Blue Pony girls corral the Bison

The Havre High girls basketball team knew that once the holidays were through, it was back to business on the court.

The Blue Ponies were pitted against a tough Great Falls High team, where Havre aimed to grab another win over the Bison.

And that's exactly what the Ponies did against Great Falls Thursday in the Havre High gymnasium. Havre fought in a heavy defensive battle to grab the win over the AA Bison 44-32. The win improves HHS to a stellar 4-1 on the season.

The game opened with a very intense first quarter. Havre took a quick lead through a Katie Wirtzberger basket and a Kadia Miller free throw, but the Bison pushed back to tie the game 3-3. Allison Harris put up a quick basket to take the lead, but the Ponies took a two-point, 8-6 lead at the end of the first on a Miller field goal and a Kyndall Keller 3-pointer.

The second quarter still stayed relatively close. GFH Ryen Palmer tied the score with a three, but Keller put up a jumper followed by another goal by Wirtzberger. With the quarter drawing closer, Kendall Burcham pushed Great Falls closer once again with two good shots from the foul line. Havre followed with a quick run by Loy Waid, Keller and Miller, who put up a three to push the Ponies up nine points.

Palmer and Hallie Thompson added three more points to the board, but Kylie Walker and Waid answered with their own combination of three to give Havre the lead at the half 22-13. The first half was a big defensive battle, but the second followed with even more defensive highlights.

As the ball moved back-and-forth across the court, both teams had many takeaways and turnovers, but Sadie Filius and Waid led much of the defensive front for the Ponies. Filius was constantly pressuring the Bison, often taking the ball back or knocking it out-of-bounds, while Waid used her height as an advantage, taking the ball away on shots or wrestling it away.

As the third quarter pushed on, Miller and Filius added another three-points to the board. Then, seniors Sam Oliver and Jessa Chvilicek took their stage on the hardwood, with Oliver putting up a 3-pointer and Chvilicek dropping a field goal and a three to give the Ponies a good lead 33-22 going into the final quarter.

In the final eight minutes, Waid put up five points in a combination of free throws and a field goal, while Walker, who put up two from the foul line, and Filius, adding another three, drove HHS further into a lead. Jorgie Hawthorne and Lins took advantage of Blue Pony fouls to add five points.

The game wound down to the last minute, where Britton Paulson put up another free throw for Havre, followed by two steals by Paulsen and Thompson to boost the Bison's score some. In the end, the Ponies fought a tough defensive game, but great shooting kept them ahead in the contest, giving them he win.

Havre had some great efforts throughout the night. Waid and Miller led the Ponies' offensive attack with eight points each, followed by Keller's seven points. On the other side of the ball, Waid, Filius and Walker put up a big fight. Whether it was a steal, swipe or wrestling the ball away, the three girls brought the power to the Blue Pony defense.

Havre now improves to 4-1 on the season and continues to prove that the team is ready to make another deep postseason push. Next up, the Ponies will take on the Malta M-Ettes Saturday in Malta.

Bison hold off HHS boys

While the Havre girls took care of the Bison, the HHS boys nearly did the same Thursday night in Great Falls. Havre led the AA Bison at halftime of a game at the Swarthout Fieldhouse, but GFH stormed back to edge the Ponies, 69-61.

"That was a great effort coming out of Christmas break," HHS head coach Walynn Burgess said. "The boys really responded well and have bought into what we are trying to do fundamentally as a basketball team."

Havre and GFH were tied at 17-17 after the first quarter, and the Ponies took a four-point lead into the break. However, in the second half, the Bison 40-28.

Still, it was a great showing from HHS against one of the top AA teams. Josh Warp scorched the Bison for a team-high 23 points, including seven triples. Kellen Detrick added 16 points and five rebounds. Levi Torgerson and Drew Wyman each scored a game-high 26 points for GFH.

Havre (1-4) will stay on the road Saturday when the Ponies travel to Malta.

Havre 44, Great Falls 32, Girls

Great Falls 6 7 9 10 - 32

Havre 8 14 11 11 - 44

Great Falls – Ryen Palmer 7, Hallie Thompson 3, Alison Harris 2, Emilia Herigon 4, Gracie Lins 7, Jorgie Hawthorne 7, Kendall Burcham 2. Totals: 7 FG 3 3-pointers 32.

Havre - Sam Oliver 3, Kyndall Keller 7, Kylie Walker 4, Loy Waid, Kadia Miller 8, Jessa Chvilicek 5, Sadie Filius 4, Katie Wirtzberger 4, Britton Paulsen 1. Totals: 7 FG 2 3-pointers 44.

Great Falls 69, Havre 61, Boys

Havre 17 16 13 15 - 61

Great Falls 17 12 27 13 - 69

Havre - Josh Warp 23, Jake Huston 6, Nolan Lotton 5, Mason Rismon 5, Kellen Detrick 16, Caden Jenkins 6.

GFH - Levi Torgerson 26, Teague Fought 6, Gabe Longin 2, Tarel Rollins 3, Trey Short 2, Drew Wyman 26, Ryan Krahe 4.