HHS swimmers succeed in Hardin

Because of bad winter weather just before Christmas break, the Havre High swim teams had a long wait to get back in the pool. But with the way the Blue Ponies performed in just their second meet of the season, the wait was worth it.

Havre had an outstanding meet Saturday in Hardin, as the Ponies went head-to-head with Class A rivals Billings Central and Hardin. In the boys meet, the Ponies finished second with 149 points, while the Havre girls battled in a close meet, finishing third with 141 points. Billings Central swept the team titles, scoring 192 in the boys meet and 161 in the girls.

“The team, as a whole swam really, really well,” HHS head coach Bill Kilgore said. “Lots of kids dropped time and looked very strong. We were totally shorthanded this week due to vacation and illness, so the final team results were not what we had hoped for, but the kids that were there looked very good. We are looking forward to getting some of our swimmers back this next week and changing those final team results in the upcoming meets.”

Even being shorthanded, the Ponies were up to the task. On the boys side, Havre was outstanding in the relays, winning the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:45.36, while the B squad finished fifth. Havre also placed third in the 200 medley relay and third and fourth in the 400 free relay.

Individually, the Ponies also had some great performances, especially in the 100 breaststroke where Aylan Pratt (1:14.95), Jacob Miller (1:14.97) and Shandon Oberquell (1:19.19) finished 2nd-4th, respectively. Oberquell would also placed third in the 100 butterfly, while Paxtin McCann finished fourth in the same race. Miller swam to a second-place finish in the 200 IM with a time of 2:29.91, while McCann was fourth in that race with a time of 3:00.56.

Pratt started the day by finishing fourth in the 200 free with a time of 2:20.22, another race Havre was strong in. John Klein finished fifth in that race and Barrett Kilgore was sixth. Shane Friede had a good day as well, finishing third in the 50 free at 25.63, while Mason Sandstrom was fourth at 25.80. Friede also placed fifth in the 100 free and John Klein was sixth, while Clayton Twombly raced to a fourth in the 500 free and Trevor Williams was fifth.

The girtls meet being so close, with Havre finishing just nine points behind Hardin, meant the Ponies also swam some great races. Ally Padgett had a big day, winning the 100 butterfly in 1:20.16, in a race where Jessica Otto finished in 2nd at 1:25.33. Otto would also place fourth in the 200 free with a time of 2:43.49, while Hannah Pratt was fifth. Padgett would add a fourth-place finish in the 200 IM (2:44.70), a race Amelia Miller placed second in at 2:30.49. Miller also finished second in the 500 free (5:39.49).

The Pony girls also got a win from Hannah Lunak in the 100 backstroke, where she finished with a time of 1:07.64, while Aria Pratt was fourth. Laura Vance was outstanding as well in the 100 breaststroke, finishing second at 1:28.54. Angela Rhines placed fourth (1:38.40) and Michelle Rainey was fifth in the same race, while Aria Pratt finished fourth in the 50 free and Rhines took seventh.

Havre also got a win in the 400 free relay with a time of 4:28.40, while the Ponies finished fourth in the 200 free relay and fourth and fifth in the 200 medley relay.

“In an act of selflessness for the team, Ally Padgett and Paxtin McCann stepped up and voluntarily swam what is arguably the toughest two individual events of the meet, the 200 Individual Medley and the 100 Butterfly,” coach Kilgore said. “We had an opportunity to score some points in those events, and those two were willing to step up for the team and they did score some critical points for us. Shandon Oberquell also willingly swam the 100 Butterfly, an event he hasn’t swam in his high school career, in an effort to benefit the team. That’s what I love about these kids. They are willing to put it all out there, swim whatever will help this team and do it willingly. This group of kids has really embraced the notions of self-sacrifice and teamwork in order to accomplish our goals. I’m very proud of them.”

The Pony swim teams will get back in the pool this Saturday when they attend a meet in Great Falls.