Blue Pony spikers take aim at State A title

The time has finally arrived for the Havre High volleyball team. Everything that the Blue Ponies have worked for this fall have led to this weekend with the State Class A Tournament in Bozeman. In a field with eight other teams, the Ponies will be looking to beat the best in the state of Montana to bring home the trophy.

"The state tournament is a unique and really exciting experience for our program to be able to have," HHS head coach Stephanie Huse said. "It's the top eight teams of Class A and we feel excited that we get to be a part of it. We've worked hard enough to earn a right to be there and I expect really good volleyball to happen."

The Ponies will begin the tournament this Thursday at noon with a match against Hamilton. The Broncs clinched a spot in the state tournament after taking third place in the Western A Divisional. Huse expects them to be a tough opponent to start the tournament because of their size.

"They have a lot of big girls so they're pretty aggressive with their attack there and they've got a tall front line," coach Huse said. "It's very similar to the other teams that we faced at divisionals that will also be competing at state. Going through the divisional tournament last weekend, we were able to see it, experience it and learn from it, so we're hoping to apply those lessons to the match against Hamilton."

The Ponies have had a strong season to reach the state tournament. After going undefeated in the regular season, the Ponies finished second at the Eastern A Divisionals. The Ponies played well at divisionals to earn the spot to state, but two losses to Hardin in the tournament have shown there are some areas where the Ponies need to be improved this weekend.

"We need to be a little bit more aggressive on our serving and we also need to be a little bit cleaner on our defense," Huse said. "And then our ball control in moments of chaos. When things are crazy, we have moments where we're really good and are really sound at it, but deeper into matches, it gets a little too loose."

If the Ponies want to make a run, their best players will need to continue playing well. Avery Carlson and Kyanna Jarvis have been the primary players on offense this season as it is usually one of them leading the team in kills on a given night. Yelena Miller is also a threat in the middle for the Ponies. Lizzi Haney has been reliable on defense while Molly Huse has been a strong setter for the Ponies.

With this being the state tournament, there are many formidable opponents throughout the bracket. The tournament starts today with a match between Billings Central and Corvallis. Billings Central qualified for the tournament after finishing fourth in the Eastern A Divisional. In that tournament, the Ponies defeated the Rams in five sets. The Ponies played Corvallis in the Blocktoberfest tournament last month, with the Ponies winning the lone set.

The winner of Billings Central and Corvallis will make it onto the actual bracket to face Polson at 10 a.m. Thursday. Polson qualified for state after winning the Western A Divisional tournament. Havre defeated Polson in a set at the Blocktoberfest tournament. The winner of the Thursday morning match will advance to face the winner of Havre and Hamilton Thursday night.

On the other side of the bracket, Stevensville and Laurel will go at it at 2 p.m. Thursday. Stevensville made it to the tournament after taking second in the Western A Divisional while Laurel qualified after a third-place finish in the Eastern A Divisional. Havre defeated Laurel in four sets at divisionals.

At 4 p.m. Thursday, Hardin and Ronan will play each other. Hardin won the Eastern A Divisional last weekend while Ronan finished fourth in the Western A. The Poneis got the better of Hardin in the regular season, but Hardin defeated Havre in two separate matches at divisionals. While the teams from the Western A like Ronan should be tough opponents, Huse expects the teams from the Eastern A to have the best shots at a state title this weekend.

"I think the Eastern division is extremely tough and I think that the four teams that are representing the Eastern A are going to be the ones to watch and focus on," coach Huse said.

Like every other team this weekend, the Ponies have one goal this weekend: a state championship. The Ponies made a run in last year's state tournament before losing to Billings Central in the championship match to finish second.

With their success this season, the Ponies have shown themselves to be good enough for another run. But if the Ponies want to get over the hump and capture that first-place trophy, they will need to handle their emotions and play their game.

"We need to be able to manage (those emotions) and try to stay in the middle. Not ride too high and not ride too low, but just find our groove and stay there," Huse said. "Every team that's going to be there is going to bring their own set of challenges and it's going to be great volleyball to experience."

The HHS volleyball team will begin the State Class A Volleyball Tournament this Thursday at noon with a match against Hamilton at Brick Breeden Fieldhouse on the Montana State University campus in Bozeman.