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Something special was in the air this past weekend in Billings. And in the end, the Class A state tennis tournament became something very special for the Havre High boys who captured their first state championship since 2005 on Friday afternoon.

"I told people all year I thought we had a strong state team," HHS head coach George Ferguson said. "Sometimes it's not quantity but quality, and we definitely had quality. These guys put in the work. I know because we pushed them hard. And they accepted those challenges. They worked their butts off, not only to be good and have a chance at this, but to make up for missing last season. So, just all the credit goes to these guys. They did it, from the first day of practice, to the last matches in Billings, they went out on the court and performed at the highest level. They went out and earned it. And I'm just so very proud of them."

The Blue Ponies scored 23 points to take home the state title. Whitefish finished second with 21 points and Hardin finished third with 20 points. It is the seventh state title for the boys program since 2000 and the first for Havre tennis since the girls won in 2009. Its also the 16th top three finish in Fergusons time as head coach.

"It's really special," Ferguson said. "It's been a long time. We've had some great, great teams and great players that put themselves in position to do it, but for whatever reason it didn't happen. We have such a great history of really good boys tennis teams, so people are probably surprised when they find out it's been 16 years since we last won state. So to finally be able to do it, it's just amazing, and I'm just so happy for these guys. I'm so excited for them because there's just nothing like winning a state championship. This puts this team amongst the greats in our program's history and no one can ever take that away from them."

The strongest finish for the Ponies came from Josh Currie who made a run all the way to the state title match in the boys singles tournament. As the Northeasts No. 2 seed, he opened the tournament by defeating Whitefishs Joe Brandt, 6-1, 6-3. In the next two rounds, he defeated Andy Purcell of Hamilton, 6-2, 6-3, and Niels Getts of Columbia Falls, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, to advance to the championship match.

"It took a lot of good tennis to get there because there's a lot of good players in this tournament so something definitely to be proud of," Currie said.

Even though he lost to Dalton Polesky of Miles City, 6-4, 6-1, in the state title match, Currie earned second place and was the first singles player from Havre to reach the championship match since former state champion Jeff Miller in 2016. He is also the first singles player at Havre to earn all-state. Along with his father and his teammates, Currie credits Ferguson and his other coaches for helping him become the player he is.

"It's been amazing to watch Josh progress," Ferguson said. "From the first day of his freshman year to playing for a state championship, it's incredible. But it's also not that surprising because Josh is a workaholic when it comes to his tennis. He's down at the courts all the time. I play him, his teammates play him, or even kids who aren't even on the team play him. He's the tennis version of a gym rat, so while what he accomplished at state is absolutely incredible, it's also well earned and well deserved. He has put in the time, he's put in the work, and now, he's simply one of the best tennis players in Montana."

Havre had a pair of teams compete in the boys doubles tournament, with the duo of Josh Warp and Trenton Maloughney earning third place. They won their opening match of the tournament when they defeated Tyler Strupp and Houston Dunn of Livingston, 6-0, 6-0. They then defeated Highland Lee-French and Aaron Dicks of Whitefish, 6-3, 6-4.

After a loss that forced them to the consolation bracket, Warp and Maloughney went on a run to secure the third-place finish. They first defeated John Bramlet and Jett Mosher of Beaverhead County, 6-3, 6-3. In a rematch with Lee-French and Dicks in the match for third place, Warp and Maloughney defeated them, 6-4, 6-1. Warp and Maloughney are also the sixth straight doubles team from Havre to earn all-state this season.

"It's hard to put into words how proud I am of Josh and Trenton," Ferguson said. "I know how badly they wanted to win a state doubles championship, and just because they didn't, it doesn't take away from how great they were this season. So I am just so proud of them that they shook off that semifinal loss and came back and took third. They went out winners, which is how it should be, but they also clinched us the team title and that is so fitting because they have led us all year. I am so proud of them, and I can't say enough about how great they were this year."

While the doubles team of Caleb Spangler and Theron Peterson also represented the Pony boys at state, Talia Ralph and Grace Crantz represented Havre in the girls doubles tournament as the No. 2 seed from the Northeast. After a loss in the opening round, they defeated Ali Hirsch and Tallorry Workman from Whitefish, 8-6, 6-4, in the consolation bracket, eventually going 1-2 in what was both player's first trip to state.

"Those girls were awesome," Ferguson said. "They played great at state, and they played great all year. They were both first-year varsity players. They were first-year doubles players. They were a first-year team, and just look at all they achieved this year. I'm just so proud of them and I am so glad they got to have that state tournament experience."

The state title meanwhile, is extra sweet for the Ponies after having last season canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They made the most of their return to the court by bringing home the state championship and made this season a memorable one in the program's history.

"This season has been a dream come true for me personally," Ferguson said. "I missed coaching tennis so much. I missed these great kids, and all that goes with coaching this sport and this program.. Next to my wife and family, Havre High tennis is the true love of my life, and it hurt so much to have it taken away. So from start to finish, this season was an incredible journey, and I'm so proud of every single player in our program. I'm so honored to be their coach, to have a great assistant (in Tommy Brown) and to coach at the school I love. And then, to top it all off with this amazing and emotional ride through the postseason, and to bring that state championship trophy back home, I can barely describe how it all feels.. It's amazing, it means the world to me, and it's a year I will never, ever forget."

2021 Class A State Tennis

Boys Team Scores

Havre 23, Whitefish 21, Hardin 20, Miles City 16, Polson 13, Dillon 13, Columbia Falls 9, Hamilton 6, Corvallis 5, Glendive 3, Park 1, Billings Central 1.

Individual Havre Results

Josh Currie (Singles, 2nd Place)

1st rd - def. Joe Brandt, WF, 6-1, 6-3; QF - def. Andy Purcell, HAM, 6-2, 6-3; SF - def. Neils Getts, CF, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4; Championship - def. by Dalton Polesky, MC, 6-1, 6-3.

Josh Warp/Trenton Maloughney (3rd Place Doubles)

1st rd - def. Strupp, Dunn, P, 6-0, 6-0; QF - def. Lee-French/Dicks, WF, 6-3, 6-4; SF -‚ def. by Noteboom/Swisse, HAR, 6-2, 6-4; Consolation SF - def. Bramlet/Mosher, DIL, 6-3, 6-1; 3rd/4th - def. Lee-French/Dicks, WF, 6-4, 6-1.

Caleb Spangler/Theron Peterson

1st rd - def. by Noteboom/Swisse, HAR, 6-2, 6-1; Consolation 1st rd - def. by Robertson, Keich, WF, 6-2, 6-3.

Girls Team Scores

Polson 37, Whitefish 19, Corvallis 14, Columbia Falls 13, Stevensville 10, Hardin 10, Hamilton 10, Miles City 6, Glendive 3, Libby 3, Park 3, Dillon 2, Havre 1, Billings Central 1.

Individual Havre Results

Talia Ralph/Grace Crantz

1st rd - def. by Hawthorne/St. Germaine, STV, 6-4, 1-6, 6-4; Consolation 1st rd - def. Hirsch/Workman, WF, 7-6 (6), 6-4; Consolation 2nd rd - def. by Powell/Jessop, COR, 6-0, 6-4.