Pony netters start a key stretch in Lewistown

The weather caused a slow start to the 2018 tennis season. But, moving forward, nothing will be slow for the Havre Blue Ponies.

While HHS has been like so many of the spring sports teams around Montana, hampered by the late start to the spring, the Ponies' season is already half over, and heading into three matches this weekend in Lewistown, Havre High head coach George Ferguson said, the time is now for his teams to progress.

"I think we've made some big strides in the last 10 days," Ferguson said. "But, there's no denying, we're still behind. But, at this point, that is what it is. We've got a ton of tennis coming up in the next few weeks, and we need to make the most out of it. Our kids are fired up and ready to keep playing, keep getting better."

And that's the mantra for Ferguson's Blue Ponies - keep improving.

The veteran Pony coach is extremely structured in how his season unfolds, and the weather didn't exactly allow for structure for all of March, and early April. Normally, Havre players at the varsity level have about 10-15 matches under their belts at this point, and most of the Ponies have played between four and six heading into Saturday's duals against Livingston, Great Falls Central and Lewistown.

"The competition we've missed hasn't hurt us as much as the outdoor practice time," Ferguson said. "That really set us back at the beginning of the season. We had to kind of skip over a lot of stuff we would have normally been doing in a regular spring, so that part has hurt us some. But, the kids have battled, they've stayed focused and they've worked hard. And now, things are feeling a lot more normal, and I think we're progressing really well. I feel like, these last two meets we've had, we've played better and better, and that's all I want to see right now."

While improvement is the goal, Havre is also looking forward to battling some tough foes over the next couple of weeks, including the three teams the Ponies will see Saturday. HHS had close duals with Lewistown last week in Havre, and are fresh off a meeting with GFCC Tuesday afternoon. This weekend will be Havre's first look at Livingston, one of the Ponies' biggest Central A rivals.

"Excited to see Livingston this weekend," Ferguson said. "They're kind of an unknown to us, so it will be good to match up with them and see where we stand. Those duals with Livingston and Lewistown will tell us a lot about where we're at right now, and what we need to work on moving forward. So this weekend will be good for us."

This weekend is also District Music Festival for Havre, so the Ponies' lineup will have some changes. But on the boys side, veterans like Trey Murphy and Kennedy McKay, Brady Ophus and Kendall Holden will lead the way. Murphy and McKay are playing particularly well right now and are battling for a top seed at next month's Central A in Bozeman. Junior Tommy Brown is another Pony to watch as he continues to man the No. 1 singles spot.

"Our boys are coming along," Ferguson said. "We still have some spots in our lineup we're looking at what fits best, but overall, I think our boys are starting to round into form. Now, it's a matter of moving beyond that form and taking it to the next level."

Havre's girls team will be missing several key players this weekend, but the Ponies' depth is something that gives them an advantage. Paige Nelson is always strong in singles, as are all of Havre's doubles teams, including juniors Tiffany Ralph and Teagan Fee, who are currently Havre's No. 4, but are extremely experienced at the varsity level.

"We have four girls who are outside tour Top 10 right now, Teagan, Tiff, Marca (Herron) and Brynn (Nault) who are all quality players and who would already be on just about everybody we see's varsity lineup. So we have a really deep girls team, and they are all playing really well right now. No matter what our lineup is, we are very strong on the girls side, and so I expect us to do quite well this weekend."

And playing well is the goal. With a busy schedule coming up, Ferguson said, every time his team steps on the court, the main goal is to be better than they were the last time out.

"Right now, we still have a lot of improving to do," Ferguson said. "So every practice and every match is critical for that. The scores, the duals, all of that stuff, that all gets taken care of in the end. What I want to see is our effort level staying high, and our kids just getting better. That's what we're doing right now, and that's what we're shooting for this weekend in Lewistown. Our kids are just striving to keep getting better."

Havre will play three duals Saturday in Lewistown. The Ponies will be right back on the court Tuesday for duals against Butte Central, Great Falls High and CMR in Great Falls.