Ponies aim to stop the Locomotives

Winning football games on the road in the Eastern A Conference is never easy and after losing last week at Lewistown, the Blue Ponies face what could be an even bigger challenge tonight in Laurel.

After getting dispatched by the Eagles 47-6 last week in Lewistown, Havre will try to get back into the win column against 1-1 Laurel, which already owns a 38-12 win over Lewistown from the first week of the season. It will also be the first trip to Laurel in a long time for the Ponies, who just moved into the Eastern A last season. Kickoff will be at 7 p.m.

"It's going to be another big test for us," HHS head coach Ryan Gatch said. "Teams in our league just don't win on the road too often. That's just the way it is, the home team wins most of the time. So we have to be focused and treat it like a business trip."

Last season, the two teams met in Havre at Blue Pony Stadium and Laurel ran away with it 42-21 after forcing the Ponies into multiple turnovers. Laurel did lose some key players from last year's team, including some All-State performers, but they do return their starting quarterback Gage Hull, who was All-Conference in the Eastern A last season. On defense, Laurel also returns Kanyin Moran and Ely Kraft, two All-Conference standouts along the front seven.

"Laurel is a really good football team," Gatch said. "They are physical and they are experienced. They did some good things on special teams against Lewistown and they lost a really tough game to Miles City last week. So they are going to be hungry. We have to match that and get ourselves ready to go."

While getting the defense back on track will be important for the Ponies, Gatch said one of the key things to winning will be simply running more plays. Havre managed just 36 plays in Lewistown, a number Gatch said has to improve this week.

"Heck, when you only get 36 plays that makes it tough on you," Gatch said. "We want to establish the run and get Mason going. We actually want to get all our backs going this week so that will be key for us and getting more like 50-60 plays."

An important stat in any football game is the rushing yardage and that will be a big focus for HHS in Laurel tonight. In the 24-0 win over Hardin to open the season, Havre starting running back Mason Dionne carried the ball 20 times for 118 yards. Last week, he managed just 24 yards on nine attempts, although he did score his first rushing touchdown of the season.

"We really want to be balanced," Gatch said. "We want to be able to run a lot of plays and take time off the clock, and if we are doing that, it means we are controlling the line of scrimmage and that's what we need to do to be successful."

Dionne and the running game will be the focal point of the Havre offense, but if the Ponies are going to upset the Locomotives, they will also need a better performance from quarterback Reese Bulkley, who threw for under 50 yards against Lewistown and was intercepted three times. What should make bouncing back easier for Bulkley is the presence of Ethan Roberts, who was a bright spot in the loss last week, catching six passes for 81 yards. In two games, the senior has 13 receptions for 215 yards and two touchdowns.

"We throw the ball a lot to one guy," Gatch said. "But that's because that one guy is a heck of a football player."

Max Olson is another wide receiver Havre will try to get the football to and without Brock Nystrom due to injury, HHS is already thin at that spot and will also rely on senior Brandon Shaw to play more snaps.

Defensively, Havre will need to keep Hull in check, who is a threat to throw, as well as run. In two games, Laurel is averaging just under 30 points a game. Slowing the Locomotives will be a big challenge for the Ponies defensively and leading the way in that effort will be Dionne at linebacker and Roberts in the secondary. Up front, Kellen Detrick will be counted on to pressure the opposing quarterback, along with fellow defensive end Quinn Springer. Linebacker Caleb Allestad is also coming off a solid effort that included seven tackles and two tackles for loss.

"We had some secondary breakdowns last week," Gatch said. "But any time you have that, it means you aren't getting pressure on the quarterback. We have been working on stopping the run and getting a pass rush this week, and we just have to better on defense. Special teams is also going to be a big emphasis for us."

In all three phases, Gatch said the Ponies will need a business mentality and in order to have a chance to win, they will need to play mistake-free football.

"We just have to control what we can control," Gatch said. "We have to play sound, fundamental football and get all 11 of our guys on the same page."

Havre and Laurel will kickoff tonight at 7. The Ponies will return to Blue Pony Stadium next Friday, when they will host Belgrade.

Havre Blue Ponies

(1-1) lost at Lewistown last Friday

at

Laurel Locomotives

(1-1) lost to Miles City last Friday

Tonight at 7 p.m.

at Laurel

Radio: 610 KOJM AM