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Havre girls basketball takes care of business against Lewistown

The Havre High girls basketball team has been dominant in the Northeast A this season and Tuesday night's game against the Lewistown Golden Eagles was no different. At Armory Gymnasium on the Montana State University-Northern campus, the Blue Ponies took care of business with a 48-30 win over Lewistown.

"I thought defensively we played really well. We forced them to use their off hand and made them a little bit uncomfortable," HHS head coach Dustin Kraske said. "I'm pleased with our kids."

The Ponies did have to battle in the first quarter against the Eagles. After both teams scored to start the game, a 3-pointer from Amaya Jarvis and a free throw from Avery Carlson gave Havre a 6-2 lead.

However, the Eagles responded with a pair of baskets and a free throw to take a 7-6 lead. After Tierra Parker scored to give Havre the lead again, Lexi Burnham scored to give Lewistown a 9-8 lead halfway through the opening quarter.

Ariana Gary responded with a pair of baskets to give Havre a 12-9 lead. A pair of free throws from Lewistown then cut Havre's lead to 12-11 heading to the second quarter. The Eagles then started the second with a basket to take the lead again.

But the Ponies dominated the rest of the half to take control of the game. Over the next few minutes, the Ponies got rolling with a 13-0 run to build a 25-13 lead. Gary continued to play well as she scored five points during this run. Lewistown got some free throws at the end of the half, but Havre took a 25-15 lead into halftime.

The Ponies continued to roll to start the third as they went on an 8-0 run to push the lead to 33-15. In her first game of the season, senior Yelena Miller got going during this stretch with a pair of baskets. After missing most of the season with an injury, the Ponies are happy to get her back with the postseason coming up.

"We missed her, obviously, and I'm just happy that she can get a chance to play her senior year," Kraske said. "I thought she did great and it was fun to watch."

The Eagles attempted a comeback and were able to cut Havre's lead to 35-24 early in the fourth quarter. However, the Ponies retook control and pulled away in the fourth to secure the win. It was a balanced attack for the Ponies as Gary, Carlson and Amaya and Kyanna Jarvis each scored nine points in the win.

The Ponies remain undefeated in the Northeast A with a 7-0 conference record. They have now won their fifth straight game and have improved to 10-4 overall this season. With just four more games left in the regular season, Kraske hopes to see the Ponies continue to improve in time for the postseason.

"We got to work on our rotations a little bit and try to figure that out. That'll be a fun challenge to come up with and we have four more games to work on that," Kraske said. "It's time to start to do the details of the game and I think we'll continue to get better every week."

The HHS girls basketball team will next play on the road against Miles City this Friday night at 7:30 p.m.

Havre 48, Lewistown 30

LEW - 11 4 7 8 - 30

HAV - 12 13 10 13 - 48

HAV - Amaya Jarvis 9, Ariana Gary 9, Kyanna Jarvis 9, Avery Carlson 9, Yelena Miller 6, Tierra Parker 4, Sierra Parker 2.

 

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