Blue Pony netters visit Browning on Saturday

From the very first game this season, new Havre High head volleyball coach Tamecia Jarvis has pushed the Blue Ponies to be better. And so far, it's worked.

Havre has already won more games overall and more games in the Central A Conference than it did all of last season, and as the Ponies get ready to take on Browning Saturday on the road, they will be looking to improve their record to 7-4 overall and 4-1 in conference play.

"We just need to keep trying to improve," Jarvis said. "As I have said before, it's hard to beat a team multiple times in the same season."

It's true that when the Ponies and Indians get together Saturday, they will see some familiar faces standing across from each other as the two teams met just last Saturday in the HHS gymnasium in a match that Havre won 3-1.

Yet, for the a program like Havre's, that is trying to re-establish itself as not only one of the better teams in the Central A but in all of Class A as a whole, this is exactly the kind of match it cannot afford to overlook.

The Ponies may have cruised to a 3-1 win over the Indians last Saturday, but at times it looked anything but easy, especially in the second set when Browning managed to notch a 25-19 win over HHS. Havre closed out Browning in impressive fashion with a 25-4 win in the fourth set, which decided the match, but if the Ponies are going to continue to play at a high level, they will need to continue to get lots of production from senior Dani Wagner.

Wagner, who earned All-State honors as a junior, plays both setter and outside hitter for the Ponies and once again she is proving to be one of, if not the best player in the entire Central A. So far this season, Wagner ranks in the Top 10 in the Central A in sets played, aces, kills and assists. She is currently third in kills per set in the Central A and first in the overall number of kills she has with 139. The senior also leads the conference in aces with 51.

Senior Reggie Bernard leads the league in blocks with 59, just ahead of teammate Jacey McDonald, who is second with 40. Bernard averages more than a block per set, while McDonald is averaging .83 blocks per set.

When it comes to assists, Wagner ranks fifth in the conference, just behind junior setter Naomi Terry, who currently resides in fourth place with 140. And on the defensive side of things, Madison Huebsch has made a positive contribution on a night-in-night-out basis and currently leads the Central A in digs with 220.

Yet, the cupboard in Browning is not bare. The Indians do have some impressive players led by Caroline McEvers, who is fourth in the conference win blocks. Jacelyn Croff is another solid player for Browning and she is currently sixth in the league in assists, while Olivia Hall, also of Browning is eighth with 70.

"We just need to keep competing and working hard to get better," Jarvis said. "I think we have had a lot of girls step up and we just need to keep playing with a lot of effort like we have been and the rest will take care of itself.

The Indians and Ponies will do battle Saturday in Browning with the match getting underway at 5 p.m.