No. 7 George Washington boys basketball went on the road and beat No. 2 Regis Jesuit 54-52 in the Class 5A Great 8 on Tuesday.
Category: Winter Sports
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Photos: No. 2 Green Mountain edges No. 7 Erie in 4A girls basketball Great 8
No. 2 Green Mountain fought to a close 58-50 win over No. 7 Erie to advance to the Class 4A girls basketball Final 4.
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Photos: No. 3 Grandview rolls by No. 6 Chaparral and into 5A girls basketball Final 4
No. 3 Grandview took an early lead and never looked back as it beat No. 6 Chaparral 79-30 to advance to the Class 5A girls basketball Final 4.
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Photos: No. 4 Highlands Ranch beats No. 5 Ralston Valley to return to 5A girls basketball Final 4
No. 4 Highlands Ranch girls basketball is back in the Class 5A girls basketball Final 4 after beating No. 5 Ralston Valley 46-30.
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Montrose boys basketball beats Steamboat Springs to move to 4A Final 4
(Josue Perez) MONTROSE — For the first time since 1992, Montrose boys basketball is headed to the Final 4.
In a matchup of unbeaten teams, Montrose topped Steamboat Springs 61-47 in the Class 4A Great 8.
“Great team win tonight,” Montrose coach Ryan Voehringer said. “I thought our team defense was outstanding. Steamboat is very well-coached and very hard to guard. A credit to my guys.”
Aside from an early 6-4 Steamboat lead, Montrose controlled the game from the start. It was 16-9 after the first quarter, 31-21 at halftime, and 43-32 after three quarters.
“I thought we did a nice job of executing on the offensive end and putting guys in nice positions to score against a very good defensive team,” Voehringer said. “I’m so happy for these guys. They’ve worked so hard for this opportunity. I told them on the way out of the locker room enjoy the moment and take nothing for granted.”
Luke Hutto scored 24 points and aded four assists and five rebounds to lead Montrose.
“I think it was our best team win of the season,” Hutto said. “Everyone brought something to the table and we all scored and defended when we needed too. I’m excited to play in the Final 4 and we’ve definitely earned it.”
(Josue Perez) Ashden Oberg added 18 points and nine rebounds.
“It was a physical game and they were a good team and we came together as a team and played our game,” Oberg said.
Trey Reese scored 11, had five rebounds, and three assists.
“That was one of the best games we ever had,” Reese said. “I think Luke and Oberg had big possessions in the game. We got to the line and made our free throws. Another step closer to what we all been working on all year.”
Steamboat was led by Cade Gedeon, who had 17 points, and Parker Lindquist, who had nine.
“It wasn’t our night,” Steamboat coach Michael Vandahl said. “The more aggressive team. I am extremely proud of our seniors.”
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Ball Fever: Previewing the 5A boys basketball Great 8
It’s that time, folks! #MileHighMadness has arrived and after our COVID-shortened season the postseason in our big school Class 5A boys hoops has not let us down in terms of excitement.
Down to our Great 8, our four quadrants are boasting three undefeated squads, rematches, and some who will see each other for the third time. Familiarity will breed some great games and memories, we’re sure!
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Quadrant 1
(Steve Abeyta) They always say it’s hard to beat a team three times in the same season but that’s exactly what our overall No. 1 seed Cherry Creek Bruins will try to day when they host Eaglecrest. In their first match up the Bruins jumped out to a 22-8 first quarter advantage that led to a 9-point home win. The Raptors didn’t allow that fast of a start in the second tilt but still lost to the Bruins at home by seven.
This game is littered with two sport studs and the 16-0 Bruins rely heavily on their back court tandem of Myles Purchase and Julian Hammond.
Purchase, affectionately known as THE HEARTBEAT of 2021 in our camp, is the defensive heart and engine of the Bruins while Hammond is as slick and smooth of a scorer as you will find anywhere averaging 23 points per game.
Another D1-bound athlete, Arden Walker, controls the paint and leads the Bruins in rebounding.
The Raptors have a “freakish” athlete of their own in Ty Robinson who is worth the price of admission for his above-the-rim action and averaging 16 points per game on the season himself. It will take a supreme effort from Robinson and crew to knock off No. 1 in their house.
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Quadrant 2
(Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com) In a year where we’ve gotten used to saying, “that seems weird,” it feels very much that way that Chaparral and ThunderRidge haven’t faced each other this year. With Chap finishing league play with one loss and the Grizzlies undefeated in league play they’ll get to settle the Continental clash in true elimination fashion.
The Wolverines lead man is junior big man Joel Speckman who is almost averaging a double-double on the season with 15 points and 9 rebounds per outing, while the Grizzlies tout strong senior leadership behind assist machine Garrett Arnold at point guard with fellow senior Nolan Marold who is not afraid to bang with the best of them on the inside.
For adding scoring punch, keep an eye on guard Luke Williams from Chap and senior Jason Simental for T-Ridge. Both can score in bunches and make a difference down the stretch!
The Grizzlies boast 4 players who average in double figures and 70 points per game vs. Chap’s 59. The question here will be can Chap match the pace and scoring.
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Quadrant 3
(Austin Hogan-McCool) This Great 8 Match up doesn’t bring a ton of familiarity and no head to head match up to draw on but it’s one of the most intriguing “public vs private” “city vs suburb” match that could go right down to the wire. 14-1 Regis will host George Washington in an early 4:30 pm start on Tuesday.
This should be a fun pace with GW averaging 77 points per game and the Raiders not too far behind at 70.
The Patriots have felt disrespected by the polls and rankings all season and this is their chance to make a huge statement for themselves and the city regarding the attention they feel they earned this season.
The Patriots earned impressive mid-season wins over Chaparral and ThunderRidge, teams that join them in the Great 8, although T-Ridge did balance that loss with a tight 3-point win in a March rematch. Nonetheless, the Patriots enter the game with extreme confidence behind Jarmell Johnson (19 points per game) and Trey Edmonds (11 points and 8 rebounds).
The wildcard here for the Patriots could be another senior, Kendale Johnson, who has the ability to step up when it counts.
The Raiders don’t boast as many seniors as the Patriots but do have four scoring in double figures on the season led by Michael Wolf and Blakely Stoughton’s 18 points per game each.
The floor general dishing assists all season has been Alonzo Paul who scores in double figures along with dishing out 5 assists each night.
The first game of the day may just be the best!
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Quadrant 4
(Steve Abeyta/steveabeytaphotography.com) Might have spoken too soon about Regis/GW maybe being game of the night. Back on February 1, Rock Canyon gave our state’s team with the longest winning streak a true scare in a 46-44 thriller that unbeaten Rangeview pulled off late.
The Raiders are veteran heavy and an extremely poised team down the stretch which has led them to winning four games with a margin of four points or less this season. They have been tested but find a way to pull it out in the end.
Got to see them in person when they were down 18-12 to a talented Fountain Fort Carson squad Sweet 16 and they simply didn’t panic, just stuck to the game plan and their strengths.
Speaking of strength, it is simply amazing the late run the RC Jags are on late season and doing it without their leading scorer/rebounder DeAngelo Horn (electrifying two sport stud!!). The Jags blew us all away beating a well-coached perennial Ball Fever favorite in Overland by 31 points in round 1 with 17 points from senior Nick Fallin and if that wasn’t enough senior PG Fallin followed that performance up with a 35 point explosion at Fossil Ridge — one of our best, senior heavy teams in the state.
There’s no doubt the Jags are for real but they’ll have to deal with the savvy guards of Rangeview in Cade Palmer, Demajio Merritt, and Chris Watkins. A tough trio on the perimeter and a mainstay Raider down low in Jayden Foster doing all the dirty work!
Palmer paces the crew in scoring at 16 points per night and he’ll look to push the Raiders to a faster pace than that 46-44 win back in February.
That pace and heavy weight “sluggin” favors the Jags, can’t wait to see if the Raiders can speed this up and continue “The Streak”!
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Photos: Championships claimed at the 4A and 5A boys state wrestling tournaments
PUEBLO — The third day of the state wrestling tournament saw Cheyenne Mountain take the Class 4A boys title while Pomona took the 5A crown.
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Class 4A
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Class 5A
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Video: Jeffco wrestling teams take 7 individual state titles
While the venue was different this year for the 2021 state wrestling championships, Jeffco wrestling teams from Columbine, Chatfield and Pomona came home from Pueblo with a load of first-place medals along with the Class 5A boys wrestling team title. Columbine seniors Jack Forbes (195 pounds) and Zach Schraeder (285 pounds) both repeated as state champions. Chatfield senior Jacob Badger (182 pounds) finished off a perfect 23-0 record by winning his first state title.
Pomona needed to rally in the place matches to overcome Ponderosa for the Class 5A team title. The Panthers claimed its third straight team title, fifth in six years and eight team title since 2000. Pomona had four individual state champions with sophomore Jakob Romero (120 pounds), junior Elijah Olguin (126 pounds), junior Daniel Cardenas (145 pounds) and senior Franklin Cruz (220 pounds). Cruz claimed his third state championship title. Cardenas also won his third and has a chance to join the elite 4-time state championship club next year. Cardenas would actually be the first Pomona wrestler to become a 4-time state champion.
Jefferson had three state placers in the Class 3A state tournament. Juniors Daniel Soto (113 pounds) and Angelo Lozado (126 pound) both took fourth place. Senior Alberto Zelaya battled his way to a third-place finish at 170 points.
Video by Jeffco Public Schools multimedia specialist Jack Maher. -
4A boys wrestling: Cheyenne Mountain claims first team title
(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com) PUEBLO — Of the 101 team state championships that Cheyenne Mountain now lays claim to, boys wrestling is a new one.
Never before had the school put together a solid enough season on the mat that a wrestling championship trophy was heading to the display case.
Volleyball? Several. Baseball? Multiple. Football? One very legendary run back in 1963.
Perhaps Cheyenne Mountain’s first wrestling title will carry as much folklore around Colorado Springs as that football championship. Uncertainty was the word of the 2021 season as the COVID-19 pandemic raised questions over whether or not a season could even happen.
Once it got off and running, Cheyenne Mountain quickly established itself as a top team in the state. The team entered the season as the No. 3 team in the rankings. But when all was said and done, it stood at the top of the podium.
En route to the team championship, it won two individual titles with Nico Gagliardi taking the 195-pound title with a pin over Montrose’s Raul Martinez. Jake Boley took the 220-pound championship when he pinned Broomfield’s Morgen Watt.
Nicholas Grizales (126) and Jesse Boley (285) each reached their championship matches, but couldn’t capture titles. Still, their road to the finals played a crucial role in Cheyenne Mountain capturing the team title.
Soren Herzog (182) took third, Raife Manjarrez (145) took fourth and Chase Johnsonn (132) took fifth. But even without individual medals, they still get to go home champions after their efforts helped bring the team point total to 123.5.
Pueblo County narrowly too second as a team as Richard Palomar took third in the 152-pound bracket to break a 100-100 tie with Pueblo East.
Elsewhere in the classification, five wrestlers entered the tournament as defending state champions and three of them claimed a second title.
Loveland junior Kobi Johnson won his second title and will have a chance to go for three in a row as a senior next year. He beat Mesa Ridge’s Frankie Gallegos by a 14-5 major decision to claim his title.
Pueblo East sophomore Weston Dalton was hoping to win a second title to keep his hopes for four alive, but Loveland’s Cody Thompson got a 11-4 decision to win the state title in 138. With Dalton’s loss, the class of 2023 will be the first class to not produce a potential four-time state champion since 2013. Woodland Park junior Brady Hankin won his third title Friday night, so the class of 2022 already has a shot to get a four-timer.
Seniors Vance Vombaur (Windsor) and Isaias Estrada (Thomas Jefferson) defended their titles to become two-time champions.
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Monarch’s Vince Cornella becomes 29th four-time boys wrestling state champion
PUEBLO — There was a moment that the state of Colorado crowning any state wrestling champion seemed far-fetched. For Vince Cornella, there was a point where he thought getting his shot at a fourth state championship was nothing more than a fantasy.
After pinning Ponderosa’s Aidan Lenz in the Class 5A 138-pound championship match, reality still felt very much like a fantasy.
“It means a lot,” he said. “I’m just grateful for everyone that put time into me. I can’t thank them enough.”
January turned out to be a trying month for most wrestlers, but especially for Cornella. As the state health department weighed the pros and cons of allowing high school kids to wrestle, Boulder County seemingly had its mind made up. Wrestling was not an option. No way. No how.
For six agonizing days other programs were keeping themselves prepared for an upcoming season. The kids in Boulder were left to fend for themselves. The CHSAA office wasn’t going to punish them. They were going to follow state statue and declare those kids to be at a school without a wrestling program.
The options for Cornella would’ve been to wrestle for a school within the same district (which wasn’t an option with the county shutting them all down) or wrestle for the school who’s district he resides in.
If neither was an option, it then deferred to a neighboring district. But Cornella didn’t want to win a title for another school. He wanted to finish what he started at Monarch. After all, a student at Peak to Peak, he was already at a school without a program and the Monarch team was family.
“It was a little scary,” Cornella said. “I was talking with my coaches about where we might go if the season didn’t happen for BVSD. I knew I’d be able to wrestle, but to be able to represent Monarch is a big deal.”
Cornella’s run at history began in 2018 when a close decision put him into the 106-pound championship and he grabbed a 6-4 sudden victory over Pomona’s Wyatt Yapoujian. His second title was slightly easier to come by. Two pins and a major decision put him in the 113 championship and it took him just over a minute to pin Denver East’s Armando Garcia
His third title, a 126-pound championship, came last year at Ball Arena where he grabbed a 15-0 technical fall victory over Pomona freshman Jakob Romero.
The fourth championship wasn’t quite as dominant as his second, but it might serve as the most memorable given the uncertainty heading into the season and the hoops that he needed to jump through to complete the season.
“It goes beyond the people I know,” he said. “It goes to the people who run this tournament, who fought for a state tournament and who fought for wrestling this year.”
Not since Jacob Greenwood in 2018 has the four-time honor gone to just a single wrestler and Cornella didn’t get the chance to do it in front of a capacity crowd at Ball Arena, but the effort that goes into the achievement is something that no one can take away from him. It doesn’t matter where he won four or how he won four.
All that matters is that he did win four, becoming the 29th wrestler in state history to do so.
“It’s a big deal regardless of how many people do it,” Cornella said. “If five other guys were doing it or if it was just myself, I would’ve felt the same amount of joy.”
(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)