Pony trio heading to Iowa, together

Former Havre Blue Ponies Jeff Miller, Trey Hanson and Dustin Haas have a lot in common. Including the fact that, at one time or another, they all played tennis and golf together as Blue Ponies.

Now, those sports will bring the trio together, but also take them to a place far removed from the Bill Vaughey Memorial Tennis Courts, or local golf courses like Prairie Farms and Beaver Creek.

All three Blue Ponies have signed NAIA national letters of intent to play either tennis or golf for Morningside College in Iowa.

Miller, who graduated from Havre High in 2016, and spent the last year playing golf at MSU-Northern, was offered by Morningside while still playing tennis for the Blue Ponies. However, he opted to stay home for his first year of college, but says, eventually, the desire to play college tennis was something he truly wanted to pursue.

"Growing up I always wanted to play past high school at the college level," Miller said. "Taking a year off from competitive tennis really made me realize how bad I missed it and how I wanted to compete again."

And few Blue Ponies have competed as well as Miller did in tennis in his four years at HHS. He was a four-time Central A champion, also setting the record for the most points in a Central A career. He was also four-time Class A All-State, reaching the state championship match in singles three straight years, while winning the 2014 state title.

Miller garnered interest from several other NAIA schools for tennis during his senior year at HHS, but he chose to visit Morningside with then teammate Trey Hanson, and he felt it was a place he could see himself going to school and playing tennis at one day.

"After I visited Morningside last year I really fell in love with the school," Miller said "It's a decent-sized city but you still have the feel of a small school. It just felt like it was a good fit for me."

Meanwhile, Hanson, who has family ties in Iowa, always envisioned himself going to school at Morningside. But, it was only recently that tennis became something he wanted to pursue further. Hanson didn't begin playing tennis during his freshman year of high school, but he quickly fell in love with the game and by his sophomore season had worked his way into a varsity position. In his senior year this past spring, Hanson would qualify for the Class A state tournament, as well as help Havre win its ninth straight Central A championship.

Now, he's off to Morningside, a school he always wanted to attend.

"I'm really excited for the opportunity to attend Morningside," Hanson said. "Morningside is a great college and it's a great added bonus that I get to continue playing the sport I love. It's an amazing opportunity and I'm glad I get to do it with some of my good friends."

Haas is also joining his two good friends in Iowa. However, he'll be playing the other sport the trio has in common. Though Haas was also a standout tennis player at HHS, he will turn his attention back to the links, where he'll play on the men's golf team at Morningside.

Haas was a two-time Class A All-State player for the Blue Ponies and head coach Brett Gilman, and he, too, is excited to be heading to Iowa on a new venture.

"I have been playing golf since I was 5 years old," Haas said. "I looked at numerous colleges looking for the perfect academic fit but I couldn't stand the fact that I would have put my clubs away. I was lucky enough to have my information fall into the hands of the Morningside golf coach. I found the perfect fit financially and academically that will allow me to further continue my education but also continue my lifelong dream of playing golf at the collegiate level."

Of course, all athletes dream of playing their respective sport after high school. And a lot of college-bound students dream of going off to a new town and school with their good friends. Now, thanks to a unique situation at Morningside, three good friends from Havre High are going to be able to do both.