By Kent Dolezal
by Kent Dolezal
Thursday, May 20
The Blue Ponies will defend their Central A boys track championship on their home turf, as Havre hosts this years event Friday and Saturday.
We are going to be extremely competitive, Havre coach Bob Lanning said on Havres chances in both the girls and boys team competition. I also have one major goal, to get as many of them to state a possible.
Action will start Friday at with the pole vault at 2:30 p.m. at the Havre Middle School track. Running events begin at 3 p.m. The event will resume Saturday at 9:30 a.m.
We have a really good shot with both boys and girls at getting a trophy, said sprint coach Carla Beattie If everyone does their part, it should work out for the team.
The Havre sprinters will be led by Laura Watson in the girls competition. Watson will have a busy two days as she will run in the 200-meter dash, the 400- and 800-meter run and both relays.
Brent Finneman has been strong in the 100 and 200 for the Blue Ponies this season. Matt Kegel and Steve Wilson will also contribute to the teams points in the 400 and 110 and 300 hurdles, respectively.
Kegel will make his greatest impact in the jumping events. He has already surpassed 45 feet in the triple jump, and is looking to break the divisional record. Ryan Evans will push Kegel in the jumping events, being another strong leaper wearing the Blue Pony kit.
Havre should also see significant team points in the throwing events. Shot putter Jeramie Robinson is verging on 50 feet, said weight coach Jim Gabriel. Jesse Suek is looking to break out in the discus, he said.
Shaylee OConnell has been strong in both the shot and discus throughout this entire season. Gabriel said she has put the shot 35 feet, but is capable of 37.
The Blue Ponies swept the top three spots in both the shot put and discus throughout the season.
We probably have the best core of throwers in the conference, Gabriel said. Weve stacked up real well with all the teams weve met.
The Blue Pony girls should get a great lift as a squad from distance runners Jenny Peterson, Jen Dibble and Erin Lynch, said distance coach Noel Henderson.
We need those gals to score big points for us to have a chance to at winning the meet overall, Henderson said.
Henderson said that all the girls races should be very competitive. He said the conferences top three girls milers top times are all within one second of each other.
We have basically three or four boys who are right at the fifth or sixth spot. They are going to be battling each other to go (on to state). It is going to be interesting, Henderson said.
Belgrade is the team to beat in both cases, Lanning said picking the tournaments favorite. In the girls, Anaconda will be right there with Belgrade. Points are going to get spread out with the girls, hopefully spread out enough for us to get in there.
We need people performing and getting us points at second, third and fourth. I really feel if we get them, we will be in the thick of things, because we have good numbers.
With Lanning announcing his retirement from the Blue Pony helm after the conclusion of this season earlier this year, the Central A will be Lannings last home track meet and his last group of Pony seniors.
I guess I may have decided to terminate with them, because they are such a large group. They are a good group and they have not let me down, Lanning said. Ive had other good groups too. It is just fun being associated with hard working people.
