The high school swimming season is only a week old, but already things are getting exciting for the Havre High boys and girls swim teams.
Saturday’s meet will feature the Ponies, as well as Class AA powers Great Falls High and CMR. And if last weekend is any indication of things to come, Havre’s meet will be ultra-competitive. The Blue Ponies opened the season with a pair of fifth-place finishes at the Kalispell Invite last Saturday, but Havre wasn’t at full strength due to Havre High’s Winter Ball. The CMR girls were first in Kalispell and have won four straight Class AA state titles, while the GFH boys also took first in Kalispell.
So Saturday’s races in Havre are setting up to feature some of the top swimmers and programs in all of Montana.
“The kids we took to Kalispell swam really well,” HHS head coach Chris Inman said. “Many of them either beat their times from state last year or were very close to beating them, so that shows a lot about how much they’ve all improved.
“Our meet will be very competitive and we will have a full team,” she added. “The CMR girls have a great team and the GFH boys are very strong. But our kids will compete well. It will be a great day of swimming.”
Inman said that nearly 150 swimmers will compete in 22 different events Saturday. An individual swimmer is allowed to compete in four events including relays. She also expects around 100 spectators to be one hand for Havre’s only home meet of the year.
“Our kids have been working really hard,” she said. “And this is the first time we’ll all swim together as a full team. It’s also our only chance to compete in Havre this year so I’m excited, and our kids are very excited about Saturday.”
The Havre Invitational will get underway at 12 p.m. at the Havre Community Pool. The meet is expected to run through late afternoon.
