There will only be one Aurora Public Schools boys lacrosse team starting next season, as the school district has opted to combine its two programs.

District athletic director Mike Krueger informed the CHSAA office of the change on Tuesday.

APS recently has fielded two teams, one at Gateway and one at Rangeview. For at least the next two-year cycle — which includes the 2017 and 2018 boys lacrosse seasons — those programs will combine and be housed at Rangeview.

Krueger cited a decrease in participation, as well as “an effort to create a program that allows for the development of younger players,” in combining the two programs.

The change means that boys lacrosse will now have 76 teams — a split of 41 in 5A and 35 in 4A. The South Suburban League, of which Gateway and Rangeview both were set to play in, will have seven teams in 2017 and 2018.

Rangeview boys lacrosse finished 1-14 in Class 5A last season, while Gateway was 1-12, also in 5A.

Rangeview also has a girls lacrosse program.

Woodland Park’s Jeremy Gwinn and Windsor’s Jake Greenwalt made history on Saturday, becoming the first-ever alums of their respective schools to be selected in the MLB Draft.

In all, 16 more products of Colorado products were drafted on the final day of the 2016 draft, bringing the total to 22 players. That figure is tied for the seventh-most in state history since the draft began in 1965.

Six high school seniors were drafted this year, as well as 16 former Colorado high school baseball players who are now playing in college.

Gwinn started the day off for locals as a 12th-round pick of the Kansas City Royals, going with the No. 373 overall selection. He graduated from Woodland Park in 2013, and is now a 6-foot-5 right-handed pitcher who just finished his sophomore season at Colby Community College in Kansas.

Woodland Park was founded in 1890, and, according to CHSAANow.com research, it has not previously ever had a player taken in the MLB Draft.

Gwinn went 8-2 with a 3.53 ERA in 79 innings this season at Colby CC, which included a team-best five complete games in nine starts. He struck out 104 batters, and walked 21. After the season, he was named first-team all-conference and first-team all-Region VI.

Windsor’s Greenwalt, meanwhile, became Windsor’s first-ever selection when the right-handed pitcher was taken by the San Francisco Giants in the 23rd round at No. 695 overall.

He was also the first 2016 graduate to be selected in this year’s draft.

A right-handed pitcher who stands 6-foot-2, Greenwalt was 9-0 with a 0.89 ERA in 55 1/3 innings for Windsor as the Wizards reached the Class 4A Final 4. After the season, he was named first-team all-state in 4A.

Greenwalt is committed to Northern Colorado.

Two rounds prior, in the 21st, Chaparral alum Max Kuhns was drafted by the New York Mets at No. 640 overall.

Kuhns, a 2013 graduate of Chaparral, just finished his junior season as a right-handed reliever at Santa Clara in which he went 1-4 with a 2.21 ERA in 40 2/3 innings. He made 28 appearances, and struck out 37 batters, while walking 16.

Kuhns is the fourth draft pick in history from Chaparral, where he starred in both football and baseball.

In the 24th round, 2012 Fort Collins graduate J.D. Hammer — now a senior at Marshall — was selected by the Rockies at No. 710 overall.

Hammer, a right-handed pitcher, was 4-2 for Marshall this spring, and had a 4.88 ERA in 66 1/3 innings. He had 56 strikeouts against 24 walks.

Hammer is the sixth draft pick out of Fort Collins High School.

Highlands Ranch alum Nick Shumpert, who graduated in 2015, was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 28th round. A second baseman, he spent this past season at San Jacinto College North in California.

He hit .284 with a home run and 16 RBIs, and also stole 15 bases this spring.

Shumpert was also drafted out of high school, going in the seventh round of last year’s draft.

After Shumpert, three locals were drafted in the 29th round.

First, Conifer alum Earl Henderson was drafted by the White Sox at No. 866 overall. Henderson, a first baseman, is a redshirt sophomore at Central Arizona College, and hit .406 with six home runs and 47 RBIs this season.

Henderson graduated from Conifer in 2013, and is the school’s second-ever draft pick.

Seven picks later, 2013 Pine Creek graduate Dane Hutcheon was drafted by the Minnesota Twins. A shortstop at Montevallo in Alabama, he hit .365 with three home runs and 43 RBIs this season.

Just five picks after that, Regis Jesuit senior Bo Weiss was drafted by the New York Yankees. A right-handed pitcher, and member of the 5A all-state team this spring, he went 7-1 with a 2.91 ERA, striking out 61, and walking just 15.

Weiss, the son of Rockies manager Walt Weiss, is a North Carolina commit. His older brother, Brody, was drafted in the 22nd round in 2013.

Things kept up at a furious pace in the 30th round.

Nick Highberger, a 2012 graduate from Rye who is now at Creighton, went to the Oakland A’s at No. 892 overall. A senior, he went 2-1 with a 3.20 ERA in 39 1/3 innings pitched this season.

Highberger is the second alum from Rye to be drafted, following former teammate Denton Keys, who went in 2013.

Later in the round, 2014 ThunderRidge graduate Brody Westmoreland was selected by the Houston Astros. In his lone season at the College of Southern Nevada following a transfer from San Diego State, Westmoreland hit .375 with 11 home runs and 40 RBIs.

Westmoreland was drafted out of high school, going in the 35th round in 2014.

Two high school seniors were next.

Cherry Creek’s Nate Sweeney went in the 33rd round to the Chicago Cubs. An Arizona commit, Sweeney was drafted as a right-handed pitcher.

He appeared in nine games for the Bruins this season, and was 1-3 with a 4.85 ERA in 21 2/3 innings. Sweeney also plays infield and outfield, and hit .389 with four home runs and 26 RBIs. He was a first-team all-state pick in 5A.

Sweeney is Cherry Creek’s 50th all-time draft pick, which is the most in state history.

Green Mountain senior Wyatt Featherston was drafted by the Rockies in the 34th round as a center fielder. He is committed to Western Kentucky.

Featherston, a member of 4A’s all-state first team, hit .472 with 12 home runs and 29 RBIs this season. He also stole 14 bases.

This is Green Mountain’s third time having a player drafted, and first since 1991.

In the 36th round, the Yankees drafted 2012 Legend grad Tyler Honahan, who is now a senior left-handed pitcher at Stony Brook.

He went 5-6 with a 5.25 ERA as a starter, throwing 70.1 innings with 62 strikeouts and 36 walks.

Honahan is the second Legend product taken in the 2016 draft, after Arizona’s Bobby Dalbec (fourth round), and third in program history.

In the next round, the 37th, 2014 Pueblo South graduate Cory Voss was drafted by the Washington Nationals. Voss is a sophomore catcher at McLennan (Texas) College, and hit .384 with 11 home runs and 53 RBIs this season.

Voss was previously drafted out of high school, in the 34th round.

Regis Jesuit had another senior selected when outfielder Quin Cotton was drafted by the Rockies in the 38th round. Cotton, a first-team all-state pick in 5A, is committed to Grand Canyon University in Arizona.

Cotton hit .514 with three home runs with 28 RBIs this spring, and stole a team-high 14 bases.

The 39th round saw the Rockies take another local senior — Fruita Monument catcher Cuba Bess. Bess, a Grand Canyon commit, hit .507 with a home runs and 19 RBIs this season.

He is Fruita Monument’s seventh all-time draft pick, and first since 2009.

Six alumni of Colorado high school baseball were selected on the first two days of the MLB Draft, including Loveland alum Alec Hansen going in the second round on Thursday, and five additional college players drafted on Friday.

Find a complete list of the local selections here.

The second day of the MLB Draft was Friday, and the first local off the board was Cherry Creek alum Griffin Jax.

Jax was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the third round with the No. 93 overall pick. He just finished his junior season as a right-handed pitcher at Air Force, in which he went 9-2 with a 2.05 ERA and struck out 90 batters in 105 1/3 innings.

It is the second time Jax has been drafted. He was picked in the 12th round out of high school in 2013, but opted to play at Air Force instead of starting a pro career.

His selection also adds to the legacy of Cherry Creek. This is the 49th time a player who went through that program has been drafted, which is most in state history, but it is the first time since 2013 that a Cherry Creek player was taken — when four Bruins were selected. That group included Jax.

Jax’s selection followed Loveland alum Alec Hansen in this year’s draft. Hansen went in the second round on Thursday night.

A round after Jax on Friday, in the fourth, 2013 Legend graduate Bobby Dalbec was selected by the Boston Red Sox with the 118th overall pick.

Dalbec is now a junior two-way player at the University of Arizona, who plays third base and is also one of the team’s best pitchers. He is hitting .266 with six home runs and 38 RBIs this season.

He also is 9-4 with seven saves, a 3.28 ERA and 61 strikeouts in 71 1/3 innings as a pitcher, but was drafted as a third baseman.

Dalbec is just the second player from Legend to ever be drafted, following Greg Pickett last season.

The next Colorado product off the board was 2013 Broomfield graduate Brandon Bailey, who was drafted by the Oakland A’s in the sixth round. A right-handed pitcher, he is now a junior at Gonzaga University.

This spring, Bailey helped the Bulldogs reach the Regional round by going 10-3 with a 2.42 ERA and 125 strikeouts in 100 1/3 innings of work. He held opposing hitters to a .214 batting average.

Bailey is Broomfield’s 10th pick in MLB Draft history, and the first since 2011.

After a few rounds of silence, Regis Jesuit alum Peter Bayer was taken by the Tampa Bay Rays in the ninth round. Bayer just finished his senior season at Cal Poly Pomona where he went 2-2 with a 4.39 ERA. He did however lead the team in opposing batting average with opposing hitters only batting .198 off him.

At Regis Jesuit, he was an All-Continental League pick in his junior and senior seasons and helped the Raiders come away with the 2011 5A state championship.

Only 17 picks later, Fossil Ridge alum Julian Garcia. Garcia, a sophomore at Metro State, was taken by the Philadelphia Phillies.

Garcia went 5-6 in his freshman campaign, one of the better freshman seasons in school history.

He is just the second player from Fossil Ridge to ever be drafted.

As a senior with the Sabercats, he threw 32 innings, finishing with an impressive 2.19 ERA. He also showed he wasn’t bad swinging the bat as he hit .510 with three home runs and 14 RBIs.

A complete list of locals taken so far in the 2016 MLB Draft is available here.

Due to a lack of numbers, Calhan has informed the CHSAA office that it will not be fielding a football team in the 2016 season.

In a letter to schools on its schedule, Calhan athletic director Derek Burnside cited a lack of athletes to field a team. The Bulldogs competed in Class 1A, and finished the 2014 season with 13 players, according to Burnside.

This upcoming season, between 11-13 athletes have expressed an interest in joining the team.

Calhan is 5-31 since 2012, including 1-8 last season.

At this point, Calhan’s plan is to return to fielding a team in 2017 — but as junior varsity only.

“Starting in the 2018 cycle, we will work to bring back Calhan football with better numbers, and athletes ready for the demands of varsity football,” Burnside wrote. “We do not want to lose football at Calhan, but at this point Calhan High School cannot safely field a team.”

Alec Hansen is leading the way for Colorado baseball in the 2016 MLB Draft.

Hansen, a graduate of Loveland High School who is now a junior at the University of Oklahoma, was selected by the Chicago White Sox in the second round of the draft on Thursday night.

A 6-foot-7 right-handed pitcher, Hansen went with the No. 49 overall pick to become the first Colorado product taken in this year’s MLB Draft. He was the lone local taken on the first day of the three-day event.

This is the highest a Loveland player has ever been drafted. Previously, the school’s top pick was Scot McCloughan going in the 10th round directly out of high school in 1989.

Hansen is Colorado’s highest draft pick since Thomas Jefferson alum Kyle Freeland went in the first round of the 2014 draft. There were no in-state players selected on the first day of last year’s draft.

Hansen was also drafted out of high school after he graduated in 2013, going in the 25th round to the Colorado Rockies. He opted to play at Oklahoma instead of signing.

The hard-throwing pitcher went 3-5 with a 5.40 ERA at Oklahoma this season, and struck out 75 batters against 39 walks in 51 2/3 innings.

“I know I’m one of the best pitchers in college baseball,” Hansen told CHSAANow.com in May. “That just pushes me to work harder to achieve my potential.”

The MLB Draft began on Friday with the first 77 picks — spanning the first, second, compensation and lottery rounds — on Thursday. It continues with rounds 3-10 on Friday, and things wrap up with rounds 11-40 on Saturday.

Follow all of this season’s local picks in the 2016 MLB Draft here.

Sollie Raso, a Southern Colorado icon and member of the Colorado High School Activities Association Hall of Fame Class of 1992 has passed away. He was man with a passion for life and he shared that passion with students, coaches and the community of Pueblo.

“Sollie Raso holds a special spot in the hearts of all who knew him. He was a great coach and administrator and a wonderful representative to the CHSAA from Southern Colorado. His counsel and presence will be missed,” Commissioner Paul Angelico said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”

Raso knew how to get things done, having developed a strong work ethic growing up in Denver during tough times. Just five months after Pearl Harbor, he enlisted in the Army Air Force where he was involved in 30 combat missions as a nose gunner on a B-17 bomber in World War II.

He became a teacher and coach at Pueblo’s Central High school where he coached football, basketball, wrestling and track. He had a 58-17 record in football coach, had numerous individual and state place winners in wrestling, along with individual district and league champions in while at Central.

He served 11 years as principal at Central, and then 15 years as Executive Director of Student Activities for Pueblo School District #60. He was instrumental in bringing girls’ athletics to District 60, adding basketball, swimming, gymnastics, track, cross country and tennis for girls.

He hosted the first ever CHSAA state track meet and conducted countless, district, regional and state level playoff events in all sports for the Association. He also served for 23 years, including 8 as chairman, of the CHSAA Basketball Committee. He also served on the organizations Board of Control (now Legislative Council) and was a member of the CHSAA Executive Committee (Board of Directors), serving as the Association’s president in 1970-71.

He also served two terms as a Pueblo County Commissioner beginning in 1984. He is a member of the Greater Pueblo Sports Hall of Fame and the Pueblo Hall of He and his wife, Betty Lou, had four children and were married for 62 years before she passed away in 2010.

The CHSAA office is unaware of any services at this point, but will add those as they become available.

The 2016 MLB Draft was June 9-11. Below is a list of Colorado products selected, 22 in total.

Last season, 19 players who played high school baseball in Colorado were taken.

Coverage:

• Day 1: Loveland’s Alec Hansen goes in second round
• Day 2: Five more alums picked from colleges
• Day 3: History made with Gwinn’s selection

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Local selections in the 2016 MLB Draft

Alumni
RD	OVR	Team	Name	POS	High School	Grad	College
2	49	Chicago White Sox	Alec Hansen	RHP	Loveland	2013	Oklahoma
3	93	Minnesota Twins	Griffin Jax	RHP	Cherry Creek	2013	Air Force
4	118	Boston Red Sox	Bobby Dalbec	3B	Legend	2013	Arizona
6	172	Oakland A’s	Brandon Bailey	RHP	Broomfield	2013	Gonzaga
9	270	Tampa Bay Rays	Peter Bayer	RHP	Regis Jesuit	2012	Cal Poly Pomona
10	287	Philadelphia Phillies	Julian Garcia	RHP	Fossil Ridge	2013	Metro State
12	373	Kansas City Royals	Jeremy Gwinn	RHP	Woodland Park	2013	Colby (Kan.) CC
21	640	New York Mets	Max Kuhns	RHP	Chaparral	2013	Santa Clara
24	710	Colorado Rockies	J.D. Hammer	RHP	Fort Collins	2012	Marshall
28	829	Atlanta Braves	Nick Shumpert	2B	Highlands Ranch	2015	San Jacinto
29	866	Chicago White Sox	Earl Henderson	1B	Conifer	2013	Central Arizona
29	873	Minnesota Twins	Dane Hutcheon	SS	Pine Creek	2013	Montevallo
30	892	Oakland A’s	Nick Highberger	RHP	Rye	2012	Creighton
30	907	Houston Astros	Brody Westmoreland	3B	ThunderRidge	2014	College of Southern Nevada
36	1088	New York Yankees	Tyler Honahan	LHP	Legend	2012	Stony Brook
37	1114	Washingtion Nationals	Cory Voss	C	Pueblo South	2014	McLennan CC

2016 graduates
RD	OVR	Team	Name	POS	High School	Commit
23	695	San Francisco Giants	Jake Greenwalt	RHP	Windsor	Northern Colorado
29	878	New York Yankees	Bo Weiss	RHP	Regis Jesuit	North Carolina
33	1004	Chicago Cubs	Nate Sweeney	RHP	Cherry Creek	Arizona
34	1010	Colorado Rockies	Wyatt Featherston	CF	Green Mountain	Western Kentucky
38	1130	Colorado Rockies	Quin Cotton	CF	Regis Jesuit	Grand Canyon (Ariz.)
39	1160	Colorado Rockies	Cuba Bess	C	Fruita Monument	Grand Canyon (Ariz.)

AURORA — The following are dates approved by the CHSAA office for football’s summer team camps during the 2016 offseason.

School	Camp Location(s)	Dates
Air Academy	Wyoming	June 11-14
Arickaree/Woodlin	Western State	June 9-12
Caliche	UNC	June 3-5
Coal Ridge	Coal Ridge	May 31-June 4; June 6-9
Cedaregde	Colorado Mesa	June 2-4
Cherry Creek	Cherry Creek	July 18-29
Columbine	Columbine/CSU	June 6-9
Conerstone Christian	Cornerstone	June 6-10, 13-16
Dakota Ridge	CSU Pueblo	June 12-15
Denver North	Denver North	July 18-29
Douglas County	CSU Pueblo	June 12-15
Estes Park	Chadron State	June 8-11
Fairview	Fairview	May 31-June 10
Faith Christian	CSU Pueblo	July 19-27
Falcon	CSU Pueblo	July 11-21
Fort Morgan	Wyoming	June 12-14
Genoa- Hugo	Hugo	July 18-22, 25-29
Grand Junction	Grand Junction	May 31-June 10
Grand Valley	Grand Valley	July 18-29
Grandview	Grandview	June 6-16
Greeley West	Greeley West/UNC	June 2-8, 12-14
Green Mountain	UNC	June 12-14
Haxtun	Chadron State	June 14-17
Hoehne	Western State	June 9-12
Hotchkiss	Hotchkiss	May 31-June 9
Liberty	Liberty/CSU Pueblo	June 6-10, 12-15
Littleton	Littleton	May 30-June 10
Machebeuf	Machebeuf	July 5-15
Merino	Chadron State	June 15-18
Mountin Range	Mountain Range/Mesa	May 31-June 4; June 5-8
Mullen	Mullen	July 18-22
Northfield	Northfield	July 18-29
North Park	North Park/UNC	May 30-June 2; June 3-5
Otis	Western State	June 6-12
Palmer	Palmer	July 18-29
Palisade	Western State	June 1-4
Platte Valley	Wyoming	June 12-14
Pueblo South	Pueblo South	July 7-8, 11-15, 18-20
Resurrection Christian	CSU-Pueblo	July 24-27
Rock Canyon	Rock Canyon	July 18-21, 25-29
Rocky Ford	Western State	June 5-8
Smoky Hill	Smoky Hill	July 18-30
Steamboat Springs	Steamboat	May 31-June 10
Trindad	Western State	June 5-8
University	Kearney	June 12-14
Windsor	Windsor	May 31-June 11

An eventful spring at Fountain-Fort Carson is leading to what looks like an exciting summer.

After the retirement of football coach, Mitch Johnson, the school had to find a new coach for the first time in 37 years. In May, the Trojans looked down the road to CSU-Pueblo and were able to hire Jake Novotny, an assistant with the Thunderwolves.

With time already spent as an assistant at the high school level with Heritage and on the staff of a national championship winning team, Novotny found the job at Fountain-Fort Carson to be too good to pass up.

In doing so, he became the latest in a series of football coaching changes around the state this offseason.

With his tenure underway, Novotny took some time to chat with CHSAANow.com about the challenges that come with following a legend and what he brings to the table at Fountain-Fort Carson.

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Question: Was it difficult to come into a situation following Coach Johnson with the way he was beloved in that role?

Novotny: I’m going to speak to things that happened before I was here, but I’ll the you this, being at CSU-Pueblo and being at Heritage High School from 2009 to 2011, I got to see what Coach Johnson has done from afar and the way he ran things and how he operated as a coach and a human being.

From that perspective, I have nothing but great things to say about Mitch. He’s a class act and he’s been a guy that’s done great things for kids. He’s an advocate for kids. He’s a good football coach, too.

Coming into this situation, I know from the football perspective that the kids were going to be in a good place in terms of what he’s done as a coach and setting them up to be successful at the next level.

Like I said, I have nothing but respect for Johnson and he’s a class act and the kids are prepared because of the things he had done in the past and traditions that he had established. My job is to make sure that I embrace the past, but also have a direction and a vision for the future.

Q: When this job became available, was it something that intrigued you and that you sought out or did Fountain-Fort Carson make its way toward you?

Novotny: It was something that intrigued me and I sought out. I was at a pretty special place in CSU-Pueblo. For me to leave there and go somewhere, it had to be just as special, if not more special.

That’s exactly how I feel about Fountain-Fort Carson. I’ve said it numerous times the last couple of days to different people, but facilities, administration, teachers, community-wise and especially kid-wise, there’s not a place like this in the state.

I’ve been all over recruiting (for CSU-Pueblo), I’ve coached and played in the Denver area and this place down here is the closest you are going to get to a small college at the high school level, or even the Texas type of high school. It’s a one-town high school. We’re the best show in town.

It’s great to showcase our kids on a weekly basis and be able to do that in a town where everybody knows who our kids are.

For me to leave that situation at CSU-Pueblo where we’ve won national championships and RMAC championships and leave the staff that I worked with down there, it had to be for a place like Fountain. When it came open, it was a no-brainer for me to apply for it. And in a lot of ways for a coach, and I don’t care what level it is, it’s a dream job.

Q: What did (CSU-Pueblo head coach, John) Wristen say when you were offered and accepted the job?

Novotny: John is really good about giving advice. He’s been a great mentor of mine the last five years. Any time I’ve had job opportunities come up, John’s been a guy that I go to for advice, amongst several people, but he’s obviously is one of the first people I would sit down with.

He helped me weigh the pros and the cons and look at things from different perspectives. But at the end of the day, he told me, ‘Jake, if that’s what you want to do and that’s what’s in your heart, you need to go get that job. You need to go do it and make it the best place that it can be for you and for those kids.’

He was really supportive and was a guy that told me, ‘If you’re going to go do this, go 100 percent and do it the way we do it down here in terms having a good work ethic and attitude and relentlessly attacking everything you need to do that day.’

He was excited to see guys from his staff go on and have success in other places. I know he’s excited for me, excited that it’s one of his guys.

And I know, most importantly, that he’s there if I need him. It’s just like all the guys down there. They’re there if I need them. They’re 30 minutes down the road and I’ve already leaned on a few of them for some help and assistance on Xs and Os and ideas. That’s the best part is having a national championship coaching staff in your background and also in your back pocket.

Q: You left the high school ranks to go to D-II and now you’re heading back to the high school ranks. From what you’ve seen, what does Colorado have to offer in terms of talent from the high school level?

Novotny: There are guys in the state that don’t really understand the type of talent that we have here. I think Colorado is an under recruited area in some ways. I also think it’s an area where there’s a lot of potential that you can get a kid and really groom him at the next level.

I think you’re going to have four to eight guys a year that are going to be Division I guys. Every state is going to have that. Some states have more, obviously. But we’re always going to have those four-to-eight each year that are going to be CU guys, CSU guys. But this state is really typically, in my opinion, a Division I FCS to Division II type of talented state. Most kids in this state are going to play at the level.

As a coach, especially at the high school level, you’re job is to really educate your kids on the differences in those levels. What it means scholarship-wise for that. How they can get there and how they can be successful there.

My background recruiting and my background with Coach Wristen and knowing the things that he demanded to us to know in recruiting, I can help with that with our kids down here. I can bridge that gap a little bit about what to do, how to do it, what does a college athlete look like.

This state, it’s littered with talent left and right. A kid has to be realistic and coaches have to be realistic also. Parents have to be realistic in where can their kids play and be highly successful.

You have to have those brutally honest conversations with kids. But I think that’s what you’re supposed to do in that role.

Q: Have you gotten up to speed on the way the leagues changed this year with the waterfall process and RPI?

Novotny: I heard people talking about it while I was going out and recruiting in the spring before I interviewed for this job. I heard kind of what the ideas were and I haven’t had to chance to sit down and look at it in terms of RPI and how that works.

I have seen how the leagues were set up. And I understand it. You’re trying to make it to be the most competitive for everybody in the state as possible and building an opportunity for everybody to compete each other and have an opportunity at the playoffs.

I tell you the one thing that I really like about it more than anything is Class 5A going back to 16 teams in the playoffs. I think that’s the right number. I think that is the best way to get the top teams in the state competing for a state championship. I think that the 16-team playoff is the right number for this state right now.

Q: You started conditioning your kids this week, what are the early impressions you’re getting from the boys?

Novotny: I’ll tell you what, I’m impressed and excited about this group of seniors. I had 100 kids out, JV through varsity. So that’s sophomore through senior. And another 25-30 freshmen out. I had 130 kids out in the last three days.

That’s impressive for anywhere in this state. For a college program, that’s impressive to have that many kids out. They’re excited about football. And I’ll tell you what they’re excited about. They’re excited about working with their brothers, working with their teammates for a common goal, which is Sept. 2 against Ralston Valley. Having an opportunity to go compete with each other and for each other.

That’s what they’re excited about. That’s the way these kids are bred down here. That’s the way they are, they’re military kids. They’re kids that understand sacrifice and hard work. They understand dedication and discipline.

As a coach, what’s a better place to coach at?

The 2016 all-state baseball 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 then a vote of head coaches.

Player and coach of the year was also selected by a vote of the coaches.

[divider]

Class 5A

Player of the year: Jake Eissler, ThunderRidge

Coach of the year: Allan Dyer, Cherokee Trail

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Austin Alarid	Rocky Mountain	LHP/1B	Senior
Jerome Bohannon	Cherokee Trail	LHP/OF	Senior
Quin Cotton	Regis Jesuit	OF	Senior
Jake Eissler	ThunderRidge	RHP/3B/1B	Senior
Maverick Handley	Mullen	C/INF	Senior
Travis Marr	Regis Jesuit	RHP/1B	Senior
Conner Nantkes	Cherokee Trail	LHP/UTIL	Junior
Ryan Sullivan	Cherokee Trail	1B	Senior
Nate Sweeney	Cherry Creek	RHP/SS/OF	Senior
Bo Weiss	Regis Jesuit	RHP	Senior

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Peter Carlson	Ralston Valley	SS/RHP	Senior
Bailey Collins	Dakota Ridge	OF/P	Senior
Eric Cox	Cherokee Trail	RHP/OF	Junior
Cade Crader	Grandview	1B/RHP	Senior
Tommy Gillman	Columbine	SS	Senior
Jay Onken	Pine Creek	OF/RHP	Sophomore
Casey Opitz	Heritage	C/SS/RHP	Junior
Tanner O’Tremba	Cherry Creek	OF/RHP	Sophomore
Sam Schroeder	Fruita Monument	P/OF	Senior
Josh Schumacher	Rangeview	2B/SS/P	Senior
John Sorensen	Rocky Mountain	SS/RHP	Junior

Honorable mention:

• Cuba Bess, Senior, Fruita Monument
• Evan Bolin, Senior, Prairie View
• Wade Council, Senior, Pine Creek
• Aaron Dammel, Senior, Highlands Ranch
• Chris Diehl, Senior, Rocky Mountain
• Riley Egloff, Sophomore, Heritage
• Cole Farmer, Senior, Brighton
• Matt Givin, Junior, Rock Canyon
• Alex Gonzales, Senior, Rocky Mountain
• Tanner Hauptman, Senior, Ralston Valley
• Tyson Hays, Junior, Grandview
• Ryley Humrighouse, Senior, Castle View
• Ricky Marshall, Senior, Fountain-Fort Carson
• Jake Minnick, Senior, Douglas County
• Jacob Moyer, Senior, Fort Collins
• Dylan Paulsen, Senior, Gateway
• Walter Pennington, Senior, Broomfield
• Nick Perez, Junior, Cherokee Trail
• Rocco Porreco, Junior, Mullen
• Chase Powell, Senior, Lakewood
• Tony Rice, Senior, Liberty
• Jacob Rodriguez, Senior, Adams City
• Joey Salvato, Junior, Mullen
• Tyler Smith, Senior, Grandview
• Jordan Stubbings, Junior, Legend
• Nathaniel Swanson, Junior, Northglenn
• Jadon Uhrich, Junior, Rocky Mountain
• Razzo Vigil, Junior, Westminster

[divider]

Class 4A

Player of the year: Paul Tillotson, Lewis-Palmer

Coach of the year: Keith Wahl, Valor Christian

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Clint Allen	Erie	C/INF/P	Senior
Rocco Arguto	Pueblo West	RF	Senior
Holden Bernhardt	Mountain View	P/OF/1B	Senior
Wyatt Featherston	Green Mountain	OF/P	Senior
Jake Greenwalt	Windsor	–	Senior
Cole McKissock	Air Academy	INF	Senior
Dauson Tate	Pueblo West	C	Senior
Paul Tillotson	Lewis-Palmer	–	Senior
Austin Wood	Silver Creek	1B/P	Senior
Luke Ziegler	Valor Christian	3B/RHP	Sophomore

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Mike Berg	Thompson Valley	C/OF/3B	Junior
Issac Bracken	Berthoud	–	Senior
Jaspar Carmichael	Delta	SS/P	Sophomore
Billy Cook	Lewis-Palmer	–	Junior
Nyk Crumrine	Valor Christian	INF/RHP	Senior
Bailey Hansen	Air Academy	P/OF	Senior
Davis Heller	Valor Christian	RHP/1B	Freshman
Ethan Keller	Delta	CF/P	Junior
Ruben Portillo	Erie	P/INF	Junior
Cooper Rothe	Longmont	CF	Senior
Judah Wilbur	Denver North	INF/SS/2B	Junior

Honorable mention:

• Kavan Andrew, Senior, Longmont
• Locke Bernhardt, Senior, Mountain View
• Cameron Brosh, Senior, Canon City
• Josh Crites, Senior, Erie
• Kyle Daniels, Senior, Fort Morgan
• Blake Donels, Junior, Valor Christian
• Gavin Fesmire, Senior, Pueblo Centennial
• Daniel Gurrola, Senior, Denver North
• Spencer Hamilton, Senior, The Classical Academy
• Jaeden Hegmann, Junior, Mesa Ridge
• Dane Kapande, Senior, Evergreen
• Joe Lucas, Senior, Palisade
• Zach Manchester, Senior, Canon City
• Garrett Martin, Junior, Eagle Valley
• Lawrence Mayberry, Senior, Durango
• Mitch Menard, Senior, D’Evelyn
• Skyler Messinger, Junior, Niwot
• Jared Miller, Sophomore, Montrose
• Brett Muscatello, Senior, Evergreen
• Max Noland, Junior, Palisade
• Dylan Norsen, Junior, Mountain View
• Gunner Pickett, Senior, Mead
• Blake Reiher, Junior, Delta
• Morgan Robinson, Senior, Rifle
• Stephen Romero, Junior, Glenwood Springs
• Andrew Shaw, Junior, Summit
• Tyler Shubert, Senior, Windsor
• Isiah Torres, Senior, Pueblo East
• Sean Weller, Senior, Battle Mountain
• Kaylor Werner, Sophomore, Northridge
• Cole Winn, Sophomore, Silver Creek

[divider]

Class 3A

Player of the year: Austin Stone, Faith Christian

Coach of the year: Ralph Nance, Faith Christian

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Matt Burkart	Eaton	SS/RHP	Senior
Donovan Contreraz	Sheridan	P/INF	Senior
Braden Forney	Lamar	OF/P/SS	Senior
Kelton McCoy	Bayfield	C/P/INF	Senior
Will McKissick	Kent Denver	OF/P	Senior
Ben Padrnos	St. Mary’s	OF/P	Senior
Jake Spence	University	OF/P	Senior
AJ Stephens	Faith Christian	LHP/OF/1B	Senior
Austin Stone	Faith Christian	RHP/INF	Senior
Travis Struble	Manitou Springs	3B/P	Senior

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Davyn Adamscheck	Manitou Springs	SS/P	Junior
Dominic Archuleta	Manitou Springs	OF/P	Senior
Dalton Chandler	Lamar	P/OF	Sophomore
Gabe Hegarty	Faith Christian	OF/RHP/DH	Senior
Taed Heydinger	Bayfield	OF/P	Senior
Christian Johnson	The Academy	C/P	Senior
Dalton Lind	Eaton	RHP/OF	Senior
Cesar Mercado	Valley	INF/P	Junior
Zane Phelps	Bayfield	INF/P/C	Senior
Spencer Wilcox	University	OF/P	Senior

Honorable mention:

• Robbie Alejo, Senior, Alamosa
• Thatcher Beatty, Senior, Denver Science & Tech Stapleton
• Craig Beckfield, Senior, Platte Canyon
• Dax Bender, Junior, La Junta
• Jacob Brummel, Junior, St. Mary’s
• Rob Casey, Senior, Kent Denver
• Seth Crummer, Senior, Trinidad
• Timmy Engel, Senior, Centauri
• Landon Ford, Junior, Faith Christian
• Ty Hanzlicek, Senior, Valley
• BJ Hirschfeld, Senior, Brush
• Ty Jones, Senior, Florence
• Joe Kuhn, Senior, Eaton
• Xavier Manzanarez, Senior, Dolores Huerta Prep
• Brody Mcghehey, Senior, Bayfield
• Paul Medina, Junior, University
• Larry Nolasco, Senior, Bruce Randolph
• Ian Olson, Junior, Salida
• Tyler Percival, Senior, Gunnison
• Sam Richards, Sophomore, Colorado Academy
• Marcus Roberson, Junior, Bennett
• Quinn Stowell, Junior, Colorado Springs Christian
• Ian Turner, Senior, Gunnison
• Evan Wisdom, Senior, Sterling
• Jordan Yates, Sophomore, Buena Vista

[divider]

Class 2A

Player of the year: Luke Feigal, Dawson School

Coach of the year: Joe McKenzie, Dawson School

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Jonathon Cowles	Dayspring Christian Academy	RHP/CF/SS	Junior
Chance Dunker	Sedgwick County	RHP/2B/3B	Senior
Luke Feigal	Dawson School	RHP/3B	Senior
Tanner Fulkerson	Dawson School	SS/RHP	Senior
Cesar Gonzalez	Hotchkiss	P/INF	Senior
Kayden Seriani	Paonia	–	Sophomore
Trevor Smith	Paonia	–	Junior
Joe Stephen	Limon	–	Senior
Jake Tomcheck	Resurrection Christian	LHP/OF/1B	Senior

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Bailey Benz	Rye	–
Bryce Buhr	Crowley County	C/P	Senior
Seth Clemente	Dawson School	2B/SS	Junior
Caden Eastin	County Line [Wiley/McClave]	–	Senior
Jimmy Fargo	Dayspring Christian Academy	C/RHP/CF	Sophomore
Evan Finley	Peyton	P/INF/C	Senior
James Larson	Limon	–	Senior
Jaden Miller	Paonia	–	Sophomore
Tyler Woodhams	Sedgwick County	RHP/SS/2B	Senior

Honorable mention:

• Caleb Andersen, Junior, Haxtun
• Layne Andrews, Senior, Yuma
• Dom Beck, Senior, Hotchkiss
• Tristen Cesko, Senior, Limon
• Jett County, Junior, Burlington
• Christian Dellamaestra, Junior, County Line [Wiley/McClave]
• Ryan Drury, Junior, Rye
• Jason Dutton, Senior, Wray
• Nolan Grenard, Senior, Swink
• Darrien Guy, Junior, Akron
• Cordell Hensley, Senior, Sedgwick County
• Trent Hill, Senior, Akron
• Derek Jung, Freshman, Front Range Christian
• Spencer Kelly, Senior, Calhan
• Eli Kirk, Junior, Hotchkiss
• Jacob Kohl, Senior, Evangelical Christian
• Pete Lanting, Senior, Denver Christian
• Chipper Lloyd, Senior, Front Range Christian
• Walter Martinez, Senior, Center
• Kasey Nusbaum, Senior, Kiowa/Simla
• Slater Podgorny, Sophomore, Paonia
• Brian Preston, Junior, Rocky Ford
• Ricardo Ramirez, Sophomore, Highland
• Trey Redner, Sophomore, Swink
• Brent Ritter, Senior, Swink
• Tucker Ward, Senior, Ignacio
• Emmitt White, Senior, Sargent
• Wyatt Workman, Senior, Haxtun

[divider]

Class 1A

Player of the year: Ricardo Juarez, Holly

Coach of the year: Dayne Eaton, Holly

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Year
Jordan Ernst	Dove Creek	P/SS/OF	Senior
Tyler Fields	Cornerstone Christian Academy	C/INF/P	Senior
Ricardo Juarez	Holly	P/INF	Junior
Jaxon King	Fleming	–	Junior
Ryan Koeller	Granada	P	Junior
Eli Sievert	Rocky Mountain Lutheran	–	Senior
Marc Solis	Eads	3B/SS/P	Senior
Yaniel Vidal	Holly	SS/3B/P	Junior
Darian Wilkening	Fleming	–	Senior
Brandon Wilson	Holly	OF/3B/P	Sophomore

Honorable mention:

• Trenton Armintrout, Junior, Nucla
• Paul Asfeld, Sophomore, Fleming
• Case Baughman, Senior, Dove Creek
• Chase Boulter, Senior, Gilpin County
• Sam Dunlap, Senior, Cotopaxi
• Nathanael Garrett, Senior, Cornerstone Christian Academy
• Cullen Glosson, Freshman, Otis
• Jaime Huerta, Junior, Granada
• Derek Kibel, Sophomore, Dove Creek
• Paul Kidder, Junior, Community Christian
• Ben Lambrecht, Senior, Fleming
• Eryk Lorenz, Junior, Gilpin County
• David Reyes, Senior, Granada
• Marcos Rivera, Senior, Manzanola
• Devyn Rummel, Junior, Nucla
• Rhett Uhland, Junior, Eads
• Josh Weaver, Junior, Rocky Mountain Lutheran
• Cody Wilson, Junior, Peetz