Rustlers wrangle Blue Ponies

The Havre High volleyball team has played its fair share of matches against Class AA opponents this season and Thursday night at the HHS gymnasium, the Blue Ponies played host to CMR in a non-conference prelude to tonight’s match in Lewistown.

Playing on their home floor for just the second time this season, the Ponies played admirably and were competitive in each set against the Rustlers, but when it was all said and done, CMR earned a straight-set victory by the scores of 25-22, 25-14 and 25-20.

“I thought that we played fine,” HHS head coach Tamecia Jarvis said. “I was fine with the way that we played, just the silly, little mistakes we keep making. I keep telling them, we can’t keep falling behind 5-0 in games and expect to come back and be able to win. This team (CMR) went on a slower level, so it was more at our pace, but they had some really big swingers and we just have to be ready. I thought we played good, we played decent, we just need to be better. This is not going to work against our conference teams.”

In the first set of the match, the Rustlers jumped out on the Ponies early and despite a rally by Havre, CMR won by three points. The second set was a much easier win for the Rustlers, as they dominated from start to finish in a 11-point win. Facing a sweep, Havre played some of its best volleyball in the final game, but in the end, came up short and lost 25-20.

“We just need to get everyone playing well at the same time,” Jarvis said. “We have a few players that will play well at times but it never seems like we get everyone doing it at the same time. It’s going to take everyone playing well together. I thought we played better in the last game and were more competitive, we just need more consistency, that’s what we are lacking right now.”

When it came to hitting, CMR definitely had the advantage in the match, dominating the Ponies in kills with 41 compared to 15 for Havre. The Rustlers also had 12 aces as opposed to one for HHS. CMR also had 36 assists; HHS had 13. Havre did outperform CMR in blocks, five to four and in digs, 42 to 40.

Trisha Carlson led the way for the Rustlers, who are now 4-8 after the win, with 15 kills and seven digs. Lindsey Anderson had four aces and 20 assists, while Tristan Achenbach had two blocks.

As far as the Ponies were concerned, Claire Worm was one of the top performers with team highs in kills and digs with five and 14, respectively. Naomi Terry had 13 assists and nine digs in the loss for Havre, while Jacy McDonald had two blocks and one ace. Ceyara Plante also contributed with four kills.

The Ponies, who are now 3-8 on the season, will take on Central A rival Lewistown tonight on the road. The match will get underway at approximately 7.

“It’s completely up to them,” Jarvis said of her team. “They need to forget about tonight and come back with their ‘A’ game. We just need to be ready to go.”

CMR def. Havre

25-22, 25-14, 25-20

Havre - Kills 15 (Claire Worm 5, Ceyara Plante 4); Aces 1 (Jacey McDonald); Assists 13 (Naomi Terry 13); Blocks (Jacey McDonald 2) Digs 42 (Claire Worm 14, Naomi Terry 9).

CMR - Kills 41 (Trisha Carlson 15); Aces 12 (Lindsey Anderson 4); Assists 36 (Lindsey Anderson 20); Blocks 4 (Tristan Achenbach 2); Digs 40 (Trisha Carlson 7).