Blue Ponies run well at big Lewistown meet

It was another solid weekend for the Havre High cross country teams, as the Blue Ponies continue to run against some of the best talent in the state.

On Friday, the Central A Blue Ponies competed in the Lewistown Invitational in Lewistown.

A week ago the boys and girls Pony teams swept the team titles, and after a dominating race last weekend, both teams performed well again this weekend. The HHS boys finished as the sixth place team, finishing with 148 points. The boys finished behind Hardin (63), Billings Skyview (69), Belgrade (78), Lewistown (115), and Billings Central (147). And after winning the invite last year, the HHS girls were able to finish as the No. 2 team with 45 points. The Ponies finished behind Class AA Billings Skyview with 39 points, while HHS defeated conference rivals Lewistown (81) and Belgrade (159), as well as the rest of the field.

Jess Wiken reclaimed the No. 1 spot on the Ponies squad, as she took third place overall with a time of 20:29. Katie Christianson also turned in an outstanding time, as she finished in fourth place overall, and a time of 20:38. Trisha Kinsella finished in the top 10 as well, finishing with a time of 21:25 in ninth place.

But as the Blue Pony girls have already proven they have talented depth, the rest of the varsity girls also turned in great times in their third race of the season. Morgan Mazurkiewicz finished with a time of 22:05 as the No. 14 runner, and Larissa Price finished one spot behind Mazurkiewicz with a time of 22:08. Kiana Robertson also turned in a time of 24:21 and Liz Facio turned in a time of 24:21. Robertson finished as the No. 36 runner and Facio finished as the No. 43 runner.

"The girls were beat by six by Skyview," Havre High head coach Kyle Fishser said. "But we hade comparable teams and it was fun to run against another good team. It was good for them and it was their best pack time of the season, getting it under two minutes for the first time."

Breaking the two-minute mark, the HHS girls finished with a pack time of 1:39.

The boys' field was exceptionally tough, and for another week, Marc Klimas led the way for the Ponies. Klimas was able to finish in a time of 17:58, and was the only Pony runner to finish in the top 10.

The remaining HHS finishers included No. 27 Desomnd Fialkosky with a time of 18:57, No. 32 Sundance Lodge with a time of 19:12, No. 38 Dylan Stewart with a time of 19:30, No. 41 Elijah David with a time of 19:43, No. 49 Nick Rhines with a time of 20:42, and the No. 50 finisher Alec Drew with a time of 20:52.

"We are still trying to find that top seven," Fisher said. "Every week is different. We need some consistency for them, but overall it was still a good weekend for them. We are still looking fro them to close that pack time, and every week those five, six and seven runners are changing."

The Ponies will host their annual Havre Invite on Saturday on the campus of Montana State University-Northern.

Lewistown Invitational

Boys

Team scores – 1. Hardin 63, 2. Billings Skyview 69, 3. Belgrade 78, 4. Lewistown 115, 5. Billings Central 147, 6. Havre 148, 7. Livingston 154, 8. Columbus 232. No score: Columbus, Dodson/Whitewater, Harlem.

Top 10 – 1. Jon Eastwood, Bel, 16:53; 2. Charles Vance, Liv, 17:16; 3. Jalen Two Leggins, Hardin, 17:23; 4. M. Oswald, BS, 17:29; 5. E. Hansen, BS, 17:35; 6. Trei Bullock, Fergus, 17:36; 7. Jimmy Martin, Dodson/Whitewater, 17:41; 8. Colton Hegdal, Bel, 17:47; 9. D. O'Loughlin, BS, 17:53; 10. Marc Klimas, Havre, 17:58.

Havre Runers

Marc Klimas 17:58

Desmond Fialkosky 18:57

Sundance Lodge 19:12

Dylan Stewart 19:30

Elijah David 19:43

Nick Rhines 20:42

Alec Drew 20:52

Girls

Team scores – 1. Billings Skyview 39, 2. Havre 45, 3. Lewistown 81, 4. Billings Central 136, 5. Belgrade 159. No score: Cascade, Columbus, Dobson/White Water, Harlem, Winnett.

Top 10 – 1. Kennedy Robins, Skyview, 20:00; 2. Adree Shield, Hardin, 20:20; 3. Jess Wiken, Havre, 20:29; 4. Katie Christianson, Havre, 20:38; 5. Sarah Foster, Fergus, 20:45; 6. A. Nelson, BS, 20:50; 7. Kelsey Harriman, Livingston, 20:54; 8. K. Day, BS, 21:08; 9. Trisha Kinsella, Havre, 21:25; 10. Alexa Horrell, BC, 21:50.

Havre Runners

Jess Wiken 20:29

Katie Christianson 20:38

Trisha Kinsella 21:25

Morgan Mazurkiewicz 22:05

Larissa Price 22:08

Kiana Robertson 24:21

Liz Facio 24:21