By Tiffany L. Rehbein
The Havre Blue Ponies football team whitewashed the Browning Indians 42-0 Friday in Central A action behind the play of some younger kids.
We saw some really good things from a lot of those young kids, said head coach Dan Olson.
In the blustery conditions at Browning, the Blue Ponies returned to their ground game, notching 239 total yards.
Junior Brent Finneman led the rushing attack with 16 carries for 86 yards and 1 touchdown.
Senior Ryan McIntosh had 12 carries for 55 yards and two touchdowns.
Sophomore Danny Wirtzberger saw some action in the backfield with eight carries for 47 yards.
Senior quarterback Ricky Brown scrambled on six carries for 25 yards.
Kris Myers had two carries for 15 yards, while Brandon Crawford notched four carries for 12 yards and Jacob Szudera had -1 yard on four carries.
We had some nice efforts, Olson said. Brandon Crawford had a great game, were really pleased with him.
Crawford also tallied one reception for 17 yards.
Wirtzberger saw some time at receiver, where he had five receptions for 74 yards and one touchdown. He also stepped in for Brown at quarterback and went 2-for-4 for 24 yards.
The Ponies threw for 98 yards and Brown went 5-for-8 for 74 yards with one touchdown.
Finneman had one reception for seven yards. Senior receiver Nate Baltrusch did not play due to injury.
Sophomores Troy Toner and Jacob Lorang on the offensive line each stepped into their first varsity game and played tough for the Ponies.
It was a good opportunity for those young kids to get some varsity action and get them geared up for next year, Olson said.
Defensively, the Ponies held the Browning attack to 0 yards passing on 11 attempts. One Browning touchdown was called back on a penalty.
Senior Nick Newell and Finneman each snagged an interception for the Ponies.
Browning tallied 32 yards on 25 carries in the Havre victory.
It was a great effort, said Olson. The kids played really well. Defensively, we dominated from the start. The second, third string kids played just as well as our starters.
Myers hit the Browning quarterback, causing a fumble that he fell on for the Blue Pony recovery.
We got some looks at some younger kids who havent seen varsity action, said defensive coordinator John Larsen. It was a good experience for them. Our younger kids played really well in the second half.
The Pony defense held Browning to just five first downs in the contest. Junior Grant Roman, who got his first start since Glasgow, Myers and Crawford each notched a quarterback sack in the game.
Grant Roman played really well, Larsen said. They probably threw at him as much as anybody; he knocked a couple down. He was always in good position.
Senior linebacker Willie Hulett, who could not be stopped by the Indians, led the defense with five solo tackles.
But the Ponies had 28 different players either make a tackle or assist on a tackle in the game.
They all got in the action and played really well together, Larsen said.
The Ponies, 3-2 in the Central A and overall, travel to Dillon Friday to play the Beavers, who are 2-3 in the Central A and 3-3 overall.
