Air Academy is the No. 1 team in the preseason girls lacrosse poll. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
Defending champion Air Academy leads CHSAANow.com’s preseason girls lacrosse poll this season.
The Kadets, who topped Cherry Creek in the 2014 title game, received five of the 10 first-place votes and amassed 89 total points to lead the ranking.
No. 2 Centaurus got three first-place votes and has 83 total points. Colorado Academy is No. 3, and Cherry Creek, which got two first-place votes is No. 4. Denver East rounds out the preseason top-5.
Teams Nos. 6-10 are Mullen, Chatfield, Kent Denver, Regis Jesuit and Arapahoe.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association.
Chatfield seniors (left to right) Matt Gaiter, Kendra Lanuza and Ben Overholt where three of nine Chargers to sign scholarships Wednesday to continue their athletic/academic careers in college. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
LITTLETON — Chatfield senior Kendra Lanuza welcomes being the torch barer when it comes to girls lacrosse in Jefferson County.
Lanuza had three teammates — Emily McMinimee, Allie Sale and Rachel Walker — sign with Division I lacrosse programs last year. The talented Chargers’ lacrosse squad advanced to the state semifinals last spring for the first time in the program’s history.
Now it’s Lanuza’s turn. The attacker, who led the state with 101 goals her junior season, has signed to continue her academic and athletic career at the University of Denver after graduating from Chatfield this coming spring.
“I want to follow in their footsteps and be a good example for the younger generations,” said Lanuza of becoming the latest DI girls lacrosse product to come out of Jeffco.
Chatfield senior Kendra Lanuza, left, led the state with 101 goals last girls lacrosse season. Lanuza has signed to play lacrosse at the University of Denver after completing her senior season at Chatfield. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
The answer to why chose DU was easy for Lanuza. The Pioneers are a growing powerhouse coming off a 17-2 season and berth in the NCAA tournament last year. DU is ranked 19th in the preseason IWLCA Coaches poll.
“I really liked the location. The coaches were awesome. The team really works well together. They are definitely becoming a power in the west,” said Lanuza who already has some impressive career stats with 182 goals and 79 assists going into her senior season at Chatfield. “Beginning close to home is nice. Then there is the weather. I love it out here, it’s definitely better than the East Coast.”
Lanuza started played lacrosse in the fifth grade. She knew she could play at the highest collegiate level when DI coaches showed interest at tournament on the East Coast between her freshman and sophomore year.
She also knows there is a tremendous jump from high school to DI. Gianna Ossello a friend who graduated from Wheat Ridge High School last year and is a freshman on the women’s lacrosse team at Duke University, ranked No. 8 nationally, has tipped off Lanuza on what to expect.
“She (Ossello) said it’s definitely an adjustment. It’s way different then what we are used to in high school,” Lanuza said. “It’s more competitive and everyone is at your same level if not better.”
Lanuza will begin her final prep season for the Chargers in a month when Chatfield opens up against ThunderRidge on March 5 at Trailblazer Stadium in Lakewood. She hopes the Chargers are able to win a third straight conference title and enjoy another deep run into the postseason.
Track all of the Class of 2015 recruiting commitments in our database.
Chatfield High School athletic director Chad Broer, far right, talks during the Chargers’ celebration for their student-athlete signers Wednesday. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)
Air Academy has hired Chelsea Beal as its new girls lacrosse coach. The school announced the move in a press release on Sunday night.
Air Academy girls lacrosse coach Chelsea Beal. (Courtesy photo)
Beal, a 2008 graduate of Air Academy who played lacrosse and basketball while in school, takes over one of the state’s top programs. Former coach Sean Harmon led the Kadets to the championship last May, the third in his 15-year tenure. He resigned in June.
Beal played for Harmon, who was the only coach in the program’s history.
“I know the coach I am following has left a legacy; to fill this position will be no small feat,” Beal said in the press release announcing her hire. “But I will bring enthusiasm and determination every time I step on the field and I will expect the same passion from my players.”
Beal spent one season as a junior varsity coach at Palmer Ridge. She is a graduate of CU, and is also an officer in the U.S. Army and Colorado National Guard.
“She will be a perfect role model for our female athletes,” Air Academy athletic director Diane Shuck wrote in a text message on Sunday night.
Beal was hired after Air Academy had narrowed its search to four finalists. The school used a hiring committee “consisting of players, an assistant coach and an administrator,” according to the release.
“I feel blessed and grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such a successful program at my alma mater,” Beal said in the release. “Air Academy girls lacrosse has had so much success under my former coach, Sean Harmon. The bar will remain high with a commitment to a disciplined work ethic, leadership, and teamwork.”
Beal is the older sister of Miranda Beal, who played on Air Academy’s state championship teams in girls lacrosse and girls basketball in 2012. Miranda is now playing lacrosse at Navy.
When Centaurus and Air Academy met last season, it was a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup. Next season, both teams will have new coaches. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
For each of the past four seasons, girls lacrosse’s semifinals have had one thing in common: Cherry Creek, Air Academy and Centaurus have all been there.
Well, those schools now have another common thread: all three programs — at this moment, the top three in the sport — will have new head coaches going into the 2015 season.
It may mean that new blood will rise. Chatfield, for instance, made its first-ever semifinal appearance last season; Arapahoe’s been in the quarterfinals for each of the past three seasons; Chaparral is another possibility.
Or old blood could reemerge. Kent Denver, which has won three state titles in school history, made four-consecutive semifinal appearances from 2009-12.
Now, this isn’t to say that Ames, or whoever Air Academy and Centaurus eventually hire, won’t have immediate success. Tierney won a state championship in her first season (2013). That could very well happen again.
And, mind you, Cherry Creek has appeared in every single state championship game in the sport’s 17-year sanctioned history. So change hasn’t seemed to bother the Bruins in the past.
But that these three giants of the sport are all changing coaches in the same offseason may signal there’s a bit of transition ahead for girls lacrosse, at least in the short term.
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DSST-Green Valley Ranch volleyball makes history
When Denver Science & Tech-Green Valley Ranch qualified for the Class 3A volleyball regionals on Monday, it marked the first time in school history a team was headed to the postseason.
The Raptors, 10-7-1 this season, earned the No. 36 seed, and are playing in Region 1 with top-seeded Eaton and No. 24 Middle Park.
It’s DSST-GVR’s first year as a sanctioned member of CHSAA.
“We’re super pumped about it,” athletic director Jamelle Austin said on Wednesday. “We’ve got to go to Eaton, Colorado at 4:30 on Halloween night, so we’re going to have some fun with it.”
The school put up a 20-foot poster congratulating the team, and is planning a pep rally on Thursday.
“Once we got the news, that was Monday morning, we made an announcement to the school and the girls were really excited,” Austin said.
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Short stuff
It’s always fun when this happens: Grand Junction was on the outside of the 5A playoffs looking in until a win from rival Montrose pushed the Tigers over the 32-team threshold by adding to their Wild Card point totals.
Volleyball regionals are this weekend. That means the state tournament is next Saturday. In my mind, volleyball’s tournament is the only thing that can come close to matching the atmosphere at state wrestling, which is probably CHSAA’s premier event with its huge attendance and the fact that it draws athletes from all corners of the state to one location. State volleyball is chaotic with five courts going at once, but it’s a good chaos. The event is also unique in that it’s the only team sport where all classifications come together under one roof to decide championships.
Lewis-Palmer volleyball remained ranked No. 3 in MaxPreps’ latest national poll.
Cherry Creek has hired former assistant Kathryn Ames as its new girls lacrosse coach, athletic director Jason Wilkins announced over Twitter on Friday:
Cherry Creek is proud to announce Kathryn Ames had accepted the head women's lacrosse position for the Bruins. We are very excited. #copreps
Though she’s been involved with it up to this point, Ames will now head a program which is coming off of back-to-back appearances in the state title game, including a championship in 2013. Tierney was 28-9 in two seasons at Creek.
The Bruins graduated their top five point scorers from last season, including all-state midfielder Blair Sisk.
Still, it is a program with a lot of history — arguably the most in the state. Cherry Creek has won 10 of the 17 championships awarded in girls lacrosse’s sanctioned history.
AURORA — Poudre School District will add girls lacrosse and ice hockey in the 2016-17 school year, according to an official declaration sent to the CHSAA office on Thursday.
The host school in both cases is still to be determined.
This is just the latest addition in hockey, which continues to grow. This season, Denver East will join the Peak Conference. Mountain Vista, Cherry Creek and Resurrection Christian have all added programs in recent years.
“We’re always excited to expand our sport, something that’s been happening over the last few years,” said CHSAA assistant commissioner Bud Ozzello, who oversees hockey.
Additionally, Coronado had been considering dropping it’s hockey program, but has decided to keep it.
The new girls lacrosse program will be the first addition in recent years. It will be the second team in Northern Colorado, joining Thompson Valley.
“It’s a positive for the sport to get some more representation in the Northern part of the state,” said assistant commissioner Harry Waterman, who administers lacrosse. “Hopefully it’ll give (Poudre’s district program and Thompson Valley) two years to start developing more players in each of their districts.”
More growth in girls lacrosse could be on the way.
“There’s signs of us gaining some more girls programs in the next cycle on top of this,” Waterman said.
Air Academy girls lacrosse coach Sean Harmon gives instructions to his team during a game this season. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
Colorado’s girls lacrosse landscape just underwent a big change.
First came the news that Sean Harmon, coach of defending champion Air Academy, had resigned. Then, longtime power Cherry Creek announced Thursday that its coach, Brianne Tierney, was leaving to pursue college opportunities.
Harmon, the only girls lacrosse coach Air Academy has ever known, actually resigned at the end of school this spring. He led the Kadets to a state championship in May, their second title in three years, and third overall.
Harmon’s decision was first reported by the Colorado Springs Gazette. Air Academy athletic director Diane Shuck confirmed the move to CHSAANow on Thursday.
“He took our program from one that was fairly average to one that was a force to be reckoned with, and one that was among the top teams year after year after year,” Shuck said. “A very, very big loss to our program.”
Harmon and his wife are expecting their second child.
“I think he’s just ready to really spend time with his family,” Shuck said. “It’s always hard to take, but definitely I can’t thank him enough for the 15 years he gave to our program.”
The Kadets went 17-2 this season, with the lone in-state loss coming to Centaurus in early April. They won their final 12 games against in-state teams, including a down-to-the-wire win against Cherry Creek in the championship game May 21.
Air Academy’s first title came in 2009, when the Kadets went 20-0. Since that season started, Harmon’s teams are 101-12. According to the Gazette, he was 202-46-2 in his 15 years at the school.
When the Kadets won another title in 2012, it was official notice that the program had joined the state’s elite.
“I’ve got a team that’s trying to change the mindset that everything goes through Creek and Kent,” Harmon said prior to that season’s championship game.
At this point, Air Academy’s program has done just that.
The Kadets have been in the title game four of the past six seasons, and made five total appearances. Only Cherry Creek, which has made every title game in the sport’s sanctioned history and won 10 championships, has matched the success over that span.
Shuck said she hopes to hire Harmon’s replacement “somewhere near August or September.” Harmon is helping in that process, and will also help in the transition to the new coach during fall ball.
“(Harmon) accomplished I think everything he wanted to accomplish. I think he feels really good about where (the program is) at,” Shuck said. “It’s definitely a top program. It’s a destination job.”
Tierney’s exit means that arguably the top two girls lacrosse jobs in the state are open.
Cherry Creek athletic director Jason Wilkins tweeted the news that Tierney was leaving on Thursday:
Good luck to coach Brianne Tierney as she moves on from Creek and looks to coach at the collegiate level. #copreps
She certainly has a college pedigree already. Tierney established the program at Division III Lebanon Valley College in Pennsylvania, and coached there for three years, and has also assisted at Cal and Monmouth. She played Division I lacrosse at Colgate.
For Creek, it’ll be the third time the program has been in search of a new coach since 2009.
Tierney, the daughter of University of Denver men’s lacrosse coach Bill Tierney, took over in August 2012. She led the Bruins to a state title in her first season, 2013, and a runner-up finish this past spring.
Tierney’s teams were 28-9 in her two seasons. She also assisted with the school’s field hockey team, and serves as the director of operations for DU men’s lacrosse.
The 2014 all-state girls lacrosse teams honor the best players in the sport as judged by the leagues and coaches. They are presented by CHSAANow.com, ColoradoPreps.com and MaxPreps.
These teams were created following a lengthy process which included nominations from leagues and coaches, and then a vote of coaches.
Player of the year was also selected by a vote of the coaches.
The lead group was two holes away from finishing at the Class 5A girls golf championship Tuesday when some violent weather rolled through Raccoon Creek Golf Course in Littleton.
First, a nearby lightning strike pulled the golfers off the course. Roughly 10 minutes later, marble-sized hail pounded the area. Check out this comparison to a golf ball:
(Tom Robinson/CHSAANow.com)
Here’s what it looked like from inside the tent where players were gathered:
Following an hour-and-15-minute delay, players returned to the course. The greens were cleared of all hail with blowers and there was no visible damage to the course.
Up until the storm, Raccoon Creek was an absolutely gorgeous setting for the championship:
(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
But as it turned out, Tuesday was a mere glimpse of what was to come this week.
Wednesday, a set of fierce storms rolled through the Denver metro area and produced multiple tornadoes, as well as hail and rain. Girls soccer’s 4A and 5A championship matches were scheduled for 5 and 7 p.m. at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City — but playing those games seemed increasingly unlikely as the evening drew near.
That’s because the field looked like this around 2:45 p.m.:
(Courtesy Paul Evans)
The playing surface was coated with nearly four inches of hail. Almost immediately, CHSAA assistant commissioner Bud Ozzello and DSGP staff met to determine if either of the games could be played that night. The grounds crew was confident it could clear the field because DSGP has a fancy suction system which whisks moisture away from the field.
But about a half an hour later, the power to the stadium — and that suction system with it — went out. The 4A game was pushed back to 6 p.m., and the grounds crew brought out snowplows to clear the field manually. As that work went on, the 4A game was pushed back to 7 p.m. — and 5A, after some discussion, was moved to 5 p.m. Thursday to avoid a start after 9 p.m.
A half-hour prior to kickoff of the 4A game on Wednesday, the teams came out to warm up on a field wiped free of any hail. Even on field level, the surface looked immaculate. True to their word, the grounds crew had done a great job.
Had the field not been ready, the 4A game was set to move to 1 p.m. or 7 p.m. Thursday. Looking at Thursday’s forecast, however, the 5A game may again be fighting severe weather — so it’s a good thing 4A is in the books.
Here are a few more photos from Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on Wednesday:
About 15 miles to the south Wednesday night on the campus of the University of Denver, girls lacrosse’s title game had a relatively quiet evening in comparison. There was slight concern in the second half when lightning struck a few miles away, but it wasn’t close enough to cause a delay and the storm quickly moved out of the area.
Don’t be shocked if severe weather also affects the weekend’s baseball championships.
According to the National Weather Service, thunderstorms are very likely in the Denver metro area Friday and Saturday after 1 p.m. — which could wipe out play in 5A and 4A. All-City Field is hosting 5A in Denver; 4A is at Lakewood’s All-Star Park. Those fields need time to dry out from this week’s moisture, as well.
Likewise, thunderstorms are also likely in Greeley (site of 3A) Friday and Saturday afternoon; and it’s the same story in Pueblo (2A’s host) on Saturday.
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Short stuff
Hockey’s state championship game will have to find a new venue next season. The title game and semifinals are set for March 6-7, 2015, but the dates conflicts with the Denver Coliseum, which has hosted the championship the past few seasons. Among possibilities are the Pepsi Center, the University of Denver and the Air Force Academy, as well as other venues.
Sedgwick County’s Chase Dunker struck out 21 batters in a win over Lutheran during the 2A baseball quarterfinals last weekend. Yes, there are 21 outs in a seven-inning game — but two of those strikeouts reached base on dropped third strikes. Dunker also had two groundouts. He allowed just two hits, and had two walks. Dunker now leads the entire state, regardless of classification, with 129 Ks.
Grandview’s boys basketball opening has been filled. The school hired former George Washington coach Michael Rogers last week. Rogers led the Patriots to the 5A title game in the 2008-09 season, where they lost to Regis Jesuit. “We look forward to the future of boys’ basketball under the leadership of coach Rogers,” Grandview AD Jamee Ulitzky said in a statement. The Wolves originally hired Arapahoe coach Dan Snyder in April before he changed his mind nine days later to step away from coaching for a bit.
Eaglecrest has an opening for a boys lacrosse coach. Contact AD Vince Orlando for more info: vorlando@cherrycreekschools.org.
I spent much of my time at the girls lacrosse championship Wednesday with former Denver Christian boys basketball coach Dick Katte, who volunteers at many CHSAA events. Katte could not be more enthusiastic about the sport, and drew many parallels with basketball. He spent much of the final minute of a tense game hooting and hollering along the rail at the edge of the field. It was neat to see.
DENVER — Air Academy, one of the premier girls lacrosse programs in Colorado, knew it would have a strong team in 2014.
“This one I was a little worried about, because we went to the semis last year and we graduated one girl,” coach Sean Harmon said of his Air Academy team possibly being over-confident this season. “I felt like we were definitely going to be preseason high ranking and I wanted to make sure that we were humbled a little bit. You have to stay hungry and we needed to work.
“I told the girls at the beginning of the year, maybe we’re a quarterfinal team or a semifinal team right now, but we have a whole lot more work to do to make sure we win May 21st.”
Kadet goalie Jaycee Davis and her talented teammates put the effort in to reach the state final. On May 21, a Wednesday, Air Academy won girls lacrosse’s state championship with a wild 11-10 victory over the Cherry Creek Bruins at Peter Barton Stadium on the campus of the University of Denver.
In a state final between two schools that have combined for the past nine state championships — Cherry Creek has reached all 17 championship games in the sport’s sanctioned history and was the defending champ — the title matchup was expected to be a frenzied encounter. It delivered throughout with furious runs by both proud programs.
Air Academy’s MacEllen McDonough, a Division I recruit who signed with Jacksonville University, put the Kadets up 1-0 on a goal 53 seconds into the game. Cherry Creek answered with three straight goals, including a nifty one by leading scorer Blair Sisk. But Air Academy responded with three-straight goals after that. Neither team could capture consistent momentum as the game was tied at five at halftime.
Bolts of lightning began to touch down in the background just as the Bruins found an early second half spark with two goals in the first 23 seconds. But just as Cherry Creek seized momentum and took a 7-5 lead, the Kadets’ twin sister senior combo of Natalie and Jessica Berg took over.
Natalie scored back-to-back goals in just over a minute, giving Air Academy the equalizer with 21 minutes remaining. Maddie Jahelka found net for the Kadets two minutes later, then Jessica Berg scored off an assist from Natalie, then Emily Trousil scored, then MacEllen McDonough, and before the Bruins knew what hit them, it was 11-7 Air Academy with 10:02 on the clock.
McDonough and the Berg sisters starred offensively, but the Bruins had one last run in them.
Cherry Creek senior attacker Olivia List, who ignited the Bruins’ offense throughout, had two goals in two minutes to cut the deficit to two with 4:56 left to play. Caroline Perry, a University of Colorado recruit, scored with 4:25 on the clock and Cherry Creek found itself only down 11-10.
That’s when Kadet junior goalie, Davis, came through just as the team needed her, preventing the Bruins from scoring in the last four and a half minutes. Davis was strong in goal in the face of enormous pressure applied by highly talented attackers: Perry, List, Sisk, and Colby Goettelman.
“I was just believing in my team, believing in myself, and hoping we could pull it off and we did,” Davis said.
(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
Davis’ play in goal secured Air Academy’s second state championship in the past three years and third championship overall. They also won the crown in 2009.
This was Davis’ first season starting for the Kadets.
“Last year, I had some injuries and was rotating goalies throughout the whole year,” Harmon said of solidifying the goalie position in 2014. “Jaycee came preseason and she won the job. Isabel, our backup, she did fantastic as well, but I felt like Jaycee had a slight edge. Five minutes before the very first game is when I made my decision to put Jay in and we rode her the whole way.”
The goalie play Air Academy possessed in 2014 was the last ingredient needed for the Kadets to culminate the campaign with another state championship. Davis proved to the unifying piece defensively to go with a high-powered offense.
The junior goalie credited her whole team for the victory.
“We all worked together, we played together, every person got a touch in the game, and we kept moving the ball,” Davis said. “That’s what made us pull it off.”
“I’m very, very happy for these girls,” Harmon added. “These girls, there are seven seniors, I have come with them all the way. I’ve known a lot of them since youth, fourth and fifth grade, and there’s a very good core group. They’ve been playing together ever since.”
The seniors knew they needed a goalie to win on May 21, their preseason focus. On Wednesday evening, they relied on the talented Davis to secure another Air Academy state championship.
