Blue Ponies get four games in Great Falls

With the start of the season now behind the Havre High softball team, the Blue Ponies were able to do some good things. And now moving forward, the Ponies are looking to keep the momentum rolling and find even more ways to improve.

Friday the Central A Ponies were in Great Falls, taking on a deep and talented pool of Class AA softball programs.

Rachel Majeres and the Havre High softball team opened the 2013 season with four games last Friday in Great Falls. This afternoon, the Blue Ponies make their home debut with varsity and junior varsity games against Glasgow at the Sixth Avenue Memorial Field in Havre.

Havre High played four games at the annual Great Falls Jamboree, but went winless in their season debut. The games do not count towards the Ponies record. The Great Falls High Bison defeated the Ponies 9-0, while the CMR Rustlers defeated the Ponies 6-0. Billings Skyview also defeated the Ponies 3-0, while Bozeman finished the weekend by defeating the Ponies 3-1.

Each game had an hour time limit, limiting any chance of an HHS comeback, but despite the 0-4 outing, the Ponies were more than happy to get on the diamond and see what the season has in store.

"Our defense was fantastic all weekend long," Havre High head coach Danny Wirtzberger said. I could count on one hand how many errors we had. And our enthusiasm was great and our pitching was great, but I was really impressed with our defense."

Facing Great Falls High, veteran pitcher Davee McLeod got her first start of 2013. McLeod pitched a complete game and had the score tied at 0-0 through four innings. Rachel Majeres also got her first outing taken care of, facing the CMR Rustlers in the second game of the weekend. Majeres also had a great first outing as she was able to hold the defending state champions to just six runs. Both McLeod and Majeres and handled the majority of the pitching duties, but Paige Henderson also came on in relief for Majeres in the loss to Skyview. Majeres gave up the three runs, but Henderson didn't allow a run in her two innings of relief.

"Davee did great in her first time out," Wirtzberger said. "I mean she held the state runners up (Great Falls) to four scoreless innings. Rachel Majeres also got her first start, and she was also very consistent. But like I said, what really is helping our pitching right now is our defense."

And the Ponies had a couple plays on the defensive end that really stood out.

HHS really limited its errors on the weekend. One big play came in the loss to Great Falls, as freshman Dani Wagner robbed a homerun as she climbed the fence for a great catch in center field.

But the offense also showed signs of life.

The Ponies were able to manufacture just one run, but they had their opportunities. The one run came against Bozeman, as Liz Facio scored on a Wagner RBI. HHS also had other chacnes. The bases were loaded against Skyview with just one out, but wound up hitting into a double play. The Ponies also had the bases loaded with now outs against Great Falls High when the one-hour time limit was reached and the Ponies didn't see another pitch.

But overall, the Ponies made a lot of contact, but Wirtzberger said they just need to find the holes. McLeod was .500 on the weekend, while Wagner and Facio also found a way to get on base all day long. Tori Mazurkiewicz, Harlee Boucher, and Henderson also hit very well, but were prime examples of batters needing to find the holes in the opposing defense.

"We've got some girls that are really hitting the ball hard," Wirtzberger said. "We just have to find that hole, and that will come hopefully when we start playing teams in our conference.

"I think our biggest problem was that we weren't aggressive enough," Wirtzberger added. "Class AA pitchers aren't going to walk you, they just wont, they are too good. But when we got aggressive later in the day, we were on base al lot, things just didn't always work out."

No stats were kept this weekend, as the Ponies were more focused on improvement and playing well than they were focused on numbers.

But the Ponies will have plenty of time today to see if they have improved, as they host the Class B Glasgow Scotties today at 3 p.m. It is the home debut for the Ponies, and they are excited to play another talented non conference team.

"It is our home debut and we are looking forward to playing the Scotties," Wirtzberger said. "I am confident we are going to play well, but I don't know how old, how young, or how good Glasgow is this season. I haven't even heard anything about the team, so we aren't expecting to win or lose, we are expecting to go out and play well."

And the Ponies will mix up the lineup again today. The starting varsity lineup is not set in stone, and some girls still have a chance to push for a starting spot. But no matter who is on the field or on the lineup, the Ponies are looking to hit the ball with a lot more confidence this time around.

"We need to be more aggressive at the plate," Wirtzberger said. "We need to go up to bat wanting to hit and wanting to get on base. This is still our non conference schedule, so I don't have a top nine. It is still too early to tell. WE still have the same mentality, we aren't giving away spots, we are waiting for girls to earn their spots."

Today the Ponies host the Scotties at 3 p.m. at the Sixth Avenue Memorial softball field in Havre. The junior varsity play at 1 p.m.