Ponies start over at divisionals

There can be no argument that the 2014 season has been a difficult one for the Havre High volleyball team. But, the great thing about high school volleyball in Montana is, once the postseason begins, the slate is wiped clean and a fresh start may be just what the Blue Ponies need.

The Ponies (3-15, 2-6) finished fourth in the final Central A conference standings and will need to finish in the top two this weekend in Browning if they are going to qualify for the Class A State tournament, which will be in Bozeman beginning Nov. 14.

Havre will start its quest for the state tournament Friday morning, when the fourth-seeded Ponies will take on fifth-seeded Browning in the opening match of the 2014 Central A Divisional tournament.

“The great thing about divisionals is that everyone starts with a clean slate,” HHS head coach Melanie Skoyen said. “Everyone is starting with the same record, everyone is on an even field and anything can happen.”

The Ponies should have plenty of confidence when they enter their opening round match against Browning after defeating the Indians (2-16, 0-8) twice this season, sweeping them in three sets each time.

HHS will be led by Dani Wagner, who is one of the team’s top setters and outside hitters. She finished the season ranked fifth in the Central A with 169 kills. She also ranked sixth in aces with 46 and fourth in assists with 236.

Reggie Bernard will another key contributor for the Ponies and had 124 kills on the season, good enough for 10th in the Central A. She was also second in blocks with 46.5.

Other players that will play a key role for Havre this weekend will be Carlene Rennick, Madison Huebsch, Naomi Terry, Jordyn Warren, Jaycee McDonald and Samy Huston.

Leading the way for the Indians will be Terine Whitecomb, who led the Central A with .73 blocks per set. Melissa Flamand ranked 10th in the conference in digs with 170 and setter Jacely Croff also ranked sixth in the league with 116 assists.

The winner of the Havre-Browning match will advance into the next round, where they will take on Belgrade, the regular season champion of the Central A. The loser will be facing elimination.

“We definitely can’t overlook Browning,” Skoyen said. “We need to make sure that we are playing hard and playing tough because if we don’t play our best against Browning, we will not be facing Belgrade.”

Regardless of who advances to face Belgrade, both Havre and Browning would be huge underdogs against the top-seeded Panthers (15-4, 7-1), who dominated the Central A and swept both the Ponies and Indians in three sets twice this season.

The Panthers boast a ton of talent and will be favored to return to the state tournament. One thing in their favor is that they have the conference leaders in kills, digs and assists. Kylie McCree led the Central A in kills with 281, while Olivia Kleinsasser was tops in assists with 631. Kyra Fisher also led in digs per set with 5.4.

Thanks to their first-place finish in the regular season, the Panthers will get a bye in the opening round. Lewistown (16-5, 7-1), on the other hand, which split with Belgrade and has made the trip to state a yearly routine, will be the No. 2 seed and will take on third-seeded Livingston (10-7, 4-4) in its opening match Friday at 1 p.m.

The Eagles should have the advantage against the Rangers after knocking them off twice in the regular season, but they will also benefit from having four of the Top 10 hitters in the Central A.

Michelle Monger is the Eagles’ top hitter and finished second in the regular season with 245 kills. Nicole Karhi was third in the league with 190, while Lexie Anderson had 154 and Jaree Mane had 139.

Yet the Rangers also have a slew of talented players that includes Lindzi Printz, who finished the season with 174 kills, good enough for fourth in the Central A. Emily Cornell is another key contributor for the Rangers. She led the Central A in aces with 55 and was third in assists with 519. Sierra Higgs also finished in the Top 10 in both kills, aces and blocks.

“I think there are some chances for upsets,” Skoyen said. “Lewistown and Belgrade are definitely the favorites going in, but they are beatable. Livingston took Lewistown to five games in their last match, and I think if we play the way we are capable of playing and limit our errors, it will be much different than last time with Belgrade and Lewistown.”

The Central A Divisional tournament begins Friday morning with Havre and Browning at 11 a.m. The format is double elimination. Three teams will advance to Saturday and the two teams that reach the championship game will advance to the state tournament next weekend in Bozeman.