2015 State Wrestling Preview: Blue Ponies go after a 3-peat

For the Havre High wrestling team, the wait is finally over. After more than two months of hard work and anticipation, the All-Class state wrestling meet has finally arrived and the Blue Ponies now have the chance to make their mark in the history books by winning yet another Class A state championship.

In 2013 and 2014, the Ponies walked away from the Rimrock Auto Arena at the Metra Park in Billings as state champions. And they will begin their quest to do so for a third consecutive season Friday at 10 a.m. The action will continue through Saturday, with the championship matches set to begin at 3:30 p.m.

For Havre, which has been ranked No. 1 all season long, winning state championships is nothing new. In fact, HHS has racked up a total of 11 state championships in its history, nine under current head coach Scott Filius. But with each year comes new challenges and that's why the desire to win a third straight title and a seventh in nine years exists so strongly among the Ponies.

"You know, I don't look at it like that," Filius said. "This year would be nice. That's the year we're on. We want to win this year, I don't know where that puts us in the relation to the others but we want to win this year."

While the Ponies are the favorite to win state again, there is no shortage of challengers, yet the team that poses the biggest challenge to Havre's supremacy is Sidney. The Eagles are the second-ranked team in Class A and boast arguably the best high school wrestler in Montana in Gresh Jones, who will be shooting for a fourth straight individual title Saturday night.

"It's us and Sidney," Filius said. "Sidney is tough. We wrestled them in a dual earlier in the year. They have been a guy behind, but all year long they have been at tough tournaments, the kids are well-coached and they are a class act. They work really hard and it's always fun to compete against them because they do it the right way."

In addition to Jones, Trace Jones also returns after winning an individual state title for the Eagles last season and on top of that, Sidney also boasts two other top-ranked wrestlers in Ryan Chatterton at 152 pounds and Cody Johnson at 170 pounds. Overall, the Eagles will bring 11 ranked wrestlers into the Metra, trailing only Havre, which has a total of 12.

Another team that should contend is Columbia Falls, which will bring 17 wrestlers into the field, more than any other school, including the Ponies, who will have 16. Yet, the Wildcats are not only about quantity, they also have some quality as well, especially Shonn Roberts, who is currently the second-ranked wrestler in the 138-pound weight class after winning an individual title at 126 pounds a season ago.

Other teams that have a chance to walk away with some hardware Saturday night include Corvallis, Dillon, Laurel and Hardin.

However, there is still no team that can quite match the depth and talent of the Ponies, who feature 12 ranked wrestlers coming into the meet but also nine individuals that placed at state in 2014, including three returning state champions in Parker Filius, Jase Stokes and Jace Billy.

"We are taking 16 kids (down to Billings) and they all have an opportunity to place," Filius said. "Some of them might have an easier road than others but I honestly believe that every kid we have has that ability."

In addition to the veterans Havre returns, the team will also bring three freshmen to state, headlined by Ryan Stewart, the No. 2 wrestler at 103 pounds. Stewart has put together a solid rookie campaign with a 24-17 record. Last weekend he captured the Central A divisional title in his weight class, giving him plenty of momentum heading into his first state appearance. The Ponies will be open as they have all season at 113 pounds but will feature two wrestlers at 120 pounds that placed at state a season ago. Keegan Kennelly, who notched a second-place finish in 2014 and after posting a 24-5 record is currently ranked second is one of them. Yet, senior Dylan Stewart, who was 22-5 this season and finished fifth at state a season ago, will also be a contender in the weight class, and has a wealth of state tourney experience.

At 126 pounds, the Ponies will have another veteran returning in Logan Pleninger, who finished third at state a season ago and has been ranked second behind only Gresh Jones for much of the year. Pleninger finished with a 30-7 record and should place but will need to get past Jones in the semifinals if he wants to win his first individual title.

At 132 pounds, the Ponies should do well, considering they have senior Grayson Brenna in that spot, who was 41-3 this season and has placed at state three times, including an individual title in 2013. Brenna has arguably been one of the best grapplers in all of Montana this winter. However, Brenna will be joined at 132 pounds by freshman Jazz Schroeder, who took second at divisionals to Brenna a week ago and was 5-5 during the year. At 138 pounds, the Ponies will have another up-and-comer in Dane Flammond, who finished with a 24-14 record on the season and a second-place finish at divisionals. He will come into meet ranked No.4.

Then, at 145 pounds, Havre will again feature two wrestlers, including Parker Filius, who was 27-4 on the season and is gunning for a second straight individual title. He is the top-ranked wrestler in a weight-class that will also feature senior Gunner Aageson, who is unranked coming in but boasts a solid record 24-16.

At 152 pounds will be another Havre stalwart in junior Kody Pribyl, who has twice placed at state and was fourth as an individual a season ago. He enters the tournament ranked third and has an overall record of 32-13. In the 160-pound weight class, the Ponies will have one of their top wrestlers in action as top-ranked Jase Stokes, who was a stellar 36-5 during the season, shoots for a second straight individual title in his sophomore season. At 170 pounds, the Ponies will feature promising freshman Tyler Schaub, who won a divisional title last weekend and posted a record of 22-15 during the season. He enters the meet ranked No. 6. Yet, he will not be alone in that weight class for Havre as John Chinadle will also wrestle there for the Ponies. Chinadle, is a senior who is unranked but has a 15-6 record.

Another senior set to be in the lineup for the Ponies is Jordan Schroeder, who missed much of the year due to injury but has come on strong of late. He finished second at divisionals and won 10 of 12 matches since coming back in January.

The final senior in the lineup for Havre, is top-ranked Jace Billy, who is a returning state champion who will compete for Havre at 205 pounds. He owns a win-loss record of 29-4. And last, but certainly not least, is junior Travis Adams, who was 40-3 this season. Adams is the top ranked heavyweight in Class A and finished second after losing in the finals to his brother Tyler Adams a year ago.

"Each person is going to have work as hard as they can," Adams said. "We need to wrestle as individuals and take each match one at a time. I am as motivated as I have been the last two years (to win an individual title). But a team championship would be a big thing. We have more seniors than we did last year, and we have worked hard for each other. I know we are all willing to put in the effort to make it happen."

From top to bottom, Havre has as good a team as any in Class A and that is why the Ponies are largely expected to come away with a third straight team championship. The mission to do just that begins Friday at 10 a.m., in the Metra and will continue through Saturday until a champion is crowned.

"I like where we're at right now, the kids are loose and they are focused," coach Filius said. "People want to come out and determine if the brackets are good or bad but all year you don't get to see the brackets. So, we are just going to work hard and have fun. We have 16 kids and if they wrestle anywhere near their potential, we will be just fine."