said. "That is really what you are looking for, if the kids are doing that, that's all you can really ask."

The preview meet takes place today in Helena at the Bill Roberts Golf Course. Then, the Ponies will head to Browning next Saturday for the Central A divisional meet.