Ponies face Central A rivals in Lewistown

The weather is trying to play havoc with the spring sports season now. But, no matter what is happening outside, the Havre High tennis teams are into a critical stretch in their season.

And the duals the Blue Ponies play Saturday in Lewistown are very critical, according to head coach George Ferguson. Havre travels to Lewistown to battle Central A rivals Lewistown and Livingston Saturday, with an even busier schedule next week.

“This is a really big part of our season,” Ferguson said. “One thing is, we’re now playing as much, if not more than we’re practicing. We go to Lewistown Saturday, turn around and go to Great Falls Tuesday and on to Glendive Friday. So, one big thing is, these matches really become our practices. We have to look at it that way.”

Another reason the trip to Lewistown is big for Havre is head-to-head results are used as the top criteria for seeding next month’s Central A divisional tournament.

“We have a few head to heads already against Lewistown, but we haven’t played them in a dual yet,” Ferguson said. “And we haven’t seen Livingston at all thus far. So these matches will be important for our kids as far as where they might end up in the divisional tournament brackets. But, at the end of the day, that’s still not what we’re choosing to focus on. We’ll see these teams again next month, and we’ll dual Belgrade again too. So right now, while seeding matters, what matters more to me is how our kids play. We want to keep progressing. We want to be better than we were in Cut Bank (last Saturday).”

And Havre should keep progressing. The HHS boys team is a veteran group, led by senior Dustin Haas at No. 1 singles, as well as the doubles tandems of Nate Korb and Jake Sedahl and Trey Murphy and Kennedy McKay. Between them, those five players have lost just two matches all season. Havre also has senior Bobby Personett in singles, as well as junior Vander Swensen. Brady Ophus and Tommy Brown round out the HHS boys’ lineup at No. 3 doubles.

On the girls side, the Ponies are also making strides, and they should be in good form, having already had a dual this week, as they played Chinook on Tuesday afternoon. Paige Nelson is rock solid at No. 1 singles for the Pony girls, with sophomores Kadyn Acor and McKenzie Tommerup, as well as freshman Cassidy Acor rounding out the singles order. Havre’s doubles teams of Marcee Murphy and Devyn Solomon, Alex and Katie Donaldson and Baylee Miller and Megan Lindbloom are also really rounding into form.

“Our kids are doing exactly what we’re looking for at this time of year,” Ferguson said. “They are making progress, they are getting better. Every time they step out on the court, they are playing well. Sure, there are ups and downs. That’s tennis. But at the end of each practice, and at the end of each match, I feel like we’re definitely improving, and that’s still our main focus right now, and it will be in Lewistown too.”

Havre will battle the Eagles and Rangers this Saturday in Lewistown. The Ponies will also dual Butte Central, Great Falls High and CMR Tuesday in Great Falls before heading to the Glendive Invitational for six duals next weekend.