Ponies finish third at Panther Classic

After opening the season at the Eastern A Tip-Off Tournament in Belgrade, the Havre High volleyball team hit the road this past weekend to open conference play on the road against Livingston and Belgrade.

The Blue Ponies played both of their Central A rivals in Livingston last Friday, starting with the Rangers, who knocked off HHS in five games by the scores of 29-27, 25-22, 23-25, 22-25 and 15-12. After losing in five games to Livingston, Havre had to turn around and play Belgrade. This time around, things weren’t so close as the Panthers swept Havre in three games 25-12, 25-10 and 25-16.

After dropping the first two sets against Livingston, the Ponies rallied to win sets three and four by the scores of 25-23 and 25-22. Yet, in the fifth set, Havre fell behind 8-2 and was unable to recover from that in a 15-12 loss that gave the match to the Rangers.

“I am not sure if we were just nervous or what or maybe we were nervous because it was a conference game,” HHS head coach Tamecia Jarvis said. “So we lost the first two, they were close, but we were able to rally. We just go too far behind in the third set. In a game to 15, you can’t get down 8-2, it’s just too hard to come back from that.”

Following their match with Livingston, the Ponies took on Belgrade, another Central A rival. Yet, this time, it took just three sets to decide the match, as the Panthers swept HHS 25-12, 25-10 and 25-16.

“(Belgrade) is just really smart with how they hit the ball and how they play,” Jarvis said. “They communicate really well and we just really had a hard time killing the ball. We are doing a good job on defense and getting the ball in position to kill it, we just are having a hard time finishing, so that’s something we still need to work on.”

Belgrade posted 41 kills in the win, compared to just 22 for Havre. The Panthers also outpaced Havre in blocks (4-3), aces (9-3), digs (43-17) and assists (35-17). Bailey Christensen had a big match for Belgrade, notching a match-high 12 kills, while also registering three aces. Leading the way for Havre was Camryn Huston, who finished with eight kills. Kadyn Acor also had a solid match with seven kills. Sam Oliver also contributed with 16 assists.

After playing Livingston and Belgrade Friday, Havre took part in the Panther Classic Saturday in Belgrade. The Ponies played four matches in pool play Saturday morning and won all four, defeating Butte Central (25-13), Livingston (25-16), Townsend (25-13) and White Sulpher Springs (25-19) in one-set matches. Havre then beat Manhattan in the opening round of tournament play 25-14 and 25-13, before taking on Gardner in the semifinals. The Ponies lost that match in three sets by the scores of 25-7, 22-25 and 15-10. Havre wound up finishing third.

“I thought that we played better on Saturday,” Jarvis said. “I just think as the day wore on, we got a little tired and then I think we were a little nervous again when we got into the tournament. We just got a little tight and weren’t quite as aggressive. But overall, we played much better.”

Havre, which is 0-2 in regulation matches this season, will take part in another tournament this week, as the Ponies will head to Great Falls for the Electric City Classic, which starts Friday.

Livingston def. Havre

29-27, 25-22, 23-25, 22-25, 15-12

Havre: Stats not reported

Livingston: Kills 51 (Aleah Peterson 20), Assists 47 (Skye Ingram 25, Denie Hampson 20), Digs 81 (Hope Roy 16), Blocks 4 (Hannah Dailey 2), Aces 8 (Toney 3)

Belgrade def. Havre

25-12, 25-10, 25-16.

BELGRADE - Kills 41 (Bailey Christensen 12, Cassidy Catron 10). Blocks 4 (Brooke Gilbertson 2). Aces 9 (Christensen 3, Jaiden Blakely 3). Digs 43 (Taylor Christensen 14). Assists 35 (Blakely 32).

HAVRE - Kills 22 (Camryn Huston 8, Kadyn Acor 7). Blocks 3. Aces 3 (Caitlyn Terry 2). Digs 17 (Katie Donaldson 7, Paige Nelson 7). Assists 17 (Sam Oliver 16).