Blue Ponies shine on their track

Havre High's Ashlynn Van Voast goes over a hurdle during the girls 100 hurdles at Saturday's Lions Havre Invitational track meet at the Havre Middle School track.

Havre's Michael Richards (left) races on the 200 meters during Saturday's Havre Lions Invitational.

Blue Pony Corissa White (left) runs the 200 meters at Saturday's Havre Lions Invitational in Havre.

HHS's Thomas Gruber clears the bar in the pole vault at Saturday's Havre Invitational.

The Havre High track and field teams were back on home turf over the weekend, and the talent was as tough as it has been all season long. And while a handful of Blue Ponies stood out above the rest, the teams are still trying to come together overall.

Saturday the Central A Ponies hosted the annual Lions Havre Invite at the Havre Middle School track. And competing against some

Havre's Garrett Dolezal launches the javelin during Saturday't meet at the Havre Middle School Track.

of the states best talent, both Pony teams finished near the top of the pack. The HHS girls finished second with 96 points and the boys finished third with 91 points. The Pony girls finished only behind Glasgow with 143 points, while the Pony boys finished behind Malta with 115, and Glasgow with 99.

Other teams in attendance included Chinook, North Star, Fort Benton, Big Sandy, Wolf Point, Browning, Box Elder, Hays-Lodge Pole, Shelby and Whitewater.

The Ponies performed well on Saturday, but the numbers game played a major role. Though the Ponies were facing mostly Class B and Class C teams, a lot of those teams had more numbers, meaning more kids in each event.

The Havre girls were led by a lot of familiar names.

Peyton Filius had another great afternoon, placing in three events. Filius finished second in the 800 meter with a time of 2:34, and finished third in the 1600 meter with a time of 5:47. Filius also competed in the pole vault for the first time ever, finishing third after clearing 6-6.

"It is always good to get out and run," Filius said. "It was fun. But we have low numbers this year and it is tough facing even smaller schools with more numbers. Just because they are Class B or Class C, that doesn't mean they can't be fast. We just need to keep getting the little things down, like form, handoffs, and starts. Everyone just needs to keep working on the little things."

Sammy Evans also placed in three events. Evans was the No. 1 high jumper with a height of 5-0, as well as the No. 1 long jumper, leaping 16-2, and No. 1 tirple jumper, jumping 34-3.

And Ashlynn Van Voast, Kaylie Gilman and Jennifer Nordgulen all placed in two events each. VanVoast finished fourth in the 800 meter with a time of 2:40 and sixth in the 300 hurdles with a time of 52. 1. And Gilman finished third in the high jump, clearing 4-8, and finishing second in the pole vault with a height of 7-0. Nordgulen was fourth in the long jump with a jump of 13-8 and sixth in the triple jump with a jump of 28-10.

Lacey Waid picked up a No. 1 finish as well, clearing 8-0 in the pole vault, while Skylar Vukasin placed fourth in the high jump, clearing 4-6. The long relay also placed second with a time of 4:33.

On the boys side of things, Mason Case had another great day in the sprints, while Marc Klimas led the way in the distance events.

Case grabbed two No. 1 finishes, running a 11.45 in the 100 meter and running a 23.0 in the 200. And Klimas ran a 5:02 in the 1600 for a third place finish, while he grabbed a No. 1 finish in the 3200 with a time of 10:41.

"The boys team is doing good," Case said. "We have a lot to work on still, especially our starts, but we are doing well. And I felt good coming into the season, until I sprained my ankle. But I feel good now, and just like I said, I too have to work on my starts and things to keep getting better."

Other top finishers included Tyson Kutgen with a sixth place finish in the 100 (12.08), Dan miller with a fifth place finish in the high jump (5-0), Zach Plum with a fifth place finish in the pole vault (10-6), Thomas Gruber with a fourth place finish in the pole vault (11-0), Joey Devries with a fourth place finish in the shot put (39-5), and Kade Rismon with a fifth place finish in the shot put (38-8) and a sixth placefinish in the javelin (135-10).

Michael Richards also placed first in the 110 hurdles with a time of 18.15 and fifth in the 300 hurdles with a time of 50.01. Thurman Holdsclaw was second in the pole vault, clearing 11-6, while Matt Emge was third in the pole vault, also clearing 11-6. The short relay also placed second (46.6).

The Ponies are taking full advantage of the decent spring weather and have a short turnaround between meets. Tuesday the Great Falls High Bison will come to town for dual meet against the Ponies. It will be a lot of tough competition for the Ponies, and it is going to take a great outing to compete with the Bison's numbers.