Feisty Rams upset Pony girls in Eastern A title game

Back in December, Billings Central and Havre played a classic game that had many thinking the Blue Ponies and Rams might meet for the state championship in March.

Saturday night in Billings in the Eastern A championship game, the two teams played another classic, which will undoubtedly fuel talk of another rematch in two weeks, the only difference, is that this time, Havre will be the team looking for revenge after its 44-game winning streak was snapped by the Rams, who squeaked out a 44-42 win inside the Rimrock Auto Arena at the Metra.

The win means Billings Central heads to the Class A state tournament as the top seed and champion of the Eastern A. Havre, on the other hand, will head to state as the No. 2 seed for the second time in three years. Havre will open the state tournament against Libby March 7 at 10:30 a.m.

"It didn't matter at all to me," HHS head coach Dustin Kraske said about the end of his team's winning streak. "There were probably some conversations about it among the kids at some point but they didn't do it in front of me. My biggest concern is just getting better for Libby. That's my focus. We need to be the best we can be when we play them."

Back in December when Havre and Billings Central met, the game went to overtime and for much of the game Saturday night, it seemed like extra time might be needed again, as the Rams led the Ponies 14-12 after the first quarter before Havre outscored BC 12-9 in the second stanza to take a 24-23 lead into halftime.

At the start of the third quarter, Billings Central got a 5-0 run by Olivia Moten-Schell, giving the Rams a 28-24 lead, which Havre cut into, yet the Rams were still up 32-31 with eight minutes to go.

Billings Central pushed its advantage to 34-31 early in the fourth, however, its lead wouldn't last long as Jessa Chvilicek hit a 3-pointer to tie. Katie Wirztberger scored soon after and Havre grabbed a 37-34 lead and didn't fall behind again until the 1:35 mark of the fourth quarter when Chloe Paharik scored, following a hoop by Solei Elletson, to give Billings Central a 42-40 advantage.

Havre was unable to tie or take the lead and the Rams wrapped up the upset thanks to a pair of late free throws. The Ponies did have a shot to win the game with 0.7 seconds left, but the ball was stolen, sealing the win for Central.

"I thought our kids played pretty well," Kraske said. "We didn't defend the high post as well as we should have. They are very good and we had our hands full. They did a better job than we did and that's where we're at."

Moten-Schell finished with 14 points along with Isabelle Erickson, who matched her with 14 of her own. Kyndall Keller scored a game-high 15 points in the loss for Havre, which also got nine points from Wirtzberger, eight from Loy Waid and seven from Chvilicek.

In order to get to the championship game against the Rams, Havre had to get through another familiar foe in Hardin as the two teams met in a rematch of last season's Class A state championship game. And much like last season's game, it was a defensive battle that came down to the final minutes.

Hardin scored the first three points of the game, but Havre responded with a 9-0 run to go up six after one. In the second quarter, Keller knocked down a trey, putting Havre in front 13-3. When the first half was over, Keller had 16 points and the Ponies led by seven, 29-22.

The Bulldogs opened the second half on a 7-0 run to even things up at 29-29. Kadia Miller quickly put Havre back in front with two and after three quarters, the Ponies were up 41-35. 3-pointers by Keller and Sadie Filius kept the cushion at five with just over four minutes remaining to play. In the final minutes, HHS was able to ice the game at the free throw line where it finished 26-of-28 in what turned out to be a 60-48 win.

"Our effort was just outstanding," Kraske said. "Hardin is a wonderful basketball team. I think we handled them very well. Making 26-of-28 foul shots was huge. We made some key stops and survived the run and I thought we showed a lot of composure. We were on it. It was a total team win."

Keller led the Ponies with 23 points in the win. Filius joined Keller in double figures with 11. Marie Five and Kamber Good Luck both finished with 18 for the Bullodgs. The win over Hardin was significant because it clinched the berth at state for Havre, while also sending the Ponies to their third consecutive divisional championship game.

"That was the big deal, win two and go to the state tournament," Kraske said. "This is where we wanted to be at the end of the season and now it's about playing our best basketball. We are one of eight teams left in Class A and we put ourselves in a good position. In order to play for a state championship, you have to get to the state tournament. Now, for the next two weeks, our focus is on playing our best basketball of the year."

Havre will return to the Four Seasons Arena, where they won their state championship last season, for the Class A state tournament. The Ponies will open with Libby March 7 at 10:30 a.m.

Billings Central 44, Havre 42, 1st

Billings Central 14 9 9 12 - 44

Havre 12 12 7 11 - 42

Billings Central - Olivia Moten-Schell 14, Isabelle Erickson 14, Melissa Hanser 6, Solei Elletson 4, Chloe Paharik 2, Tess Hansen 2, Julia Peterson 2

Havre - Kyndall Keller 15, Katie Wirtzberger 9, Loy Waid 8, Jessa Chvilicek 6, Sadie Filius 4.

Havre 60, Hardin 49, SF

Hardin 3 19 13 13 - 48

Havre 9 20 12 19 - 60

Havre - Kyndall Keller 23, Sadie Filius 11, Kylie Walker 7, Kadia Miller 6, Katie Wirtzberger 4, Loy Waid 4, Jessa Chvilicek 3, Lauren Kato 2.

Hardin - Marie Five 18, Kamber Good Luck 18, Bergan Realbird 6, Kylee Old Elk 2, Sossity Spotted Wolf 2, Charlie Bellrock 2.