Pony spikers advance by sweeping Cowgirls

At the start of the season, the Havre High volleyball team had a goal of making it to the Class A state tournament. Now, after a win over Miles City in the Eastern A Divisional, the Blue Ponies are just one win away.

In the first-ever combined Eastern A Divisional, Havre, the second-seeded team from the Central A and Miles City, the third-seeded team from the Eastern A, went head-to-head in the quarterfinals of the nine-team tournament and it was HHS that came out on top.

The Ponies dominated the Cowgirls in Livingston Thursday, defeating them in straight sets by the scores of 25-12, 25-16 and 25-20. Havre will advance to the next round where it will face Billings Central, the top team from the Eastern A, today. If HHS wins that match, it will clinch a berth in the state tournament for the first time in nearly a decade.

From the get go, it was clear that the better team was Havre and backing that up was the fact that the Ponies dominated when it came to hitting the ball, notching 32 kills compared to just 20 for Miles City.

Havre set the tone early with a 13-point victory in the opening set and after a nine-point win in the second, the stage was set for a sweep. The Cowgirls showed a little life in the third set and were much more competitive, but simply couldn’t stick with Havre. The Ponies won the third set 25-20 and put an exclamation point on an impressive victory.

Senior Megan Erickson was a driving force behind the win for the Ponies as she finished with a match-high nine kills. Reggie Bernard also made a big impact in the win with eight kills and two blocks, but no one did more for Havre than senior Dani Wagner.

Wagner was third on the team in kills with seven, but she also led the team in digs with 20, assists with nine and aces with two. Naomi Terry also pitched in with 13 digs and seven assists, while Madison Huebsch contributed with 15 digs and two aces.

With the win, the Ponies improved to 13-6 on the season after posting their eighth consecutive win. Havre will take on Billings Central this afternoon. If Havre wins that match, it can finish no worse than third.

If Havre losses to Billings Central, the Ponies will play tonight at 6 against Glendive, Livingston or Lewistown, with the winner earning a berth to the state tournament. Belgrade, Hardin and Billings Central all won their quarterfinal matches over Glendive, Lewistown and Livingston, respectively. The top four teams will advance to the state tournament next week in Bozeman.

Havre def. Miles City (QF)

25-12, 25-16, 25-20

Havre – Kills 32 (Megan Erickson 9, Reggie Bernard 8, Dani Wagner 7); Digs 77 (Wagner 20, Madison Huebsch 15, Naomi Terry 13); Blocks 3 (Bernard 2); Aces 7 (Wagner 2, Huebsch 2); Assists 21 (Wagner 9, Terry 9).

Miles City – Kills 20 (Ashlie Larson 6); Digs 83 (Hadleigh Miller 18); Blocks 4 (Savanna Walker 2); Aces (Miller 2); Assists 15 (Tori Ogolio 6).