Ponies prep for state in Laurel

Daniel Horton Havre Daily News [email protected]

With the Class A state tournament just over a week away, the Havre High softball team has only one more weekend of play. But in the final weekend of the regular season, the Blue Ponies will face four tough Class A clubs out of the Eastern A in Laurel. On Friday the Ponies (12-6, 6-4) face the Billings Central Rams at 12 p.m. and then the Laurel Locomotives at 3:30 p.m. And on Saturday the Ponies will face the Belgrade Panthers at 9:30 a.m. and then the Sidney Eagles at 11 a.m. “We get a chance to take a look at the east, and we will see how we match up,” Havre High head coach Bob Evans said. “It gets us ready for the state tournament.” The weekend's matchups are all nonconference games for the Ponies, but they all hold a great deal of importance. The Panthers, Rams and Locomotives are the No. 1, 2 and 3 teams out of the East, and playing them will only make the Ponies better, win or lose. “I think it's important we play well,” Evans said. “It's always important to win, but being able to go down there and compete and play well is also important.” HHS may not know much about this weekend's opponents, especially the Eagles, but they do know the competition will be tough. None of the teams the Ponies will face are up-and-down programs, but solid, consistent clubs. And the Panthers, who have only lost one game this season will strut their No. 1 ranking with their six starting seniors. “We don't really know much,” Evans said. “We haven't really seen any of them. We just have to go down there and get ready to play, no matter who we play and whether we figure they are tough or not. We just have to play them all tough.” Coming away with a couple of good wins will benefit the Ponies. With Evans already making the decision to play his starting nine all four games, these games will give the Ponies four solid outings in preparation for the state tournament. “This is important,” Evans said. “I want to get my top nine or 10 players as much playing time as I can in this tournament. We just need to go out and field the ball, hit the ball, play good defense and get good pitching and win.” On Friday the Ponies take on the Billings Central Rams at 12 p.m. and then face the Laurel Locomotives at 3:30 p.m. And on Saturday the Ponies will face the Belgrade Panthers at 9:30 a.m. and then the Sidney Eagles at 11 a.m. “The girls are just looking to play softball.” Evans said. “I am sure they want to go down there and compete, and hopefully we can win some ball games and get a little bit better.”