HHS swimmers hitting the heart of their season

When it comes to the season for the Havre High swim team, there has been a good history of seeing the water in Great Falls more than once a year.

Now, after attending the first Great Falls Invitational earlier this season, the Blue Ponies will be back in the water at the 2020 Great Falls Invitational in Great Falls for the second time.

It has been almost a month since HHS head coach Bill Kilgore and the team have been in the pool in Great Falls. Last time, the Ponies may have finished last but the team had some great individual performances.

On top of that, the Havre swimmers have had more meets and experience under their belts.

Teams like Bozeman, CMR, Great Falls High and Hardin attending the last meet in Great Falls and will likely be back again for more action in the water. Havre will be up against some tough teams, especially after competing against all of them multiple times this season in meets like the Class A Divisional Meet in Hardin and the Bozeman Meet last Saturday in the Bozeman Swim Center.

Back in December, swimmers like Kobi Burchard and senior Jacob Miller were making a splash early on in the season, while freshman Carson Sandstrom was starting his incredible potential as a future powerhouse in the pool for Havre. Meanwhile, Morgan Flammond has been a highly competitive in the water for the Ponies and sophomore Hiram Cammon has been a determined swimmer, delivering good results when he is needed.

HHS has seen a lot of improvement in the relay races since that time, as well. Teams have placed in higher spots and put up a big fight as a team to add some more points to the day. Overall, Havre has been working hard to make the best of every situation to the best of their abilities.

But the competition will be even tougher since December. Teams like Hardin have been making some big noise in Class A and are looking to be a big candidate for a state title. Hardin is no easy team to beat.

"Coach Eric Hartl is absolutely building a juggernaut of a team in Hardin," said Kilgore. "They have a great feeder program and their numbers have just exploded in the last couple of years. So, we have our work cut out for us if we have any hope of beating them this season."

Bozeman, Great Falls High and CMR have been tearing up Class AA competition. The meet will be more difficult the second time around for the Ponies, but with the results they have put up in the more recent meets, there will be a difference from the first meet in Great Falls.

With newcomers like sophomore Navelle Rameles and senior Abby Niedert making big strides since the first meet of the year, while returners like Megan Miller, Riley Kilgore and Troy Powell are pushing to make waves for Havre. In the end, the Blue Ponies have a lot of potential and talent on the table. Greats Falls will be another test for that potential and talent the second time around.

The season continues with the second Great Falls Invitational of the season Saturday in Great Falls, where the Havre swimmers will look to give it their all in the water. Then, the Ponies will be back in Great Falls Jan. 28 for the third and final Great Falls Invitational of the year.