The Wildcats are 8-0, and finished atop the final RPI standings. The will host No. 16 seed Idalia in the first round next weekend.
Fleming, also 8-0, earned the No. 2 seed. Also hosting in the first round are Hi-Plains (No. 3), Stratton/Liberty (No. 4), Genoa-Hugo (No. 5), Cotopaxi (No. 6), Eads (No. 7) and North Park (No. 8).
The 6-man quarterfinals will be Nov. 4-5, the semifinals are Nov. 11-12, and the championship is Nov. 19.
HIGHLANDS RANCH — This week’s Class 5A No. 1-ranked Pomona football team improved to 7-1 overall with a dominant 48-7 victory over Mountain Vista on Saturday.
Cheyenne Mountain is the No. 1 seed in 4A boys soccer. (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
Update, 12:09 p.m.: After the seeding committee left, there was an issue with the 3A bracket that needs to be verified. That bracket will be posted on Monday by noon. The 32 qualifiers remain the same.
AURORA — Boys soccer’s state tournament brackets were released on Sunday, and Denver East (5A), Cheyenne Mountain (4A) and Kent Denver (3A) are the top seeds.
The 32-team fields in each classification were determined by automatic qualifiers laid out in the soccer bulletin, as well as the final RPI standings, which came out Sunday morning.
Early dates vary for each field, but all quarterfinals are Nov. 5, and semifinals will be Nov. 9. The championship games are set for Nov. 12 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.
Unbeaten Denver East (15-0-0) heads the 5A field, and will host No. 32 Monarch in the first round. Other high seeds include No. 2 Boulder, No. 3 Cherry Creek, No. 4 Broomfield, No. 5 Fairview, No. 6 Arapahoe, No. 7 Grandview and No. 8 Fort Collins.
The 5A tournament begins on Thursday, with the second round next Wednesday.
In 4A, Cheyenne Mountain (13-1-1) leads the way as the No. 1. Also highly seeded are Lewis-Palmer (No. 2), The Classical Academy (No. 3), Air Academy (No. 4), Mullen (No. 5), Denver West (No. 6), Durango (No. 7), and Silver Creek (No. 8.).
The 4A field begins play on Wednesday, and the second round is next Tuesday.
Kent Denver is the No. 1 seed in 3A. (John Priest/CHSAANow.com)
The 3A field is led by unbeaten Kent Denver (14-0-1). Other high seeds are No. 2 KIPP, No. 3 Colorado Academy, No. 4 Vail Mountain, No. 5 Colorado Springs Christian, No. 6 Jefferson Academy, No. 7 DSST-Stapleton and No. 8 Coal Ridge.
In 3A, the first round is on Friday, and the second round is Saturday.
AURORA — Any time a pop up sails into the sky above Abby Mussman’s head, she likes to whip the catcher mask off her face before running to the ball.
And after she flops her mask into the dirt behind home plate, Coach Tom Odle says, “what’s that down on the ground? You look a lot better with it on.”
What the longtime Brush softball coach jokes about with his senior starting catcher is that “she needs to leave her darn mask on because every time she throws that mask off on the ground, she can’t find the foul ball. If we ever get her to leave it on, she’ll make the catch.”
He added: “She’s one of the biggest characters on the team and everyone follows her.”
Mussman, one of two seniors on a very young Brush team, helped the Class 3A No. 4-seeded Beetdiggers to the 2016 softball state tournament semifinals on Friday at Aurora Sports Park. Brush heads into a tough matchup on Saturday against defending state champion, No. 1 Strasburg.
“We have a really young team – two seniors, six juniors – so a lot of them haven’t been here with the limelight put on them. We graduated seven seniors last year,” Odle said. “We’re really young, but I’m really pleased with where we’re at.”
The Beetdiggers’ starting catcher graduated last year, so Mussman stepped in as the varsity catcher this season from her second base post. She caught a bit her freshman year, but “nothing too big,” she said.
“I have a lot of leadership on the team and I like that,” Mussman said. “It’s a good thing we have younger players because they’re going to keep working together. The team won’t lose a lot next season.”
The Beetdiggers cruised through the first round game against No. 13 Faith Christian 8-1, then blew past No. 5 Lamar in the quarterfinals 12-2.
“We worked really well together with some nice hits today,” Mussmna said. “We’re a crazy, crazy team, always making jokes and having a good time. Our parents are always supporting and keeping us up with good spirits even if we’re down or losing.”
She added: “Being able to be on the field and have fun is a big theme for us.”
Coach Odle said it’s this quirkiness that describes the team and makes them so special — and so good.
“They’re able to pick each other up and have fun with it and enjoy what they’re doing on the field,” Odle said.
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No. 1 Strasburg vs. No. 8 Sterling
Defending state champion Strasburg blanked No. 16-seeded Platte Valley 10-0 in the first round and defeated Sterling 9-6 in the quarterfinals. Sterling won its first round 14-3 over No. 9 Cedaredge. Strasburg sophomore Alexis Rayburn singled twice against Sterling; sophomore Anita Akers had two singles; Freshman Emily Johnson had two singles. For Sterling, junior Brooke Polenz launched a sixth inning homerun; freshman Rylyn Nelson doubled in the eighth inning double.
No. 4 Brush vs. No. 5 Lamar
Brush took down No. 13 Faith Christian 8-1 in the first round and Lamar 12-2 in the quarterfinals. For the Beetdiggers in the quarterfinals, sophomore Kamryn Leoffler had a single and two doubles; junior Maddy Rule doubled three times with one single; Senior Abby Mussman had two doubles; junior Hailey Unrein doubled twice. For Lamar, junior Julie Aguirre had two singles against Brush.
No. 3 Eaton vs. No. 11 La Junta
Eaton slid by No. 14 Delta 14-13 in the first round and defeated La Junta 13-3 in the quarterfinals. La Junta upset No. 6 Valley in the first round 9-8. Senior Brooklyn Knutson tripled and had a single against Lu Junta and senior Rachel Graham had a single and a double.
No. 2 Rocky Ford vs. No. 7 Academy
Rocky Ford advanced to the quarterfinal round with a 13-3 victory over No. 13 Meeker, and was victorious over The Academy 10-3. The Academy beat No. 10 Weld Central 9-4 in the first round. For the Meloneers, Chantae Rodriguez singled twice; senior Whitney Nelson singled and had a double; sophomore Sadie Brewer had two singles.
AURORA — Last week, Mountain View stumbled a bit in its softball regional, dropping the second game of the tournament to Frederick.
But the state tournament would be an entirely different story. After beating Discovery Canyon 8-2 in the first round, the Mountain Lions came away with a more decisive (and stunning) win over No. 2 Mullen, 15-4 to advance to the Class 4A semifinals.
“When you play some of these teams here and you’ve seen their scores and seen their records, you don’t know who they are,” coach Randy Felton said. “We hit well today. We made routine plays and sometimes the routine plays open up big innings.”
And they wasted no time in getting those big innings going.
Mountain View jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead in the first inning and quickly increased it to a 8-1 lead by the fourth.
The Mountain Lions added five more runs in the fifth and had a chance to close the door early on the Mustangs, but Mullen showed some resiliency and tacked on three of their own to force another inning.
But Mountain View’s bats refused to cool down and they snagged two more runs and came out in the bottom of the sixth and held off any chance for a Mullen rally to take the win and advance to the semifinals on Saturday.
“We were pretty nervous,” shortstop Izzy Griego said. “It’s hard going into a game and being a lower seed than the team you’re playing. But scoring five in the first inning, the pressure was lifted off our pressure a bit.”
Griego was huge on offense for the Mountain Lions, hitting two triples and a double while driving in three RBIs.
Tara Shadowen added four RBIs of her own in the winning effort.
Next up for Mountain View is No. 3 Valor Christian. The semifinals will begin play at 10 a.m. Saturday morning.
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(1) Erie 9, (9) Pueblo West 1
Pueblo West jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead, but a solo home run by Rio Sanchez in the fifth inning sparked the Tigers. They would score five more before the Cyclones could retire the side and advanced to the semis with a 9-1 win.
(3) Valor Christian 1, (11) Silver Creek 0
Abby Zuschlag drove in Hannah Hollander in the bottom of the seventh inning to give the Eagles a 1-0 win and a chance to defend their 4A state title.
(5) Air Academy 7, (4) Wheat Ridge 5
Payton Romines launched a 3-run home run in the top of the seventh inning to put the Kadets into the semifinals following a heartbreaking early exit in 2015.
Air Academy players celebrate their 7-5 victory over Wheat Ridge in a 4A quarterfinal Saturday. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
AURORA — Air Academy’s softball team took a page out of former Major League Baseball manager great Earl Weaver’s philosophy of winning Friday afternoon during the Class 4A state tournament.
“The key to winning … is pitching, fundamentals and three-run homers.” — Earl Weaver
The No. 5 seed Kadets emphasized the three-run home run part of the classic quote in Air Academy’s state quarterfinal game against No. 4 Wheat Ridge at Aurora Sports Park. Trailing 5-4 in the top of the seventh inning and down to its final out, Air Academy senior Payton Romines blasted a three-run home run to dead centerfield to lift the Kadets (18-4 record) to a 7-5 victory.
Air Academy senior Payton Romines points to the sky as she rounds the bases after a three-run home run. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“I wasn’t thinking,” Romines said of the eventual game-winning home run. “I was looking for a pitch and she threw it right down the middle. I just swung at it.”
Wheat Ridge senior Brandy Trengove took the loss in the circle for the Farmers (16-7), but she was able to keep Wheat Ridge in the game. Trengove came into pitch after Air Academy jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning.
The first four Kadets had hits off Wheat Ridge starter Brandy DeHerrera, including a two-run home run by Air Academy senior Julia Elbert. Wheat Ridge coach Jamie Heflin put in Trengove after Elbert’s blast.
“(Trengove) has been our go-to pitcher all year. She has done a heck of a job,” Heflin said. “It’s one pitch and one hit, it does make a difference.”
The win advanced Air Academy into the 4A semifinals at 10 a.m. Saturday at Aurora Sports Park. The Kadets will face top-seed Erie.
“She (Romines) is a gamer. I don’t know what else to say. She knew this could be her last game. I could see it in her eyes. She just came through for us,” Air Academy coach Chris Hernez said. “They didn’t give up. They have learned from previous experiences not to give up and not to get down.”
Wheat Ridge battled to take the lead with a four-run bottom of the third inning. Freshman Izzy Quezada started the rally with an RBI single. Senior Gabby Loya ripped a two-run single and senior Sarah Gray pushed across the fourth run in the inning with an RBI groundout.
“We put up a good fight,” Wheat Ridge four-year starter Aniesa Abeyta said. “I told them state isn’t going to be easy. Every team we play is going to be good. We fell short, but I know this team will be back next year.”
Abeyta was a key part to Wheat Ridge’s last 4A state championship team in 2013 as a freshman. The Farmers had at least made the 4A state semifinals since moving down from 5A in 2008 before Friday’s quarterfinal loss.
“We are losing six great seniors and they had a great career here at Wheat Ridge,” Heflin said. “You’ve got to feel a little sad for them.”
Abeyta was still positive about the direction of the Farmers’ legendary softball program despite the loss.
“We had it. All we needed was one out. We just couldn’t get that out,” said Abeyta, who went 2-for-3 from the plate in her final game as a Farmer. “It’s tough, but we are sticking together. We are family.”
Wheat Ridge junior Kate Anderson throw across the diamond Friday at Aurora Sports Park. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
Marcus McElroy had three touchdowns for the Mustangs.
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(9) Holy Family 43, (8) Mead 35
Holy Family picked up a big top-10 win this season that moved the Tigers into sole possession of first place in the Tri-Valley League.
“We talked about what it would take to put ourselves in a situation to win a league championship, and they responded really well,” Holy Family coach Mike Gabriel told the Colorado Preps Scoreboard Show. “It was a great battle.”
In fact, Mead had one final drive that Holy Family had to turn away.
“With a few seconds left, they still had a shot,” Gabriel said. “Our kids responded to put it away.”
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3A: (9) Sterling 27, (6) Weld Central 13
Not only did Sterling hand Weld Central its first loss this season, the Tigers also snapped their 12-game winning streak, which was the longest in the state.
“It was good battle across the board, two teams that kind of wanted it pretty bad,” coach Rob Busmente told the Scoreboard Show. “It came down to two plays that we were fortunate enough to be able to capitalize on.”
Sterling is now 5-3 following an 0-3 start, and sits in first place in its league, the Patriot East, at 4-0.
“It’s been good, it’s been fun,” Busmente said. “The kids have been showing a lot of resiliency and a lot of perseverance to go through some of those things. We ran a pretty tough gauntlet there at the beginning with some of those top teams.
“We were able to come back and regroup and put a pretty good push here toward the end,” he added. “Hopefully we can keep riding this momentum as we’re riding out the season.”
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2A: (7) Bayfield 23, (5) Delta 7
Bayfield broke open a close game on a pick-six early in the fourth quarter, and is now 6-2.
The game was tied at 7 at halftime.
“I thought our team came prepared to play,” coach Gary Heide told the Scoreboard Show. “We just felt that if we stayed with it play by play by play, that we would be the one to make the plays in the second half.”
“They are one tough team,” Heide added of Delta. “They are going to be reckoned with in the playoffs.”
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Notables
Longmont Christian beat Mountain Valley 71-20, snapping an 18-game losing streak that dated to the 2013 season. (Longmont Christian didn’t field a team last season.) Stay turned here as QB Luke Puchino broke the state passing record last week.
3A No. 1 Discovery Canyon very narrowly avoided a massive upset with a 35-34 win against Canon City. The Thunder got a 99-yard kickoff return for a score from Josh Tomjack in the game, but had to rally from down 31-21 in the third quarter to win.
Lakewood’s Brock Miller also had a 99-yard kickoff return for a score against Poudre. Lakewood edged Poudre 35-33.
No. 3 Meeker won a big clash in 1A by topping No. 2 Paonia 12-7. “It was a defensive struggle most of the night,” Cowboys coach Shane Phelan told the Scoreboard Show. “It’s been a long drought against Paonia. … Our kids just played hard. We’ve got a bunch of good, tough hard-nosed kids.”
Pueblo West recently dropped from the 4A football rankings, but the Cyclones may soon be back: They upset No. 8 Mesa Ridge 31-17.
1A No. 6 Peyton is now 8-0 following a 35-8 win over Buena Vista. “We’ve been talking about it since June, about how good this football team could be,” coach Richard Deems told the Scoreboard Show. “The kids have grasped it.”
8-man No. 3 Akron beat No. 8 Haxtun on a Hail Mary, 48-43.
There were two top-10 matchups in 6-man: No. 10 Eads upset No. 4 Cheyenne Wells 36-34, and No. 7 Hi-Plains knocked off No. 3 Stratton/Liberty 61-50.
In 1A, Olathe trailed Hotchkiss 21-0 in the second quarter, but rallied to win 28-21 in overtime.
AURORA — Hayden Blubaugh is one wolf that cannot be tamed.
The Grandview senior broke free for 187 yards and five touchdown runs as the Wolves ran by Doherty 65-27 Friday night at Legacy Stadium.
With the playoffs creeping closer and closer, CHSAANow.com No. 4-ranked Grandview (6-1 overall, 3-0 Mt. Massive) is now one game closer to hosting in the postseason yet again. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t work to be done.
“We have a lot of things to clean up,” coach John Shultz said. “We have two games to play against Arapahoe, who beat us last year, and Overland who we’ve played every year since we’ve been around.”
Blubaugh sent a clear message to the rest of Class 5A that if the Wolves are running wild, they’re going to be difficult to tame.
“We really came out and executed,” Blubaugh said. “The offensive line came out and did their job like they always do and allowed some big holes for me to get through and score.”
With remaining league games against Arapahoe and Overland, it’s not a stretch to think that Grandview will be hosting in the first round of the postseason. League champions that are in the 16-team playoff field in RPI are protected and get to play their first game at home.
The road to the postseason will be more difficult for the No. 10 Spartans (6-2, 2-1), but they know all they can do is get back on the field Monday and cleaning up some of the holes that Grandview exposed.
“That’s exactly what we do, get back to work,” coach Jeff Krumlauf said. “Our whole focus is going 1-0, obviously that didn’t happen tonight. Everything is to improve on what we didn’t do well tonight and focus on things we did do well.”
The Spartans had dreams of starting big on the night as the first offensive play was an attempted throw down the field. They wanted the Wolves to know they weren’t afraid. After punting the ball away, they were given new life with an interception from Eymon Campbell.
They took advantage as Zander Offut found Justin Ragland for a 22-yard touchdown pass that gave Doherty a 7-0 lead.
But then Blubaugh broke free.
It only took two runs for him to go 57 yards and find the endzone.
Offut threw an interception on the ensuing Doherty drive that turned into another Grandview touchdown.
The Spartans responded with a long drive that ended in a Ragland touchdown, but being down 14-13 is the closest they would be for the rest of the game.
They got outscored 31-8 just through the rest of the first half.
It was just that kind of night and things just happened to fall the way of the Wolves.
“It was two very good offenses,” Schultz said. “Our offense just executed well today and our defense came up with some timely turnovers.”
Blubaugh and quarterback Gunner Lamphere each added a rushing touchdown early in the second half and Grandview was able to grind the rest of the game away for a 65-27 win.
In the process, Blubaugh went over the 1,000 yard mark on the season and nearly doubled his touchdown total.
Not a bad night’s work for arguably the most dominant back in the Rocky Mountains.
And when he and his teammates are firing on all cylinders, there may not be a more dangerous group of individuals in the state.
“I don’t so,” Blubaugh said. “I don’t think there is.”
AURORA — The 2016 high school softball state tournaments started on Friday at Aurora Sports Park for Class 3A, 4A and 5A. The semifinals and championship games will be Saturday.
