Blue Ponies ready to defend their court

They look forward to this all year long. And now, the Havre Invitational Tennis Tournament is back to normal, too.

On Friday and Saturday, the Blue Pony tennis teams will play host to the 2022 Havre Invite, which will be held both at the Bill Vaughey Memorial Courts and at Montana State University-Northern, and, for the first time since 2019, will return to its original format. There was no 2020 Havre Invite due to the pandemic, and last year, the tournament was altered because of COVID-19 protocols.

"We're excited," Havre High head coach George Ferguson said. "This is a huge two days for our kids. We have very few chances to compete on our home courts, and this two days we get to do that against great competition. It's a chance for our kids to play in front of parents, friends and fans, and a chance for us to showcase a program we're all very proud of."

Indeed. Between the defending Class A champion Havre boys, a much-improved Havre girls team, and a junior varsity program with big numbers this season, the next two days, the tennis courts in Havre will be filled with lots of blue and white.

The Pony boys, led by seniors Trenton Maloughney, Josh Currie, Caleb Spangler, Theron Peterson, Jared Rosgaard, Kendall Pleninger and Colin Miller, along with a strong contingent of younger players, will be looking to make big strides this weekend against rivals Glendive and Hardin, both of which, Ferguson said, field very strong teams.

"Hardin is always really tough," Ferguson said. "Coach Flamm just has a heck of a program, and they are so strong year-after-year. Glendive is also a traditional Class A power, with a really strong boys team as well. So this is going to be great competition for us this weekend. It's a chance for our boys to really test themselves."

The girls as well. Hardin has a deep and talented girls team, perhaps one of the best in Class A. But, led by senior Grace Crantz, and returning standouts Rayna Johnson, Courtney Burchard, Chloe Bricker, Cat Kaftan, Mylee Shennum, Kate Hemmer and Kylie Greenwood, as well as a host of talented new additions, including seniors Lacy Preeshl and Claudia Ucin, the Pony girls are climbing the ranks quickly.

"That group of girls has improved so much," Ferguson said. "They are getting better every single day, every drill really. And this weekend will be a chance for them to really put all that improvement to the test against some strong girls teams. I'm just really impressed with the progress our girls team is making."

Havre will get to be put to the test all day Friday as the Ponies dual Lewistown at 9 a.m., Glendive at 2 p.m. and Hardin at 6 p.m. The double-elimination Havre Invitational will start at 8 a.m. Saturday with the Blue Ponies, Eagles, Red Devils, Bulldogs and Cut Bank Wolves all competing.

"So excited to have our full tournament back," Ferguson said. "This weekend is a great opportunity for our kids to just get better, get a ton of matches and keep working towards our goals. Right now, we just want to be better this week than we were last, and this two days gives us the chance to do that, against really good competition."

Another goal of the Havre Invite is to have fun, and be all about Pony Pride, according to Ferguson.

"We have a lot of great traditions in our program," Ferguson said. "And the Havre Invite is one of them. We love this weekend. It's so important to our kids. They relish the opportunity to play at home, and I'm just really excited for all of them. From our seniors celebrating senior day, to all our first-year players, many of whom are playing for the first time competitively, this weekend is so exciting, and it's going to be a lot of fun."

The Havre Invite starts Friday at 9 a.m. and runs through Saturday evening. Matches will be played at both the Bill Vaughey Memorial Courts and the MSU-Northern courts.