Havre High Blue/White day readies Ponies for the real thing

With Blue/White Day over, the Blue Ponies look to bring the house down this coming season.

Saturday started off with the Havre High volleyball team giving its fans a good show at the Havre High gymnasium.

The C-Squad opened a game against the JV squad and showed off the promising talent that can help the varsity in coming seasons. The squads presented a group of fast learners and an overall good performance.

Then, the varsity squad took to the court. Under head coach Tamecia Jarvis and her coaching staff, the teams brought forth some well-rounded leadership and talent, along with some struggles. The squad flexed their skills by showing off some great blocking and brought some heat to the game with many successful sets and spikes. The team's serving was consistent, and their competitive spirit shined through the entire scrimmage.

Many players on the squad had some great highlights throughout the games, too. Senior Jessa Chvilicek showed off her prowess in spiking, senior Sam Oliver pulled off multiple saves, and senior Katelyn Maloughney brought a good game to the court, never seen without a smile on her face after every volley.

The team also had some struggles. Often a ball was hit out of bounds and the front in the front of the net were apparent. Sometimes the ball would hit the net, too. Even with the struggles, the overall game the varsity squad put forth showed to be very promising and exciting for fans.

After it was over, Jarvis was pleased with what she witnessed at the scrimmage.

"I thought it went well," says Jarvis. "We still need to work on communicating and talking a lot more, but I see good things in our future, so I'm excited."

With a lot of good leadership and talent on the team, it's no surprise the team has some good goals set for them, too.

"I always want to go to divisionals and make it to state," lists Jarvis. "I'm just looking for good teamwork and I just want these girls to have fun and have a good year."

Blue Pony volleyball's season is getting closer and the girls are up to the task, ready to make a statement this year.

The other half of the day kicked off in the evening with the Blue Pony football team showing all the hard work they've done over the summer.

Blue Pony football didn't have the season they were hoping for last year, but Ryan Gatch and his coaching staff already have their game plan for this year set.

"We got to get going," Gatch said after Saturday's Blue/White scrimmage at Blue Pony Stadium. "That's the thing, go out and win each week, that's what our goal is."

Gatch is excited for another season, even if the goals for the team haven't changed much compared to previous seasons.

"It's been here since the time I got here," Gatch continued. "We want to win each and every week, and so, it starts now. They got to rest and recover and then we got a big work week when we go to Sidney next week."

The game the Blue Ponies played showed off the team's determination to bring about a great season.

Havre had some sparks in the running game, with junior running back Kellen Detrick getting tough and physical and senior running back Mason Dionne adding up some good yardage with some power at his side. The Blue Ponies passing game also showed some prowess. The air game brought forth multiple passes to freshman running back Hunter Sawdy, along with many touchdowns either thrown or run in by sophomore quarterback Trenton Maloughney, giving the offense a good look and the fans a great show.

The defense also had a good game. A good amount of three-and-outs and some great tackles gave the defense a good set of highlights, too. The corners and safeties on the team broke up multiple passes and the defensive line achieved a fumble and recovery.

After the scrimmage, Gatch was satisfied with what he saw on the field.

"It went great," said Gatch. "Saw a lot of hustle from a lot of players, did a good job, it was a lot of fun seeing them out here competing, especially with different groups of people that they don't normally rotate in with in the regular practice time."

Gatch and his coaching staff, as well as the players, have a promising season ahead of them. The team will look to fix any issues and improve themselves each game they play.

At the end of the day, Blue Pony football and volleyball have a lot to look forward to and many challenges this coming season. Both scrimmages showed off some good talent and competitive play overall. It's go-time for the Blue Ponies and they are ready to get out there and bring the thunder.

Havre volleyball hits the court in Laurel on Friday. Pony football kicks off against Sidney Friday night. For more on Havre High sports, see the Havre Daily news all this week.