Ponies ready to hit the mat in Cut Bank

The Havre High wrestling team is used to winning but there is perhaps no tournament where the Blue Ponies have enjoyed more success than at the Cut Bank Invitational.

After winning the tournament again last season, it was the Ponies' 16th consecutive team championship and starting Friday, the Ponies will wrestle for the first time in 2019 in Cut Bank as they seek their 17th straight title.

Havre will be getting back on the mat Friday after finishing the first portion of its season with duals against Sidney and Great Falls High inside the HHS gymnasium. The Ponies fell in the dual to Sidney but were able to knock off the Bison. Now, with the state wrestling meet a little more than a month away, the focus is on preparing and peaking for the Metra in early February.

"The key for us is just building on the success that we have had in the first part of the season and continuing to build towards state," HHS head coach Beau LaSalle said. "We are young but experienced. There are quite a few freshmen in the lineup but we also have kids that have been wrestling for a while and have been in that situation. Those guys have set a good example for what needed to be done and it's been fun to watch those younger guys get better each and every day."

Like it normally is, the Cut Bank Invitational will be filled with quality teams and individuals from up and down the Hi-Line. twenty-six varsity teams are scheduled to be in attendance, along with junior varsity squads from Great Falls High and CMR. Some of the more notable teams in attendance will be Lewistown, Chinook, Chester-Joplin-Inverness, as well as Cut Bank, Eureka and Valier, who are all ranked in the latest Class B-C poll. Eurkea is the second-ranked team in Class B, while Cut Bank is 10th. In the Class C rankings, Valier is the No. 2 team in the state right now, which means Havre should find some quality opponents on the mat.

"It's exciting to be able to wrestle someone else besides ourselves after a long break," LaSalle said. "And the tournament isn't as deep as it used to be, but there will always be some tough individuals."

When it comes to the Havre lineup, the usual standouts will be in place, starting with three-time state champion Martin Wilkie, who has yet to lose a match this season and is the top-ranked wrestler at 145 pounds in Class A. Another top wrestler for the Ponies will be Mick Chagnon, who was No. 1 at 103 pounds in the latest Class A poll. Another who started the season strong for Havre is 120-pounder Cameron Pleninger who is among a group core individuals that also includes Marc Ramirez at 132, Lane Paulson at 138, Wilkie at 145 and Connor Harris at 152. Senior Austin Ratliff has also been a key contributor at 205 pounds for the Ponies, while other freshmen such as Orion Thivierge, Dominic Perkins, Riley Pleninger and Kendall Pleninger have all flashed potential. Braden Stadel and Taylor Gopher are two other veterans who will be headed back to Cut Bank at 182 and 160 pounds respectively.

The Cut Bank Invitational will begin Friday and conclude Saturday.