Blue Pony netters sharpen up in Helena

The Helena Invitational tennis tournament is without question the toughest tournament on the Montana high school circuit during the regular season. And though wins are hard to come by, Havre High head coach George Ferguson wouldn’t trade the Helena Invite for any other tournament in Montana each season.

Friday and Saturday, the Blue Ponies battled the elements, as well as every Class AA team in the state, and Ferguson said he couldn’t have been more pleased with the results.

“For us, the Helena Invite is much more about how we play and how we compete than what our scores in matches are,” Ferguson said. “And I thought we competed and played very well for the most part. We faced the best competition we have seen all season, and I thought we matched up really well. Our kids showed they can play at a high level, and I’m really proud of them.

“This being the week before divisionals, we had a chance to go play more on Saturday in Lewistown, and that was the plan for all the kids who lost out on the first day in Helena,” Ferguson added. “But we had more than half of our team make it to the second day, so we didn’t go to Lewistown, and while it would have been nice for those kids to play more on Saturday, the fact that we had that many kids make it to the second day means we played and performed very, very well. So I’m really pleased with our kids.”

The Blue Pony boys were exceptionally good. Sophomore Jerod Boles won twice on Friday in the No. 3 singles bracket, and ultimately wound up beating Bozeman’s Jacob Lounder in a third-set tiebreaker in the consolation match. Overall, Boles went 5-1 in Helena. Meanwhile, the No. 2 doubles team of Noah Landgraf and Wyatt Lindbloom placed fourth in their doubles bracket, losing twice to a solid team from Missoula Big Sky.

Also in singles, Zach Hellegaard went 2-2 in the No. 2 bracket, and played very well, while Jeff Miller went 1-2 in the No. 1 bracket. Miller lost to champion Layne Ryerson in the first round, then dropped a loser-out match to Missoula Hellgate’s Dylan Harvala, who is the AA favorite this season and finished third in Helena. But in both matches, Miller played at an extremely high level. The No. 1 doubles tandem of Ned Malone and Brian Smith and the No. 3 team of Jake Sedahl and Nate Korb also each went 1-2.

“I thought our boys team was outstanding,” Ferguson said. “Jerod (Boles) played his best tennis of the season, and he kept a long-standing Havre tradition of playing the very last match of the tournament alive and well. He just played some great tennis. And so did Noah and Wyatt. By going as far as they did in their bracket, they proved they’re going to be a force at divisionals.

“Overall, our boys team was right where I hoped they would be,” Ferguson continued. “In wins and losses, they all played really good tennis, against really good competition, and that’s exactly what needed to happen in Helena. Our boys team was very good this past weekend.”

Havre’s girls also played well, especially the doubles tandems of Morgan Jappe and Haley Graham, and Rainey Stoner and Madison Huebsch. Both teams went 1-2 on the weekend, and both lost third-set tiebreakers to be eliminated Saturday afternoon. Havre went a combined 0-6 in singles, and the top doubles team of Ellery Bresler and Breck Don, went 0-2.

“It’s tough to play in the No. 1s or No. 2s brackets at Helena,” Ferguson said. “And our senior girls all moved up this year in Helena. Many of them had had a lot of success in the No. 3s and No. 2s brackets in years past, but the competition got a lot tougher for them this past weekend. But that’s what they needed, and they still played some good tennis. I was happy with the way our girls played for the most part, and with divisionals coming up, I think they got the experience they needed in Helena.

“I thought our two doubles teams who made it to the second day played great,” he continued. “They really did. The thing with our girls team this weekend was, we lost a ton of third-set tiebreakers. And that means all of them were really close. Now, at divisionals, they have to just turn those close matches around, and I believe they will.”

With the Helena Invite now in the books, the Blue Ponies will turn their attention to the postseason. Havre will compete at the Central A Divisional in Bozeman Thursday-Friday, and both the Pony boys and girls will be slight favorites to capture divisional championships.

“Helena was just what we needed right now,” Ferguson said. “We had kids play really well, we battled in a ton of tough matches, and we faced the best competition we could possibly face the week before divisionals. So I’m really proud of all our kids.

“Now we have to carry that good play over to Bozeman,” he continued. “Now it’s that time. The season has come down to our divisional tournament. I feel like we’re really close to where I think we should be, and by Thursday, hopefully, we are right there and ready to have a great weekend and get a bunch of kids into the state tournament. I’m really excited.”

Havre Results at Helena Invite

Boys Singles

No. 1's

1st rd - Layne Ryerson, HH def. Jeff Miller, 6-2, 6-2; 1st rd Consolation - Miller def. Tyler Breagly, FH, 6-2, 6-2; Consolation 2nd rd - Dylan Harvala, MH def. Miller, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5).

No. 2's

1st rd - Stash Wrobel, MH def. Zach Hellegaard, 6-3, 6-2; Consolation 1st rd - Hellegaard def. Eric Abarr, GFH, 6-2, 6-4; Consolation 2nd rd - Hellegaard def. Ben Carroll, BW, 7-4, 6-4; Consolation 3rd rd - Lund, CAP def. Hellegaard, 6-2, 6-2.

No. 3's

Jerod Boles def. def. Ryan Twardos, HH, 6-2, 6-3; Quarterfinals - Boles def. Lagengreuder, GLA, 6-2, 6-2; Semifinals - Hayden Pulis, BW def. Boles, 6-3, 6-2; Consolation Semifinals - Boles def. Moller, BS, 7-5, 6-3; Third Place - Boles def. Lounder, BOZ, 7-6 (9-7), 3-6, 12-10.

Boys Doubles

No. 1's

Himber/Rosbaum, MBS def. Ned Malone/Brian Smith, 6-3, 7-5; Consolation 1st rd - Malone/Smith def. Mally/Bernhardt, CMR, 6-2, 6-3; Consolation 2nd rd - Lunn/Haageson, GFH def. Malone/Smith, 5-7, 7-5, 10-7.

No. 2's

1st rd - Compton/Kearns, MBS def. Wyatt Lindbloom/Noah Landgraf, 6-4, 6-4; Consolation 1st rd - Lindbloom/Landgraf def. Swanson/Hilton, CAP, 6-3, 6-2; Consolation 2nd rd - Lindbloom/Landgraf def. Funseth/Maxwell, 6-2, 7-5; Consolation 3rd rd - Lindbloom/Landgraf def. Harkins/Hertlein, 2-6, 6-3, 10-6; Consolation Semifinals - Lindbloom/Landgraf def. Hall/Williams, MH, 6-3, 4-6, 10-6; Third Place - Compton/Kearns, MBS def. Lindbloom/Landgraf, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

No. 3's

1st rd - Jacobson/Darko-Kelly, MBS def. Jake Sedahl/Nate Korb, 6-3, 5-7, 10-7; Consolation 1st rd - Sedahl/Korb def. Lynde/Lawson, CMR, 6-4, 6-4; Consolation 2nd rd - Lewis/Skinner, CAP def. Sedah;/Korb, 7-6, (7-4), 6-4.

Girls Singles

No. 1's

Hanna Haas, CAP def. Brandy Lambourne, 6-3, 6-4; Consolation 1st rd - Matelich, MH def. Lambourne, 6-3, 6-3.

No. 2's

1st rd - Maria Skiftun, MH def. Tatiana Ralph, 6-4, 7-5; Consolation 1st rd - Stewart, CAP def. Ralph, 6-2, 3-6, 10-6.

No. 3's

1st rd - Cora Hentschel, BW def. Shannon Herring, 6-2, 6-2; Consolation 1st rd - Dahlstom, BSV def. Herring, 6-3, 6-3.

Girls Doubles

No. 1's

1st rd - Ebel/Wilson, BSV def. Breck Don/Ellery Bresler, 6-3, 3-6, 10-7; Consolation 1st rd - Ori/McCaul, BUT def. Don/Bresler, 6-4, 6-4.

No. 2's

1st rd - Morgan Jappe/Haley Graham def. Roterri/Dardis, FH, 6-2, 6-2; Quarterfinals - Ramsbacher/Harrington, MS def. Graham/Jappe, 6-2, 4-6, 11-9; Consolation 2nd rd - Vogel/Eaton, BS def. Graham/Jappe, 4-6, 6-2, 10-8.

No. 3's

1st rd - Lorens/Buckingham, GLA def. Madison Huebsch/Rainey Stoner, 6-3, 3-6, 10-3; Consolation 1st rd - Stoner/Huebsch def. Runkel/Russell, CMR, 6-3, 7-5; Consolation 2nd rd - Whitworth/Dyre, BS def. Stoner/Huebsch, 2-6, 7-5, 10-4.