Blue Ponies fight to a split

It took a couple of weeks off and a bus trip to Lewistown, but the Havre High softball team got into the win column for the first time during the 2019 season after playing four games in two days over the weekend.

The Blue Ponies, who played four Eastern A opponents in non-conference action during the two-day Lewistown Invitational, split on both Friday and Saturday. Havre defeated Miles City 12-8 Friday afternoon after losing earlier in the day to Hardin 11-6. Then, HHS lost to Laurel 9-7 Saturday morning before closing out the tournament with a 9-4 victory over Glendive.

Havre is now 2-4 on the season and will venture into Central A conference play for the first Friday as the Ponies will host Belgrade in a doubleheader that will start at 3 p.m. at the Sixth Avenue Memorial Field.

"We went 2-2 over the weekend," HHS head coach Tony Vigliotti said via Twitter. "We learned a lot about ourselves and just have to keep working."

In the first game of the weekend for the Ponies Friday, Havre grabbed an early 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning against Hardin before the Bulldogs scored twice in the first and second innings off pitcher Sam Oliver to go ahead 4-2. The Ponies, who got three RBIs in the loss and a home run from Kinzee Peterson, tied the game in the third, only to see Hardin score four runs in the fourth and three more in the fifth to break the game open and go on to win 11-6.

Oliver pitched all five innings in the loss for Havre and finished with six strikeouts as well as two hits. The Bulldogs finished with 12 hits total in the win compared to just five for HHS.

Following the loss to Hardin, Havre rebounded in a big way and earned its first win of the season thanks to a 12-8 triumph over Miles City. Lauren Kato was on the mound and got the win after allowing eight runs and striking out seven. Peterson also had a big day at the plate for Havre with three hits, a home run and three RBIs.

Peyton Brown added two hits and two RBIs in the win, while Oliver added two hits, as well. Savannah Dawson also pitched in with two RBIs in the win for Havre which scored six runs in the third, three in the fourth and two more in the fifth.

Oliver was back on the hill Saturday morning against Laurel and despite a solid outing, the Locomotives ended up with a 9-7 win thanks to four runs late. Havre was able to build a 7-5 advantage thanks to a pair of home runs by Peterson but was unable to hold the lead.

Oliver finished the game with six strikeouts in the loss after giving up nine runs to Laurel. Peterson led the Ponies with three hits and four RBIs thanks to her two dingers. When her weekend was over, she would finish with five home runs and 15 RBIs.

"It felt really good," Peterson said about her five home run weekend. "The first one I hit, I was a little surprised."

In the final game against Glendive, another Peterson homer helped the Ponies build an 8-0 advantage early in the game. Havre led 9-1 after the fourth inning and used solid defense and quality pitching from Kato to salt away the win.

Kato earned a complete-game win after going seven innings and striking out two. She allowed just four runs on eight hits and got her second win the weekend. Oliver also pitched in with two hits and two RBIs while Sydney Wilting also managed two hits.

The Ponies (2-4) will host Belgrade in a Central A conference doubleheader Friday at the Sixth Avenue Memorial Field. The first pitch will go out at 3 p.m.

Hardin 11, Havre 6

Havre 202 020 - 6 5 1

Hardin 220 43x - 11 12 1

WP - D. Uffelman

LP - Sam Oliver

Havre 12, Miles City 8

Havre 016 32 - 12 14 3

MC 005 03 - 8 14 1

WP - Lauren Kato

LP - Amber Taylor

Laurel 9, Havre 7

Laurel 113 031 - 9 11 0

Havre 240 100 - 7 10 1

LP - Sam Oliver

Havre 9, Glendive 5

Glendive 000 100 3 - 4 8 0

Havre 260 100 x - 9 12 0

WP - Lauren Kato

LP: M. Eaton