HHS spikers play two home matches Saturday

The Havre High volleyball team is already a win away from doubling its win total from last season. And if they can get at least a split against Conrad and Choteau this Saturday, the Blue Ponies will have achieved it with three regular season matches remaining.

Other than trying to add to their win total and get better in the process, the Ponies will have little at stake when they take on Choteau and Conrad in back-to-back non-conference tilts at the HHS gymnasium on Saturday.

The Ponies (7-6, 4-1) will take on Conrad at approximately 1 p.m. Saturday. The match versus Choteau will follow in the evening around 6 p.m.

"We are doing much better as a team than they did a year ago, so we have made some big improvements," HHS head coach Tamecia Jarvis said. "But, we still want to get better. We have won more games and had more success than last year but we can't be satisfied."

Saturday should provide the Ponies with an ample opportunity to show improvement, not only from last season, but from earlier in the 2015 campaign. Havre did manage to sweep Conrad earlier in the season and will look to complete the season sweep with a win Saturday. Yet, the Ponies will also be looking to avenge a four-set defeat to Choteau on Sept. 26 and avoid another loss to their Class B rival.

A positive development for the Ponies this season has been the emergence of a number of players. Havre still relies heavily on All-State outside hitter Dani Wagner, who leads the Central A in aces with 26 and kills with 149, especially to kill the ball, but Havre is far from a one-trick pony.

HHS is playing particularly well on the defensive side of the net and boast two of the top blockers in the Central A in Reggie Bernard and Jacey McDonald. Bernard leads the league with 57 blocks in 61 sets, while McDonald is a close second with 43.5 blocks in 50.

Senior Madison Huebsch has also made her presence felt on defense with a total of 228 digs, which is second in the Central A. Huebsch is also fourth in the Central A in aces with 14. Naomi Terry has also stood out for Havre recently and is sixth in the conference in aces with 12, while at the same time sixth in assists with 148.

The Ponies have a number or other players who may not be among the conference leaders in any one category, yet have proven themselves to be solid contributors. Seniors Megan Erickson and Kaitlin Nystrom have both played well this season and have found ways to be effective killing the ball. But as good as they have offensively, each is better on the defensive end and have a knack for nothing digs.

Junior Claire Worm has also played well on the block, so has Sammy Huston. Ceyara Plante has also been a solid all-around player for the Ponies this season, while Paige Nelson is starting to make a positive impact as an outside hitter.

"I think that we just need to keep making practices tough so that the games are easy," Jarvis said. "We have a lot of girls contributing and we just need to keep getting better every day in practice."

Havre and Conrad will go head-to-head Saturday inside the HHS gymnasium at around 1 p.m. Then, in the nightcap, Choteau will take on the Ponies at approximately 6 p.m. HHS will then close the season with three straight Central A contests against Belgrade, Livingston and Lewistown.