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The Havre High golf teams were fighting for individual medals and Blue Pony Pride at last weekend’s Class A State Golf Tournament. The Ponies were also fighting against a stellar Class A field, a tough golf course, and some ugly weather at the Hamilton Golf Club.
And, the Ponies did what they always do — they fought hard.
Led by a Top 10 performance from junior Shea Reber, the four Blue Ponies who qualified for the state tournament, which ran Friday and Saturday in Hamilton, had plenty to be excited about, having battled top teams and players, and cool, rainy weather.
“Very proud of those kids,” HHS head coach George Ferguson said. “They stood up to what was a really tough test in Hamilton. The course was playing very difficult, the weather was the most challenging conditions we’ve seen at times, and Class A has a lot of really good golfers again this year So I was just super proud of the kids, and how they played, and more importantly, how they represented our program and our school. It was a fun tournament for sure.”
Reber, who qualified for state a year ago, was spectacular, shooting 95 each day to finish in ninth place. She was Havre High’s first female golfer to earn All-State honors since 2017.
“She played so well,” Ferguson said. “She really stayed composed, and that’s what it takes to shoot a good score at that level. She was able to shrug off the bad things that always happen to golfers during a round, and move on to the next shot, or the next hole. She did that really well, and that, combined with just how good of a golfer she has become, is why she finished where she did.
“And I’m so happy for her,” Ferguson continued. “She had to come back from a tough injury this summer, and so to see her have such a great season, and end on such a high note, I couldn’t be happier for her. It’s just awesome, and Shea is going to come back next year as one of the top golfers in Class A and that’s really exciting.”
The Havre girls also were represented in Hamilton by first-year sophomore Brenna Hanson, who shot rounds of 108 and 111 to tie for 38th.
“Brenna only started playing golf two months ago,” Ferguson said. “So to do what she did the last couple weeks, it’s amazing. She is going to be very good for the next couple of years. I am so impressed with how fast she’s picked up the game.”
On the boys side, Havre got a 41st-place finish by junior Reid Kato, who shot 95 on Friday but came right back to shoot a career-low 88 on Saturday. Fellow junior Shane Patacsil finished in 54th place for Havre with scores of 99 and 97. He and Kato were both making their first trips to the state tourney.
“It was a great learning experience for both of those guys,” Ferguson said, “so I am not really looking at where they finished. I’m looking more so at what they got out of the experience. And I saw them both play some good golf under tough conditions. Reid Kato has really hit his stride the last month of the season, and Shane has been our most consistent golfer the entire year. So those guys will have gained a lot from this and will take that into next year.”
As for the champions, Laurel repeated as boys champions Saturday, while Polson won the girls state championship. Aubrey Kelly of Livingston won the boys state championship, while Frenchtown’s Katie Lewis won the girls title.
Havre meanwhile, brought home a medal from state for the second time in three years, and, Ferguson said, based on how his teams finished, and how young they were this fall, Havre High should springboard into a very good 2023 season.
“I think the future of our program is really exciting,” Ferguson said. “The four kids who went to state are all back, we only graduated one senior from our boys and girls Top 10, and we had a ton of young kids on varsity or close to varsity this year, and they’re all really excited about playing golf. We had great kids out again this year, and great numbers, so it was a fun season. I enjoyed coaching all these kids. They’re awesome. I really enjoyed working with coach Murphy again this year. It’s just been a fun, fun season of golf, and I think Pony golf is in great shape moving forward.”
Class A State Golf
Hamilton Golf Club
Hamilton
Boys
Final results
Team Scores: Laurel 604, Polson 611, Whitefish 618, Livingston 622, Hamilton 639, Corvallis and Lewistown 661, Billings Central 685.
Top 15 and ties: Kelley, Aubrey, Livingston, 68-70-138; Hupka, Carson, Polson, 71-71-142; Hackmann, Cameron, Laurel, 74-69-143 and Smith, Billy, Whitefish, 72-71-143; Norman, Sam, Laurel, 76-74-150; Weisenberger, Eli, Laurel, 75-76-151; Cianflone, Max, Hamilton, 73-80-153 and Emerson, Hunter, Polson, 78-75-153; Powell, Brady, Corvallis, 79-76-155; Lee, Ryder, Miles City, 75-81-156 and Nix, Johnny, Whitefish, 79-77-156; Heath, Jackson, Hamilton, 77-80-157; Jacobsen, Danyk, Livingston, 79-79-158; Peschel, Matthew, Whitefish, 80-79-159 and Fisher, Espn, Polson, 82-77-159.
Girls
Team Scores: Polson 753, Hamilton 773, Frenchtown 788, Laurel 804, Billings Central 814, Livingston 857, Sidney 880, Ronan 916.
Top 15 and ties: Lewis, Katie, Frenchtown, 77-76-153; Swigart, Karsyn, Miles City, 86-84-170; Maki, Ashley, Polson, 87-87-174; Weidinger, Kiaralynn, Lockwood, 92-90-182; Haugen, Jori, Billings Central, 94-90-184; Pretty on Top, Alyssa, Ronan, 92-93-185 and Hollingsworth, Emma, Hamilton, 96-89-185; Poncin, Camille, Livingston, 95-94-189; Konen, Clare, Polson, 95-95-190 and Reber, Shea, Havre, 95-95-190; LaPierre, Skylar, Dillon, 96-96-192 and Prill, Anna, Billings Central, 100-92-192 and Cooney, Molly, Laurel, 98-94-192; Brown, Brooklyn, Hamilton, 98-95-193 and Seifert, Kylee, Polson, 103-90-193.
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