INDIANAPOLIS — Brittlyn, Madalyn and Mikyla Massey, three sisters who are student-athletes at Frederick High School, have been selected as the 2017 Section 6 recipients of the “National High School Spirit of Sport Award” by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS).
The National High School Spirit of Sport Award was created by the NFHS to recognize those individuals who exemplify the ideals of the spirit of sport that represent the core mission of education-based athletics.
The three Massey sisters – junior twins Brittlyn and Madalyn and sophomore Mikyla – play softball for Frederick High School. Brittlyn is an all-league selection.
While their lives on the softball field have been positive, it’s off the field where they’ve gone through some very tumultuous times and specifically with regard to domestic violence. And interestingly, it’s been on the softball field where they’ve found a safe haven and solace.
In 2010, their mother Tammy was the victim of a domestic violence incident with her estranged husband from which she escaped unharmed. Domestic abuse has impacted the Massey family in different ways, but they have also learned how to cope with it.
Brittlyn, Madalyn and Mikayla discovered their safe place on the softball field. In a very real sense, they have used softball as therapy, and they have healed themselves through participation in the sport. It is on the softball field where you will most often see the three Massey sisters with big smiles.
About the Award
The NFHS divides the nation into eight geographical sections. The states in Section 6 are Colorado, Arkansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.
Nominations for this award were generated through NFHS member state associations and reviewed by the NFHS Spirit of Sport Award Selection Committee composed of state association staff members.
While the national winner will be recognized June 29 at the NFHS Summer Meeting in Providence, Rhode Island, the section winners will be recognized within their respective states and will receive awards before the end of the current school year.
Highland has hired Zach Sandstrom as its football coach, athletic director Steve Latuda said on Monday.
Sandstrom has been an assistant with the Huskies for two seasons, and is a weight and physical education teacher at the school. He replaces Paul Downing, who turned the program around in his two seasons at the helm.
Downing’s teams went 10-9 in two years. The program had won just four games in its previous five seasons.
Sandstrom was picked among a “a very strong pool of candidates,” Latuda said.
“He does a great job with the kids and has done wonders in the weight room,” Latuda said. “He is young and energetic and I know he will throw himself into this job.
“What stood out with Zach is his work ethic, his being a part of the staff that helped turn the program around, as well as his relationship with the kids.”
Sandstrom played football at Chadron State, graduating in 2014. He was a team captain as a senior.
Grandview star Michaela Onyenwere picked up another award on Monday morning when she was named the Gatorade player of the year for Colorado girls basketball.
She now becomes a finalist for the national award, which will be announced later this month.
Onyenwere, a UCLA recruit, finished her career at No. 4 on girls basketball’s all-time scoring list in Colorado.
After the 5A game, Lakewood coach Chris Poisson said on Onyenwere: “She was really good as a sophomore; really, really good as a junior. She is absolutely great as a senior. She is special. There is a reason why she is going where she is going. She is incredible.”
“Michaela Onyenwere is an amazing player, competitor and leader,” Cherry Creek coach Chris Curneen said in a statement. “She is a classy person and has always been intense and very athletic. She has great sportsmanship and I don’t know of any other coach or player that has ever had anything negative to say about her.”
Hope you were part of the over 10,000 folks who were treated to an exciting conclusion of 4A and 5A big school hoops on Saturday!
Our Fever Crew was blessed to get an invite by Brian Roth to appear on the Xfinity Sports Report at the beginning of the season and our old buddy locked us into a prediction for eventual champions. There was something about the returning rosters of the teams that lost in their respective title games a year ago that stuck with us. Both Eaglecrest and Valor returned senior heavy squads who’s leaders would be determined to return to the title games.
For once, a preseason prediction played out just the way we thought. Let’s check out how it happened.
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The Look Back:
(Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
5A Final 4
Well go ahead and put your 6-foot-8 self even more on the map big fella! Cannon Casey covered the explosive performance from GW junior D’Auntray Pierce that vaulted the Patriots into the title game
Our guy Dennis Pleuss has your recap of Jalen Sander’s “Stat-stuffing” night in Valor’s win.
Not easy to beat a balance Pueblo South team twice in the same season but Lewis Palmer did just that with efficient passing and stroking some shots from outside. Dan Morhmann with your full recap.
The Raptors executed a “pack it in…make ’em beat you from the outside” b’ball philosophy. Unfortunately for George Washington they had one of their worst shooting nights of the season on the biggest stage. The Patriots were 18-of-56 from the field and 2-of-18 from three-point land which ended up being a lethal formula. Bright spot for GW’s future was big man Tray Pierce’s 10 point, 12 rebound “double-double” in the loss. Energy plays from Victor Garnes Jr. and the steady hand of Pepperdine-bound Colbey Ross stood out on the night. Brad Cochi has your complete coverage
How appropriate that the three seniors who have played together the longest stepped up big for Valor’s first-ever boys state title. Cool and Calm Keison Crosby controlled the rock with the poise of a senior point guard, Jalen Sanders again was “stat-stuffin” all over the court, and in true Eagle fashion another senior Kayle Knuckles stepped up the most with a massive 32 points “owning the paint”! Brad Cochi with our report
As we saw in this year’s state champs there may be nothing in sports that can make a team more motivated than coming up short in a championship game. Right now Rock Canyon is sticking out in our minds as a “way too early” 5A squad to watch next season. They came so close to that title game and the combo of Tyson Gilbert/Sam Masten backcourt returning as seniors has the Jags looking good.
4A? Look no further than Pueblo South. They looked destined for the title game after beating the defending champ twice but came up short. With only two seniors on this years roster look for Marcell Barbee and crew to return to the coliseum next March.
Thank you players and coaches for treating us to another outstanding season of hoops! You make it so fun to follow. And none of this happens without the support of my ‘left’ hand man, “Digitial Media Guru” Ryan Casey.
LOVELAND — Holly boys basketball won the Class 1A state championship, using a 30-6 run to come back from a 16-point deficit. The Wildcats allowed just three points in the third quarter to beat Cheyenne Wells 49-39.
If there’s anything the state has learned about Holly the past few seasons it’s that the Wildcats don’t have a habit of foiling in pressure-packed games.
After all, they won the 2015 state championship over Fleming 33-32. And on Friday, with two trusty guards left from that title team in Sigi Avalos and Yaniel Vidal, Holly took out Kit Carson 47-44 on a game-winning three by Avalos in triple overtime. Sometimes, players just seem to have a knack for making winning plays when it gets to winning time.
In the 1A final at the Budweiser Events Center against Cheyenne Wells, Holly turned a 27-11 halftime deficit into a 31-30 lead after three frames. That tidal wave of momentum washed away the Tigers’ hopes of sparking one final run as the top-seeded Wildcats outscored the second seed 38-12 after halftime.
“It hasn’t soaked in yet,” Holly coach Dusty Heck said. “That was such a rollercoaster of a game. It feels like I’m dreaming.”
Asked how they flipped the script after the break, Heck said they needed to be assertive.
“I just told them there were weaknesses in that zone,” he said. “I told them be aggressive. We’re going to win or lose being aggressive.”
All 38 points down the stretch were scored by a trio of senior guards. Chandler Rushton (16 points) and Avalos and Vidal (11 apiece) attacked the basket ferociously, drawing numerous fouls, and spreading the floor for open three-pointers.
The backcourt has been quite a strength the past few seasons. The veterans erased the bad taste left from a Final Four loss in 2016 to Shining Mountain with a second state title in three years.
“I’ve had them since they were sophomores,” Coach Heck said. “Yaniel has been a three-year starter for me. They are great guys on and off the court. They lean on each other.”
And they had to, as tired legs from the triple overtime win on Friday may have led to missed shots early. Coming alive just in time to pull off a comeback that won’t soon be forgotten was quite a way to finish the careers of six seniors.
“We don’t give up, we don’t ever give up,” Vidal, a 1A player of the year candidate, said. “We have the biggest heart in the state.
“We came into this game and were like, ’25-0 is so close.’ We just wanted it so bad. The way we lost last year was so heartbreaking.”
Holly snapped a 64-year title drought two years ago, but Cheyenne Wells (22-3) kept a 62-year drought alive. They won Class B in 1955, and had another runner-up finish this year.
LOVELAND — In 2017, Kit Carson has literally and figuratively been head and shoulders above the competition.
Kit Carson won the battle of Wildcats and its first-ever Class 1A state championship over Fleming 55-35, putting the finishing touches on a perfect 25-0 campaign.
A family affair was a perfect recipe as 6-foot-2 sophomore Olivia Isenbart, the tallest player for an imposing group, tallied nine of the sisters’ 14 points at the break. Each sister, 5-foot-11 freshman Reyna and 6-foot junior Micayla, played a role in handling the ball, cleaning the glass and scoring inside and out.
Overall, the family tallied 28 of Kit Carson’s points.
Superb sophomore Tess Hornung also capped a torrid postseason with double-digit points.
Kit Carson’s size inhibited any consistent offensive flow for Fleming as the third-seeded Wildcats never led, trailing by 20 points as early as the third frame.
Feeding the paint and opening up the perimeter offensively, to go with a stifling defense that allowed few open looks inside the arc, proved a winning formula for Kit Carson this season. No one could quite match it as Kit swept runner-up Fleming in the regular season (55-44) and postseason.
“I would say that last year didn’t end the way they wanted it to, so they used that as their fuel all year long,” coach Sara Crawford said. This is very special. It’s our first girls basketball state title. It’s opening up ceilings and breaking belief barriers from the past.”
And it may just carry into the future.
Kit Carson now has a 73-2 record the past three seasons combined and now, after playing in and winning the title, the team will return all but guard Shayla Bogenhagen. Most of the team is underclassmen.
“I am just blessed beyond measure,” Micayla Isenbart said. “We’re celebrating now, but we can’t wait to start again.”
Crawford was ecstatic to see her program break through and just as excited about the support of the community backing the Wildcats.
“I just want to thank our community,” she said. “Only about 300 people live in our town and they are probably all here.”
Fleming finished as runner-up with a 24-2 record. Their guard play was solid throughout the season, but an undersized team had matchup difficulties. Nevertheless, it was a magical run for Fleming.
LOVELAND — The perfect season is finally complete after Paonia girls basketball topped Wray 59-42 in the Class 2A championship game.
Even sweeter was a shot at redemption that didn’t go to waste.
An entire year has passed since the Paonia girls basketball team last suffered defeat, but the 2016 runners-up held on to that memory until it was finally made right on Saturday night at the Budweiser Events Center.
Back in the Class 2A state championship game for the second straight season, this time the Eagles brought home their first title since 2010 with the win over Wray.
“It’s an unbelievable feeling that’s hard to describe because it hasn’t all set in yet,” said senior forward McKenna Hartigan. “It was a full team effort and I couldn’t have done it without them. We were done with silver and ready for gold.”
Paoinia (25-0) and Wray (19-7) exchanged offensive strikes in a tight first quarter that finished tied 13-13 after senior Brittany Kendall hit a half-court shot to beat the buzzer.
In the ensuing quarter is when Paonia started to distance itself from its opponent when Hartigan began to find her groove. She poured in nine of her team-high 16 points in that frame to help her team build the 11-point cushion they entered halftime with.
“That was big. I feel that McKenna (Hartigan) is the one who bailed us out there in the first half. She played a fantastic game,” coach Scott Rienks said. “We also had a lot of the other experienced players step up and help that effort later on.”
Continuously adding to its lead, Paonia spread the wealth among its senior-heavy lineup.
Sophia Anderson finished the game with 16 points to join Hartigan’s team-high mark. Emily Peiper also reach double figures with 11 points of her own, while McKenna Palmer contributed seven.
“It was such an amazing experience to share with all of my teammates,” Hartigan said. “This is what we’ve always stayed working for.”
Wray’s campaign at adding to its seven program titles, which ranks third among all classifications, fell short, but also had its share of high moments. The Eagles knocked off their rival and defending champion Yuma the day prior to earn a berth in the title game.
Leading Wray on Saturday was 24 points from Morgan Smith, which led all scorers from both teams.
Paonia’s undefeated 25-0 mark was the exclamation point to end it all, standing as the program’s best-ever record just in front of the 2010 team that finished 25-1.
“That 2010 team sent messages and flowers to the girls before the game,” Rienks said. “It’s just special because we’re all still family.”
LOVELAND — The entire season came down to one quarter, and the Holyoke boys basketball team did just enough in that final frame to beat Sedgwick County 44-41 in the Class 2A state title gameon Saturday night.
The Cougars and Dragons battled neck-and-neck from start to finish at the Budweiser Events Center, finding themselves tied at 35 after three quarters of play.
“These kids have worked so hard just to get here, and this is exactly the way I wanted it to end for them,” Holyoke coach Scott Dille said. “We were as close as we could have been, and that’s what you get when you play a team like them.”
With the state championship on the line, Holyoke senior Alex Strauss stepped up to help his team win its third title in program history – its latest being in 2010.
He had a rather quiet first half, but bounced back to score 10 of his 13 total points after halftime and knocked down some clutch shots for the Dragons.
“I wanted it so bad. It’s an amazing feeling to win it for my city, with my team,” Strauss said. “It’s just surreal to go out like this, with a ‘W’ in the final game ever. We wanted to bring it back to Holyoke this whole time.”
Also playing a big role for Holyoke (22-5) was senior Austin Herman, who finished with a game-high 16 points. Senior MJ Taylor also reached double figures with his 10 points.
“I don’t know if I can put it all into words,” Dille said. “What I see is a group of kids who came to the gym every day and went as hard as they could at it just to have this moment.”
Sedgwick County (24-2), whose only defeats this season have been dealt by the Dragons, were paced by its pair of senior forwards in Michael Nein and Chad Mikelson. Nein joined Herman as the game’s leading scorer with 16 points of his own. Mikelson finished with 14 points, 10 of which were scored before halftime.
Trailing by three points, the Cougars had a number of shot attempts from behind the arc in attempt to force an overtime period, none of which they could get to fall.
“We knew we would have to bring everything we had, especially when you play (Sedgwick County),” Strauss said. “We stuck to our guns and everything fell into place for us. It’s everything we’ve always wanted.”
DENVER — The Sterling boys basketball team never gave up Saturday and the Tigers were rewarded with an improbable Class 3A state championship.
Sterling outscored Faith Christian 8-2 in the final two minutes to claim a dramatic 48-47 win over the Eagles Saturday at Hamilton Gym on the University of Denver campus.
“We’re still kind of wondering what the heck happened,” said veteran Sterling coach Mike Holloway. “We just kept saying we have to be aggressive defensively and see if we can get some turnovers. This will be remembered as one of the best two minutes in Sterling basketball history.”
Sterling (23-5 overall) won its third state boys basketball title in school history – the other two were in 1984 and 2011. Faith Christian (18-9), meanwhile, saw its seventh state boys basketball crown, and first since 2012, slip through its grasp.
With two minutes left in the game, it looked as if Faith Christian would be celebrating title No. 7 – but looks were deceiving.
Garret Pott calmly sank two free throws, putting the Eagles up 46-39 with two minutes left.
That was the Tigers cue to come alive and Carter Keil supplied the late-game heroics.
The sophomore stole an errant pass from Jonah Gardner and then dribbled down for a layup and was fouled by Jonathan Hardcastle. Keil made the free throw to give Sterling a 48-47 edge with 25 seconds left.
“When I made the steal, I thought I had to at least make the shot and when I made the free throw I thought things were starting to go our way,” Keil said.
Following a timeout with 21 seconds left, Faith worked the ball to Alec Muehlemeyer who had an open look for a trey from the right side of the top of the key. Muehlemeyer’s 3-pointer bounced off the rim with two seconds left and was rebounded by Sterling to give the Tigers the win.
“When they missed that shot it was an unreal feeling,” said Keil, who have five of his 12 points in the fourth quarter. “It was a crazy two minutes.”
Holloway praised Keil for his clutch steal.
“That was very big steal and a bucket a free throw,” Holloway said. “We wanted to be aggressive and gamble a little bit and we were fortunate to get them to turn the ball over and rush some shots and convert on the other end. I’m going to have to watch the tape and see what happened because I’m kind of in awe right now.”
For Keil to take center stage, others had to also step for the Tigers and they did.
Isaac Harris made a layup, and was fouled, He missed his free throw, but teammate Christian Rose made a follow shot to get Sterling within 46-43 with 1:15 left.
Hardcastle was fouled and made one free throw with 63 seconds remaining, giving the Eagles a 47-43 edge. Bodie Hume, who had a team-high 15 points, added an inside bucket to get Sterling within 47-45 with 45 ticks left.
Leading 23-20 at half, Sterling’s Wade Kellogg made a jumper to give the Tigers a 25-20 lead, but Faith responded to get within 25-24.
Faith gabbed a 27-25 edge when Muehlemeyer swished a 3-pointer from the left corner with 4:48 left in the third. Benjamin Hawkins, who had a game-high 20 points, then blazed past the Sterling defense for a layup to give the Eagles a 29-25 lead at 4:09 of the third.
Hume’s free throw at 3:55 cut the deficit to 29-26, but then Hawkins made back-to-back 3-pointers from the right side of the top of the key to give the Eagles a 35-26 lead with 2:59 on the third-quarter clock.
Hawkins continued his scoring binge with two free throws at 1:54 mark of the third, giving Faith its largest lead of the game at 37-26 lead. Hume finally stopped Faith’s 17-3 run with a bucket, but then Gardner converted a three-point play at 51.4 seconds and Hume also picked up his fourth foul.
Hume bounced back with a driving layup to get the Tigers within 40-30 with eight minutes to play. That set the stage for the wild fourth quarter.
“This was a blast,” said Hume, a 6-foot-5 junior. “We came with a lot of heart and we were able to get this great win.”
