Pony tennis teams ready for tough Helena Invitational

It's May, and that means a few things for the Havre High tennis teams. First, it means the postseason is right around the corner. But it also means the Blue Ponies get to play in what is considered the best and toughest regular season tennis tournament in the state of Montana.

Friday and Saturday, nine HHS boys and nine Pony girls will be in Helena for the annual Helena Invitational. The tournament consists of all of Class AA, as well as Havre and Livingston. And when it comes to competition and excitement, HHS head coach George Ferguson said, there's no better field than the one the Ponies will be a part of this weekend.

"Helena is such a great experience for our kids," Ferguson said. "The format is best-on-best at every level of your lineup. It's the cream of the crop when it comes to tennis talent in Montana, and we love being a part of it. This tournament will make us better, it always does."

What Ferguson means by best-on-best is, the format in Helena is a bracket competition, which pits all No. 1's against each other, as well as No. 2's and No. 3's in both singles and doubles. So the meet essentially levels the playing field for each entrant. But because of the presence of all 14 AA schools, it is also the most challenging tournament the Ponies attend each regular season.

"You can't find competition like this anywhere else in the state each spring," Ferguson said. "There are going to be a ton of really good singles players and doubles teams. It's a huge challenge for not just us, but for every player and team in the field. Some people say, it's more challenging than most state tournaments. So for us, it's a great opportunity to really go up against the best, and it always comes at the perfect time because our postseason is getting very close now."

Competing for the surging HHS boys, who have been on a roll of late, will be Tommy Brown, Kendall Holden and Josh Warp in singles. Meanwhile Trey Murphy and Kennedy McKay will play in No. 1 doubles, while Reese Bulkley and Jake Huston go in No. 2 doubles and Brady Ophus and Tyrel Kjersem man the No. 3 spot. Led by Murphy and McKay, Havre's doubles teams have been rolling as of late, and they'll try to duplicate the success the Ponies had last year in Helena, when Havre reached the championship match at No. 1 and No. 3, and placed in the top five at No. 2.

"Our boys typically always play well in Helena," Ferguson said, "and I expect this group will, too. They won't be intimidated by anyone they see across the net. Instead, they relish the opportunity to play great competition and see how far they can go. Our boys have been coming on strong in the last few weeks, and this will be another big step forward for them."

Havre's girls are also coming off a strong performance last weekend in Glendive, and the Ponies look to continue that, though they'll have a different lineup due to State Music Festival. In singles, standout senior Paige Nelson will be at No. 1, while McKenzie Tommerup and Cassidy Acor each move up one spot in the lineup. Katie and Alex Donaldson will be together once again in doubles, while Devyn Solomon and Megan Lindbloom will combine this week, because their usual partners will be absent. Havre will also send out the junior duo of Teagan Fee and Tiffany Ralph, who have spent plenty of time at the varsity level this season.

"I've said it all year, our girls lineup is really deep this season," Ferguson said. "So even though some of our doubles teams are different, they'll still do very well. I think our girls are really finding their groove right now. Paige Nelson is playing at a high level, and this weekend will be really good for her, because she'll face some really good players. And McKenzie Tommerup and Cassidy Acor, and even Kadyn Acor, who will miss this weekend, those four are giving us a really strong singles lineup. So it should be a great weekend for our girls."

And having another great weekend is what Ferguson is after. He knows his players might be underdogs against strong Class AA competition, but after 17 years of taking teams to Helena, he also knows just how much this tournament does for his teams as they move toward the divisional meet, which is just two weeks away.

"There's no question, this tournament will help us prepare for the postseason," Ferguson said. "When our kids leave Helena, and get to Lewistown and then divisionals, things don't seem quite as tough anymore, because they've just played some of the very best players they'll see all season. This meet comes at the perfect time for our kids. So they're excited about it, they're looking forward to the challenges, and I'm excited to watch them all play really well down there."

The Helena Invitational starts Friday morning and runs through Saturday afternoon at court locations across the Capital City. Havre then heads to Lewistown next Saturday for the season-ending Fergus Invitational.