Month: January 2015

Ralston Valley joins 5A girls basketball poll at No. 8

Arvada West Ralston Valley girls basketball — Ralston Valley is ranked No. 8 in Class 5A this week. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)

Three days after upsetting then-No. 7 Lakewood, Ralston Valley girls basketball finds itself ranked in CHSAANow.com’s Class 5A poll.

The Mustangs beat Lakewood 69-41 on Friday. Monday, they are ranked No. 8.

Also joining — or in their case, returning to — the poll was Grand Junction (No. 9).

ThunderRidge stayed in 5A’s top spot, and is now a unanimous pick with all 17 first-place votes.

Broomfield (No. 2), Highlands Ranch (No. 3), Grandview (No. 4), Monarch (No. 5) and Horizon (No. 6) also remained in their respective rankings.

Denver East bumped up one spot to No. 7, while Lakewood fell three places to No. 10.

Elsewhere, there’s a new No. 1 team in the 2A ranking. Peyton shot up from No. 5 to the top spot this week after taking down former No. 1 Yuma 65-45 on Saturday. The Panthers are 8-0.

Each of the three other No. 1 teams remained the same: Valor Christian (4A), Sterling (3A) and Kit Carson (1A).

The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.

Complete rankings are below.

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CHSAANow.com Girls Basketball Polls

Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.

First-place votes are in parentheses.

Coaches and media members looking to vote should email rcasey@chsaa.org.

Go to: 5A | 4A | 3A | 2A | 1A

Class 5A
RK	TEAM	W-L	PTS	PVS	LW
1	ThunderRidge (17)	11-2	170	1	1-0
2	Broomfield	9-2	145	2	2-0
3	Highlands Ranch	11-3	124	3	1-0
4	Grandview	10-1	114	4	2-0
5	Monarch	12-1	112	5	2-0
6	Horizon	11-2	89	6	2-0
7	Denver East	10-3	51	8	1-0
8	Ralston Valley	8-4	48	–	2-0
9	Grand Junction	10-4	19	–	2-0
10	Lakewood	8-5	15	7	1-1
Others receiving votes:
Arapahoe 11, Fossil Ridge 10, Rampart 8, Regis Jesuit 8, Pine Creek 5, Cherry Creek 2, Mountain Range 2, Loveland 1, Poudre 1.
Dropped out
Mountain Range (9), Regis Jesuit (10).

Class 4A
RK	TEAM	W-L	PTS	PVS	LW
1	Valor Christian (14)	11-1	167	1	2-0
2	Canon City (3)	13-0	151	2	2-0
3	Holy Family	9-2	132	3	2-0
4	Pueblo West	10-4	98	5	2-0
5	Montrose	8-2	62	7	1-0
6	Evergreen	10-2	54	6	1-1
7	Pueblo South	8-3	53	8	1-0
8	Pueblo East	9-4	41	4	0-1
9	D’Evelyn	8-4	39	9	2-0
10	Glenwood Springs	9-2	31	10	1-0
Others receiving votes:
Greeley Central 27, Durango 19, Sand Creek 15, Mesa Ridge 11, Air Academy 6, Longmont 6, Falcon 5, Eagle Valley 4, Mullen 4, Standley Lake 4, Thomas Jefferson 3, Littleton 2, Palisade 1.
Dropped out
None.

Class 3A
RK	TEAM	W-L	PTS	PVS	LW
1	Sterling (7)	11-0	118	1	2-0
2	Pagosa Springs (4)	8-0	107	2	2-0
3	Manitou Springs (1)	9-1	105	3	1-0
4	Lutheran	10-1	92	4	1-0
5	St. Mary’s (1)	11-0	88	5	2-0
6	Eaton	10-1	65	6	3-0
7	La Junta	9-2	37	7	0-1
8	Olathe	8-1	26	9	2-0
9	Faith Christian	8-3	24	8	3-0
10	Centauri	7-3	14	–	1-0
Others receiving votes:
Lamar 11, Platte Valley 11, Liberty Common 7, Colorado Academy 4, Salida 3, Kent Denver 2, Trinidad 2, Machebeuf 1.
Dropped out
Platte Valley (10).

Class 2A
RK	TEAM	W-L	PTS	PVS	LW
1	Peyton (5)	8-0	85	5	2-0
2	Hoehne (2)	10-0	78	2	2-0
3	Caliche (2)	10-0	68	3	2-0
4	Akron	9-1	63	4	2-0
5	Cedaredge	11-0	54	6	2-0
6	Yuma	8-2	51	1	2-1
7	Meeker	6-2	25	7	2-0
8	Paonia	8-3	22	8	3-0
9	Sedgwick County	7-2	13	–	1-0
10	Highland	7-3	10	9	1-1
Others receiving votes:
Del Norte 7, Sanford 5, Byers 3, Sargent 3, Ellicott 2, Kiowa 2, Clear Creek 1, Colorado Springs School 1, Ignacio 1, Soroco 1.
Dropped out
Sanford (10).

Class 1A
RK	TEAM	W-L	PTS	PVS	LW
1	Kit Carson (6)	9-0	78	1	2-0
2	Sangre De Cristo (2)	8-0	72	3	0-0
3	Idalia	8-1	64	2	2-0
4	Norwood	9-0	58	4	3-0
5	Briggsdale	7-2	44	6	1-0
6	Genoa-Hugo	9-1	40	7	2-0
7	South Baca	8-2	30	5	2-0
8	Fleming	6-2	22	8	2-0
9	Heritage Christian	8-2	12	–	2-1
10	Plateau Valley	5-3	8	10	0-2
Others receiving votes:
Springfield 4, Cheraw 2, Prairie 2, Rocky Mountain Lutheran 2, Eads 1, Shining Mountain 1.
Dropped out
Eads (9).

January 19, 2015

Top-ranked Arvada West wrestles to tournament title
Arvada West senior Payton Tawater, right, lines up Thompson Valley senior Ben Hewson during the 152-pound title bout Saturday. Tawater rallied from a first-period deficit to win 8-5. (Dennis Pleuss)

ARVADA — After a long day of a prep-wrestling tournament it’s not typical for the champions to get a handshake of an Olympic gold medalist cap off the day.

However, that was the case Saturday during the 51st annual Arvada West Classic Invitational. Jordan Burroughs, 2012 Olympic gold medalist and two-time NCAA wrestling champion, was at Arvada West High School to handout the awards at the end of the night.

Olympic gold medalist and two-time NCAA wrestling champion Jordan Burroughs poses for a photo with Arvada West senior Devin Rothrock on Saturday night after the conclusion of the Arvada West Classic Invitational. (Dennis Pleuss)

“It feels awesome to be honest,” A-West senior Devin Rothrock said after being congratulated by Burroughs following a pin of Grand Junction senior Tyler Zook in the first period to win the 220-pound weight class. “I’ve been working hard, sometimes two or three practices a day since football.”

Rothrock didn’t start wrestling until after winter break because of a broken hand. The returning state champion hasn’t missed a beat improving to 16-0 this season with four first-period pins Saturday.

As a team, A-West looks to be on the same path to defend its 5A state team title. The Wildcats, ranked No. 1 in the latest On the Mat rankings produced to Tim Yount, won their own tournament Saturday night. Pomona (5A, No. 2) finished second, Thompson Valley (4A, No. 1) took third and Grand Junction (5A, No. 3) placed fourth in one of the deepest tournaments before regionals.

“For Arvada West it’s still a ‘mini-state,’” Rothrock said. “It was tough today. It’s a good benchmark to see where you are and what you need to work on.”

A-West finished with three champions in seniors Jimmy Rothwell (145), Payton Tawater (152) and Rothrock. Rothwell dominated Grandview senior Randall Brown for a 9-1 major decision. While Tawater, returning state champion, had a bit of a tougher time in a match-up against the No. 1 wrestlers ranked at 152 pounds in 5A and 4A.

Thompson Valley senior Ben Hewson jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead in the first period with a takedown and near-fall. However, Tawater rallied from the deficit to put out an 8-5 victory.

“As time has gone on I don’t let the little things bother me,” Tawater said of the come-from-behind win. “Maybe when I was a freshman or sophomore that would stick in my head the rest of the match, but now I just focus on scoring more points.”

Tawater improved to 22-3 on the season. The senior believes A-West’s tough schedule that has taken the Wildcats to tournaments in Ohio and Virginia this season.

“There is always a target on our back I guess, but we just meet the pressure and show everyone we are still the best,” Tawater said.

Pomona senior Travis Torres, top, works on Thompson Valley junior Vlad Kazakov during the 120-pound championship match Saturday. (Dennis Pleuss)

Pomona, last year’s runner-up in 5A, had a strong performance Saturday. The Panthers claimed a pair of individual titles with senior Travis Torres (120) and junior Deyaun Trueblood (170). Torres defeated Thompson Valley junior Vlad Kazakov 5-2. Kazakov is ranked No. 1 at 120 pounds in 4A and was undefeated coming into the title bout.

“I treat it like any other match going in,” Torres said of the battle of top-ranked wrestlers. “I wanted to win. I just go out and score as many points as I can or get the pin. Just have fun with it.”

Torres trailed 1-0 going into the third period, but pulled off a 2-point reversal in the first 30 seconds of the final period before scoring a 3-point near-fall.

“To be honest I kind of fell into it,” Torres admitted of the reversal. “I was trying to grab his leg from underneath him, but I felt him getting high and I was able to get behind him.”

Trueblood, who won an individual state title at Gateway last season, dominated his title match against Thompson Valley sophomore Mike Berg.

Grand Junction was able to match A-West when it came to individual champions. Freshmen Dylan Martinez (106), Josiah Rider (138) along with senior and returning state champion Jacob Trujillo (160) proved why the Tigers would be in contention for individual titles when the state tournament rolls around Feb. 19-21 at Pepsi Center.

“I treat it just like a race,” Torres said about moving forward toward regionals and state. “Start hard, but finish harder.”

Grand Junction freshman Josiah Rider, left, tries to pull Arvada West senior Bennie Pachello to his back during the third period of the 138-pound championship match Saturday at the Arvada West Classic Invitational. (Dennis Pleuss)

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Results

Team:
1. Arvada West, 185
2. Pomona, 177
3. Thompson Valley, 166
4. Grand Junction, 124
5. Coronado, 104
6. Broomfield, 96.5
7. Chaparral, 85.5
8. Brighton, 74.5
9. Grandview, 65
10. Grand Junction Central, 64
11. Monarch, 59
12. Adams City, 49
13. Durango, 40
14. Fountain-Fort Carson, 34
15. Bear Creek, 9.5
Arvada West senior Devin Rothrock lifts Grand Junction senior Tyler Zook off the mat during Rothrock’s first-period pin Saturday night. (Dennis Pleuss)

Championship matches:

106: Dylan Martinez, Grand Junction, dec. Dayton Marvel, Pomona, 7-5

113: Morgan Fogg, Thompson Valley, major dec. Frank Martinez, Chaparral, 10-2

120: Travis Torres, Pomona, dec. Vlad Kazakov, Thompson Valley, 5-2

126: Darek Huff, Broomfield, dec. Xavier Cardenas, Grandview, 10-8 OT

132: Jess Hankin, Coronado, dec. Jason Romero, Pomona, 6-4 OT

138: Josiah Rider, Grand Junction, dec. Bennie Pachello, Arvada West, 5-2

145: Jimmy Rothwell, Arvada West, major dec. Seth Brown, Grandview, 9-1

152: Payton Tawater, Arvada West, dec. Ben Hewson, Thompson Valley, 8-5

160: Jacob Trujillo, Grand Junction, fall Aaron Trygstad, Chaparral, :54

170: Deyaun Trueblood, Pomona, major dec. Mike Berg, Thompson Valley, 14-3

182: Patrick Cunnion, Durango, dec. Cameron Gonzales, Pomona, 5-2

195: David Eusea, Thompson Valley, fall Zach Gomez, Arvada West, 3:41

220: Devin Rothrock, Arvada West, fall Tyler Zook, Grand Junction, 1:48

285: Dan Drimmer, Chaparral, fall Mason Watt, Broomfield, :53

Coronado senior Jess Hankin, left, and Pomona sophomore Jason Romero square off in the 132-pound title match Saturday night. Hankin took a narrow 6-4 overtime victory. (Dennis Pleuss)
January 18, 2015
Photos: No. 1 Regis Jesuit boys basketball storms back to beat Fossil Ridge

FORT COLLINS — Bryan Staerkel scored 18 points, Nolan Ebel added 16 and No. 1-ranked Regis Jesuit edged Fossil Ridge 61-57 in a Class 5A boys basketball game on Saturday.

Ryan Quaid had a monster game in the loss for Fossil Ridge, scoring 12 points and hauling in 16 rebounds. He led four SaberCats in double figures, including Jackson Everhart (13 points), Zacc Drovdal (11) and Andrew Semadeni (10).

Fossil Ridge led 21-8 after the first quarter and 32-21 at halftime before Regis Jesuit mounted a comeback.

January 18, 2015
Photos: No. 1 Valor Christian girls basketball beats No. 6 Evergreen

HIGHLANDS RANCH — Caroline Bryan had 18 points and 10 rebounds and top-ranked Valor Christian girls basketball beat No. 6 Evergreen in an important Class 4A game.

Kendall Bradbury added 17 points and eight rebounds in the win for Valor. Madison McCoy had seven assists, six rebounds, and also scored five points.

January 18, 2015
Ralston Valley girls hoops’ big quarter keys upset of No. 7 Lakewood

Ralston Valley sophomore Sydney Prey (13) attempts to get around Lakewood junior Madeline Miller (20) during the second half Friday night. (Dennis Pleuss)

ARVADA — It’s a safe bet the girls basketball Class 5A Jeffco League championship will go through Lakewood and/or Ralston Valley.

Ralston Valley sophomore Sydney Prey, left, and Lakewood junior McKenna Bishop fight for a loose ball during the opening half Friday at Ralston Valley High School. (Dennis Pleuss)

Lakewood or Ralston Valley has captured the conference title six of the previous seven years. The Tigers, ranked No. 7 in this week’s CHSAANow.com poll, prevented the Mustangs from taking a four-peat last season. Lakewood rolled to a 16-0 league mark on its way to a 5A state quarterfinal appearance a year ago.

“It was my motivation for this year. Last year losing both games (to Lakewood), it was my main focus for this year,” Ralston Valley senior Morgan Nishida said of losing twice to the Tigers.

The two Jeffco powerhouses squared off Friday night in their first of two scheduled league tilts this winter. A 28-point second quarter for Ralston Valley (8-4, 4-0 in league) on its home court provided plenty of cushion as the Mustangs went on to a 69-41 victory over the Tigers (8-5, 3-1).

“It snowballed,” Lakewood coach Chris Poisson said of second quarter where the Mustangs’ outscored the Tigers 28-11. “Ralston Valley is really good. We talked about if you leave them open they are going to stick it in our eye, and they did. They played great. Give them credit.”

The Mustangs opened up a 40-19 halftime advantage. Nishida led the way with 10 points before the break. Sophomores Ashley Van Sickle, Sydney Prey and freshman MaKena Prey combined for 24 points in the opening half.

Nearly everything was working offensively for Ralston Valley in the opening half. The Mustangs drained four 3-pointers, Nishida sliced through Lakewood’s defense and MaKena Prey dominated down low.

“We got a big lift from the freshman (MaKena Prey) off the bench. She gave us a huge lift,” Ralston Valley coach Jeff Gomer said. “We were in attack mode. Defensively we were really good in the first half.”

Junior Hannah Weber poured in seven points in the third quarter to keep things going for the Mustangs. Ralston Valley eventually extended its lead to 30 points in the fourth quarter.

The Mustangs finished with 25 field goals compared to Lakewood’s 13 made shots for the game.

“I always try to keep the team going, keep the team up and focused,” said Nishida, the lone senior for the Mustangs. “That’s my role on the court.”

Ralston Valley senior Morgan Nishida (3) backs the ball out as Lakewood juniors Madeline Miller (20) and Mackenzie Forrest (33) get back on defense. Nishida scored eight points in the Mustangs’ 28-point second quarter to help Ralston Valley on to a 69-41 victory against Lakewood, ranked No. 7 in the latest CHSAANow.com Class 5A girls basketball poll. (Dennis Pleuss)

The Mustangs finished with three players in double-figures. Nishida (13 points), MaKena Prey (13 points) and Van Sickle (10 points). Sydney Prey and sophomore Chloe Gillach came close with nine points each in the fourth straight win for Ralston Valley.

“We don’t have kids who are some of the top scorers, but I’ve got six or seven kids who can go for 20 points on any night,” Gomer said.

Lakewood’s leading scorer was junior McKenna Bishop. She finished as the lone Tiger in double-digits with a game-high 18 points. One of the best shooting guards in the state, Lakewood junior Mackenzie Forrest, was held to just three points.

“We’ve got to learn from everything. You’d like to learn from a win,” Poisson said after Lakewood had its five-game winning streak snapped. “It will motivate this group. I’m not worried. It’s probably good for us in the long run.”

Lakewood hosts Dakota Ridge at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21. Ralston Valley’s next game is a road trip to Bear Creek High School on Wednesday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

“It gives us a leg up, that’s all it does,” Gomer said of beating Lakewood the first go-around. “You can’t get too full of yourselves. We’ve got a lot of work to do, but we’ve improved a lot since December. We are starting to get our wheels a little bit.”

Ralston Valley freshman MaKena Prey (44) drives to the hoop as Lakewood juniors Marisela Perez (24) and McKenna Bishop (22) attempt to cut of her path Friday night at Ralston Valley High School. Prey came off the bench to score 13 points for the Mustangs in a 69-41 victory over No. 7 Lakewood. (Dennis Pleuss)

January 17, 2015
Big second half pushes No. 2 Faith Christian boys hoops past No. 3 Jefferson Academy

(Brian Miller/CHSAANow.com)

ARVADA – Having watched Jefferson Academy whittle a 17-point deficit down to only three points Friday night, Faith Christian Academy’s boys basketball team knew something had to change in the second half.

So how did the Eagles respond? They simply refused to miss.

Faith Christian, ranked No. 2 in Class 3A, was dialed in coming out of the locker room. The Eagles connected on 15 consecutive attempts at one point to pull away for a decisive 67-45 victory over No. 3 Jefferson Academy.

Junior Gabriel Hegarty and senior Grant Harkness combined to score 40 points in the victory. Spencer Bazz added 14, all of which came in the second half.

“We were feeling it during that third quarter,” said Hegarty, who had a game-high 22 points. “I think we were really hitting the shots and just feeling together as a team.”

Faith Christian (11-0, 1-0 in the Class 3A Metro League) led 23-6 early in the second quarter before turnovers helped shift the momentum to the Jaguars. A trio of 3-pointers ignited Jefferson Academy (10-2, 1-1), which was also a perfect 8-for-8 from the free-throw line in the second quarter. Dalton Hagen’s 3-pointer capped off a 19-5 run that cut the Eagles’ lead to 28-25 at the half.

“First of all it’s a good team, so they’re not going to go away,” Faith Christian coach Andrew Hasz said. “Secondly, you hit some early shots and it makes you get a little lazy sometimes and you think ‘oh, we’re just always going to hit the shot.’

“I felt like we were trying to score on a five-second shot clock and not being as patient.”

Once sophomore Jonathan Hardcastle got the scoring started in the third quarter though, there was no stopping the Eagles. The team finished the quarter with eight buckets in a row, and Faith Christian drained its first seven attempts of the fourth quarter.

“When we started the second half we took poor shots and turned it over,” Jefferson Academy coach Mark Sharpley said. “We tried to rush it and then they started hitting all their shots.”

Much of the early damage was done inside, with Hegarty and Harkness scoring with ease in the paint.

“The guards know what Grant, Spencer and I are going to be doing,” Hegarty said. “They can get us the ball.”

Bazz was 4-for-4 from the field in the fourth quarter, knocking down a pair of 3-pointers. It wasn’t until the Jaguars blocked a shot attempt late in the fourth that the run came to an end.

“They hit us on some plays, and kind of uncharacteristic of us, we lost our man several times,” Sharpley said. “We allowed them to be underneath the hoop, around the hoop, and we had no idea where they were.”

Andrew Ullman led the Jaguars with 17 points and Joe Raff added 11. The team’s only other loss this season came to 4A Conifer back in December.

“Certainly a lot of things to learn from for us,” Sharpley said. “We’ll take the adversity, turn it into a positive and get back to work and hopefully get to play them again somewhere down the line.”

Faith Christian, which advanced to the 3A state semifinals a year ago, was playing in its league opener. The team hosts Bishop Machebeuf on Tuesday before matching up with state runner-up Colorado Academy on Jan. 23.

“The Metro League is hands down the toughest, year in and year out,” Hasz said. “It may be even more so this year, so it will be a battle every night.”

January 17, 2015
Photos: No. 4 Eaglecrest boys hoops tops Cherry Creek on the road

GREENWOOD VILLAGE — No. 4-ranked Eaglecrest boys basketball got a big win on the road over Cherry Creek with a 65-46 victory on Friday night.

With the win, Eaglecrest improves to 9-3, including 2-0 in the Class 5A Centennial League. Cherry Creek is now also 9-3, including 3-3 in league play.

January 17, 2015
Photos: Mountain Vista boys hoops takes Continental opener vs. Legend

HIGHLANDS RANCH — Brady Subart, again, led Mountain Vista boys basketball to a big win.

Subart had 21 points on 5-of-10 3-point shooting as the No. 8 Golden Eagles beat No. 9 Legend 44-38 in the Continental League opener for both teams on Friday. Subart also had five rebounds.

Isaac Phillips added 14 points for Mountain Vista.

January 17, 2015
Photos: Helbig leads Holy Family boys basketball over Mead

BROOMFIELD — No. 5-ranked Holy Family got 25 points from Chris Helbig in taking a 55-46 victory against No. 10 Mead in a Class 4A game.

Luke Golter added 18 points and six rebounds in the win.

January 17, 2015
Photos: No. 2 Regis Jesuit hockey beats Mullen

LITTLETON — No. 2-ranked Regis Jesuit hockey beat rival Mullen 7-1 on Wednesday behind two goals and an assist from Cale Woodley.

The Raiders also got a three-point night from Connor Brennan (goal, two assists), and two goals from Grant Johnson.

January 16, 2015

Month: January 2015

CHSAANow.com Girls Basketball Polls

Results