BOULDER — No. 2 Mullen football rallied from down 23-0 at halftime to beat No. 8 Fairview 37-30 on Friday night.
Month: October 2016
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Photos: No. 9 Cherry Creek football shuts out Horizon
GREENWOOD VILLAGE — No. 9 Cherry Creek football shutout Horizon 28-0 on Friday night.
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Photos: Arapahoe football beats Boulder
LITTLETON — Arapahoe football evened its record at 4-4 with a 49-8 win over Boulder in Class 5A on Friday.
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Photos: McCaffrey leads Valor Christian football over Highlands Ranch
HIGHLANDS RANCH — Dylan McCaffrey threw for 314 yards and four touchdowns to lead No. 7 Valor Christian to a 43-7 win over Highlands Ranch.
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Photos: No. 4 Grandview football runs away with big victory over Doherty
AURORA — Hayden Blubaugh ran for five touchdowns in No. 4-ranked Grandview football‘s big 65-27 victory over Doherty on Friday night at Legacy Stadium.
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Valor Christian softball beats Erie for third straight 4A state title
(John Priest/CHSAANow.com) AURORA — Rio Sanchez blacked out in the batter’s box against Ali Kilponen; instinct had taken over, and she was swinging at anything. She didn’t know how she was making contact, but she did know she wasn’t giving up.
It was a pitcher’s duel from the beginning of the Class 4A softball state championship games between the two best pitchers in the state, regardless of classification. But no moment better exemplified the intensity of the situation than when No. 1-seeded Erie’s senior ace, Sanchez, went up against her club teammate, Kilponen, and fired off at least eight foul balls in a row during a single at-bat in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Kilponen struck Sanchez out — her 12th of 13 strikeouts — and helped the No. -3 seeded Eagles beat the Tigers 3-1 on Saturday afternoon at Aurora Sports Park to claim their third straight softball state championship.
The junior, a two-time 4A player of the year, threw straight fire in the final against one of the state’s best hitting squads, striking out seven of the first nine Erie batters and continuing dominance from the mound until the very last out of the game.
“My gut dropped; it’s insane we just three-peated,” Kilponen said. “We had doubters and just had to prove them wrong. I knew we had to bring everything to the plate against Rio and I had to do everything I could defensively.”
Valor finished its third title-winning season 24-1 under fourth year head coach Dave Atencio.
“This is by far the toughest one,” Atencio said. “Everyone was coming at us pretty hard and we persevered. This senior class is my first class all the way through, so it’s pretty special.”
Valor took an early 1-0 lead in the game after sophomore Savannah Behabetz, the leadoff batter, scored from an RBI single from senior catcher Erica Mann. But senior Madalyn Mitchell scored the lone dinger of the game, hitting a solo shot to center field in the top of the fourth inning to bring the Eagles up 2-1.
Sanchez got the offense going for Erie after she doubled off Kilponen in the bottom of the fourth inning. Hannah Hackney brought in Sanchez’s pinch runner, Teagan Brand, off an RBI single on the next at-bat to cut the Eagles’ lead to 2-1.
Erie junior Maddie Foster appeared to have hit a two-run homer in the fourth inning, which would have given the Tigers the lead, but it was ruled a foul ball.
Valor answered back in the fifth inning when Behabetz scored a run on a passed ball. All Kilponen had to do was hold the Tigers’ offense so Valor could hoist the trophy yet again.
“These are high-end pitchers, programs and teams,” Erie coach Harold Simmons said. “It was exciting to meet each other in the state championship as opposed to the last two years we’ve met in the Final Four.”
He added: “It was nice to see two of the highest end pitchers, I think, that have maybe ever pitched in Colorado go after it.”
This was Erie’s only loss of the season, finishing 24-1, and the Tigers’ first trip to the state final since a state runner-up year in 2013. Erie, only losing three seniors from this team, is a powerhouse softball program with 11 state titles – the most in Colorado. The program’s last championship came in 2010.
Sanchez, who will play collegiate softball at Central Arkansas University, knows the Valor squad well: Atencio is one of her club coaches on the Colorado Styxx Gold 18U team, and she is good friends with Valor senior shortstop Lauren Foster, who is playing college ball at the University of Wisconsin.
“It’s interesting; an advantage, but disadvantage at times playing against people you know,” Sanchez said. “You know them and their habits, but you also know how good they are, and if you overthink it, you might not do too well.”
Kilponen and Sanchez ended the softball year as the state’s top leaders in strikeouts with 283 and 232, respectively, and no-hitters, both with five.
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Rocky Ford wins 3A softball, school’s first-ever girls championship
(John Priest/CHSAANow.com) AURORA – As Rocky Ford’s softball team reveled in the moment Saturday afternoon, Meloneers coach JC Carrica reflected on what the team had just accomplished.
Rocky Ford’s 5-1 victory over Strasburg in the Class 3A state championship game at Aurora Sports Park gave the program its first softball championship. But more than that, this group became the first girls team from the school to even reach a state title game.
“A little community like Rocky Ford – if you can get that winning tradition somewhere, it’s contagious,” Carrica said. “It will permeate to women’s basketball, women’s cross country, women’s volleyball. You just have to get that first one and give the kids hope and they’ll thrive on that.”
The Meloneers (23-1) certainly thrived during their two-day stint in Aurora. Victories over Meeker and The Academy sent Rocky Ford back into the semifinals for the first time since 2012.
The team escaped a huge bases-loaded, no-out situation in the fourth inning of a tight game Saturday morning in the semifinals against Eaton, sparking an eventual 12-5 victory to set up the showdown against Strasburg – the defending 3A champion that was making its fifth consecutive appearance in the title game.
“We’re the type of program that our kids have really worked hard that everyone’s gunning for us,” Indians coach Michelle Woodard said. “Today we just fell a little short, but I know we’re going to be back here next year.”
Strasburg (21-3) had rallied from a 7-2 deficit in the semifinals to defeat Brush 13-9 behind three home runs and eight RBIs from sophomore Alexis Rayburn. Rocky Ford was the team to take advantage of momentum early though, scoring a first-inning run on an RBI groundout and then adding two more in the second on a single from Chantae Rodriguez.
(Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com) “You run into a team like Strasburg who has a culture of winning, and Rocky Ford has never had a girls’ team go to state championship, let alone win one,” Carrica said. “Our backs were against the wall. We were just scrapping to get what we could get.
“We got that run early and it gave us the confidence we needed. Plus it gave us a little bit of run support for Selena.”
That would be Meloneers senior Selena Medina, who went the distance against both Eaton and Strasburg. Medina allowed one run on six hits against the Indians, striking out three and not walking a batter.
“After the first inning I knew my team had my back the whole time,” Medina said. “We locked in.”
Strasburg got a run back on an error in the second inning, scoring Ashlyn Richardson, who had doubled. From there Medina and Indians junior Dakota Stotyn were dialed in, though Rocky Ford was able to add a pair of insurance runs on two singles from junior Ashley Jaramillo.
“She’s a crusher,” Carrica said. “They call her ‘Smashley’ instead of Ashley because she hits the line drives so well and comes up so big for us.”
Trailing by four entering the seventh inning, Strasburg got its first two runners on base. Medina and her defense closed the door though, getting a fly out and two pop-ups to end the game.
“We wanted to make a statement back at our school. We wanted to show them that we could do it,” said Jaramillo, who also homered and had three hits against Eaton. “Just because we include girls from other schools, we could take it and we could bond together – just like we all come from the same place.”
Both teams will graduate only two seniors each and will be among the favorites next fall. But for now, the day belonged to Rocky Ford and the players who made the most of its opportunities.
“It’s indescribable. I don’t know what to say,” Medina said. “I have a good team behind me. We’re a family, we’re sisters, and we did it together.”
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No. 1 Denver South football rolls past Wheat Ridge
Denver South senior Marcus Lindsay (22) outruns Wheat Ridge’s Max Warner (28) and Colton Frasier (44) into the end zone. (Dennis Pleuss) LAKEWOOD — Wheat Ridge football coach Stacy Coryell is one of the few coaches who can give an impartial evaluation on the two top-ranked Class 4A football teams — Denver South and Chatfield.
“I think South is more physical,” Coryell said Saturday after his Farmers suffered a 50-0 loss to the CHSAANow.com’s No. 1-ranked and undefeated Rebels. “Chatfield is smoother and do what they do very well. It would be a good battle.”
Wheat Ridge (3-5, 2-1 in 4A Mountain League) saw No. 2 Chatfield a little more than a month ago. The Chargers put it on the Farmers in a 57-7 victory for the Chatfield at Jeffco Stadium.
Despite the 50-point loss to Denver South at Jeffco Stadium, Coryell believes the Farmers difficult schedule could play well in the new RPI system. Wheat Ridge’s tough schedule might very well get the Farmers into the postseason.
“Because we played such great teams we are still in the (playoff) hunt,” Coryell said. “Maybe 5-5 will get us in if South, Broomfield, Pueblo South, Chatfield and Dakota Ridge keep winning.”
Denver South junior Dashawn Griffin (21) loses his helmet on a tackle of Wheat Ridge junior Payton Dietrich. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics) The five teams that beat Wheat Ridge this season have a combined record of 32-8.
Denver South gave itself a one-game lead in the 4A Mountain League, along with likely be a top seed for the 16-team state tournament that begins in a few weeks.
“It’s very important,” Denver South senior Marcus Lindsay said of his team staying undefeated with two regular-season game remaining. “It helps with confidence and boost us up. It allows us to keep on rolling.”
Lindsay got the Rebels rolling Saturday afternoon. The tailback had 17 carries for 147 yards and three touchdowns in the first half. He had just one carry after halftime to finish with 159 yards rushing.
However, the first-half highlight wasn’t from Lindsay. Denver South senior Joe Arps stole the show in the early in the second quarter hauling in a tipped pass from Wheat Ridge quarterback Anthony Tate near midfield.
The defensive lineman sprinted 50 yards untouched for a South touchdown to put the Rebels ahead 20-0 with 9:08 left in the first half.
“I didn’t even know what was happening. I just put my hands up, the ball fell into my hands and started running,” said Arps, who also had a fumble recovering in the second half. “Once I caught the ball I knew I was going to score. I kept looking around and nobody was behind me.”
Denver South’s defense was dominate holding Wheat Ridge to less than 50 yards of total offense from scrimmage.
Wheat Ridge junior Payton Dietrich was nearing the 1,000-yard mark on the ground this season, but was held to 10 yards on 10 carries. Lindsay went over the 1,400-yard mark on the season and pushed his touchdown count to 18 on the season.
Wheat Ridge senior Carlos Shippley, right, slips the tackle of Denver South senior Dre’mond Griffin. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics) Lindsay described Wheat Ridge as South’s “biggest rivals.” The senior was also motivated from the Rebels losing to the Farmers a year ago.
“Most definitely,” Lindsay said when asked if the 35-34 overtime loss to Wheat Ridge last year was in the back of his mind. “We felt like they had a lot of luck in that game. This game we wanted to sure up our defense and make plays.”
Wheat Ridge had some momentum coming in riding a two-game winning streak after suffering three straight defeats heading into conference play.
“We are awfully young,” Coryell said after the game where the Farmers honored their eight seniors. “I’m not going to make excuses. We just didn’t show up to play today.”
Wheat Ridge closes out the regular season on the road against Thornton (noon Oct. 29) at Five Star Stadium before heading to the Western Slope for a conference game against Fruita Monument (6 p.m. Nov. 3) at Stocker Stadium in Grand Junction.
Denver South, the lone undefeated 4A team, get another test from a Jeffco school at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 28 at the North Area Athletic Complex. Standley Lake hosts the Rebels before Denver South wraps up its regular season at All-City Stadium against Thornton at 4 p.m. Nov. 4.
“Right now we are playing at a high level of football,” Lindsay said. “We are only going to continue to get better from here.”
Denver South senior Joe Arps (58) races into the end zone for a pick-six Saturday at Jeffco Stadium. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics) -
Eighth-inning home run lifts Cherokee Trail softball over Broomfield for 5A state title
(John Priest/CHSAANow.com) AURORA — With temperatures hovering around 80 degrees at first pitch, Cherokee Trail was ready to give its sweat.
In the first inning, the Cougars gave their blood.
And after Chloe Knapp’s home run in the top of the eighth to score the first and only run of the game, they were happy to give their tears.
For the first time in school history, Cherokee Trail is a softball champion. Knapp’s home run and the final inning of an outstanding pitching performance from Emily Bell gave them a 1-0 win over Broomfield.
It also put championship gold in their hands.
“It feels really good,” an emotional Knapp said. “I can’t believe we did this. I can’t believe we just won the championship!”
And she wasn’t the only one who was disbelieving. After the Class 5A state championship trophy was presented, several players could be heard asking each other as if they still needed convincing.
“Can you believe we did this?”
But it’s real. As real as the space now needed in the Cougars’ trophy case.
And it was a nail-biter to the very end.
The top of the first inning offered the best scoring chance for either team. A play at the plate went the way of Broomfield as catcher Megan Medhus bolted for home on a passed ball. But she was thrown out and somehow got hit in the face, resulting in a bloody nose.
For the next six innings, nothing. But with Bell matching Broomfield’s Taylor Gilmore’s effort on the mound, Cherokee Trail just started gaining more and more confidence.
“It was terrible,” Cougars coach Casey Mitchell said. “I was hoping we could stay with it. Both teams are great hitting teams and I just knew that if we didn’t start moving runners across the board to get runs, they would.”
Both teams got their chances to do that. For Cherokee Trail, they came early. For the Eagles, their best chance came in the bottom of the seventh inning. Gilmore started the inning off with a double, but Bell struck out Matti Morales, walked Megan Bisterfeld and then forced two consecutive groundouts to end the inning.
“My whole thing this game was to focus on every inning,” Bell said. “Not to look at the game as a whole, but just look at every batter every inning and I think that’s what got me through. Keeping positive and going after every batter.”
(Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com) And apparently just wait for a lead to come her way. And that happened on a 1-0 count to Knapp that she knocked over the fence in centerfield, mimicking her walk-off grand slam over Rock Canyon on Friday that helped the Cougars advance to Saturday’s semifinals.
“When I woke up this morning, I had a really good feeling about today,” Knapp said. “The entire day, I thought we would make it here and I thought we would win.”
But in order to do that, they were going to have to shut down an offense that was averaging more than 11 runs per game in the state tournament.
But Bell was more than up to the task. And once Knapp’s home run sailed over the fence, she was more than happy to take the ball to the mound for one last inning.
“I was thinking that the game was in my hands,” Bell said. “But I knew if I kept my approach that I had the innings before, that I could do it.”
And she did. And the Cougars are champions for the first time as result. All it took was giving their blood, sweat and tears.