Blue Pony tennis teams looking to finish strong in Lewistown

For years, Havre High head tennis coach George Ferguson has preached that the Central A Divisional Tournament actually starts a week early, at the Lewistown Invitational.

And 18 years into his coaching career, nothing has changed, as his Blue Ponies head to Lewistown Saturday for their annual regular season finale.

"It's the biggest day of our season thus far," Ferguson said of the Lewistown Invite. "It's a full dress rehearsal for divisionals, and, it's our last chance to get competition for next weekend. So it's huge. It's a matter of us going down there every year and performing at the highest level we possibly can, and I think our kids are ready to do that Saturday."

The Ponies will need to perform at a high level as well because they're battling some stiff competition on Saturday. Havre will take on Dillon and Hardin in non-conference duals, as well as Central A rivals Belgrade and Lewistown.

"Every dual is going to be big as far as showing us if we're ready for divisionals," Ferguson said. "The Dillon boys are really good, one of the best teams in the state this year, and we know all about Hardin. We've already played them six times, so now, when we see them again, we should see just how much we've improved. And both the boys and girls, obviously, the duals against Belgrade and Lewistown are key, because we'll be right back to going head-to-head with them next week at divisionals."

Of course, as tough as the competition is, Havre is stiff competition for anyone it faces as well. In the last two weeks, Ferguson said not only has his teams been impressive in duals, but, that individually, his players have been growing by leaps and bounds.

"I can't say enough about the progress our kids have made the last two or three weeks," Ferguson said. "Every single one of them has just really gotten better, every doubles team is getting better and better. It's been impressive to see, and I think we can still play even better this weekend, and that's what we want to go down there and do."

The young Havre boys squad has certainly gotten better, and while the Ponies will be without top singles standout Josh Warp Saturday, they'll still lean on veterans like Tommy Brown, Tyrel Kjersem, Jake Huston and Reese Bulkley. But, with Havre's divisional lineup now set, Ferguson said his younger crew is not to be overlooked as well.

"We have guys like Mick Chagnon and Trenton Maloughney, they have improved so much," Ferguson said. "And our third doubles team, Jack Johnsrud and Josiah Harrison, those two are seniors, but are playing varsity for the first time, and man, they are really coming on strong.

"This was a tough week," he continued. "We finished our final varsity qualifying, and that's always hard, because only 10 guys can make it. But, the rest of the guys on our team, all those guys that didn't quite make it, they're also the reason why we're playing so well right now. We've developed a lot of young depth on our boys team, and those guys have pushed each other hard the last few weeks, and it's really helped us get better. So our boys team is in a really good place right now."

Havre's girls are by no means young. And while the Pony girls will be short-handed too, missing No. 2 singles player Kassidy Compton this weekend, Havre's lineup has remained steady throughout the season, and Ferguson said, that's been a real bonus.

"The girls that made the divisional team, they've pretty much been there all year," Ferguson said. "The girls are very experienced, most of them have been through all this before, so it's no surprise that they're playing at a really high level right now, and I expect that to continue in Lewistown."

Havre's strength has been three experienced doubles teams this season, with Kadyn and Cassidy Acor, Marcee Murphy and Devyn Solomon and Teagan Fee and Tiffany Ralph. McKenzie Tommerup is also one of the top singles players in the Central A, while Compton has been a standout in just her second season of tennis. But, depth is big too for Havre, and a pair of sophomores have truly bolstered the girls roster.

"I can't say enough about how far Tamera O'Leary and Sylvia Wilting have come," Ferguson said. "They have went from being very inexperienced to two really strong players. They've just done a tremendous job of getting better and better this year, and both of them are going to be a force the rest of the season. They've been awesome, and, they're young, so they will just keep getting better and better."

And getting better is something Ferguson has preached every day in practice and before every meet. That's been the goal from March 12 on, and he says, nothing changes for the Lewistown Invitational.

"The main goal is to play the best tennis of our season," Ferguson said. "Win or lose, that's what we need to accomplish. We did that last weekend in Billings, so now, the challenge is, to take it up another notch in Lewistown. If we play better than we did in Billings, then, no matter the scores, no matter the duals, we will have accomplished our objective, and we'll leave Lewistown Saturday night knowing we're ready for divisionals. That's what we're striving for this weekend."

The Blue Ponies will play four times in Lewistown, starting at 11 a.m. against Dillon. Havre will return to Lewistown next Thursday for the Central A Divisional Tournament.