HAVRE — There are great teams throughout the years, sure, but then there are dynasties — teams that fans will never forget and sit back and say, “Man, those teams were absolutely unstoppable and they maintained that dominance over time.”
One of those dynasties might be brewing in Havre. Since the girls basketball team claimed an undefeated Class A state title about a year ago, Havre still hasn’t lost a game this year, either. The Blue Ponies have 37 consecutive wins, the Treasure State’s longest current winning streak in any class.
“It doesn’t really feel real, it’s kind of weird. On to the next game, though. I don’t know how to describe it. It’s crazy. It’s awesome, though,” said Havre junior Kyndall Keller.
“Our kids are doing a good job. They’re focused and are ready to play, for the most part, every week,” said head coach Dustin Kraske. “We’ve had really good weeks of practice, we’ve had a great practice team. That helps us a whole bunch getting ready to go. Yeah, we’re pretty excited.”
Although a similar promising start like last year’s team, this current Blue Ponies squad is built differently. It’s a tad smaller, which has led to adjustments. But Havre is filled with key components that understand their jobs and perform their rolls well in juniors like Keller and Kadia Miller, along with emerging sophomore Loy Waid.
“I don’t think you can compare the two teams. They’re quite a bit different,” said Keller. “We do some different stuff this year and a lot of the same stuff. They’re both very unique, and I’m very thankful to be a part of them.”
“Definitely, I love the team atmosphere. We all get along, we all love each other, we’re all a big family,” said Miller.
What should make other Class A teams terrified down this final stretch is that this Havre team is getting loose, this team is building depth, this team is playing together and this team wants back-to-back titles. So far, it’s been another enjoyable year for Kraske.
“We made a decision as coaches that we’re going to have a little more fun this year than we did last year. Not that last year wasn’t fun, because it was great,” said Kraske. “But you can put some things on yourself, then some reason you go through a season and you can’t get beat or you don’t get beat for whatever reason. But our kids are playing well and it’s been a lot of fun. We’re giving each other crap all the time and that’s been good, a lot of trash talking. It’s been fun.”
“We have some good guards, some good big girls. Our young girls do a great job, same as our older girls, and we have a lot of pieces. Without them, we wouldn’t be as good as we are,” said Keller.
A Hi-Line dynasty in the making? We’ll see.
