As weather forecasts continue to worsen, the track and field games committee is set to meet early Thursday morning to make a decision on the schedule for the state meet.
“We want to see the facilities on Thursday before making a final decision,” said CHSAA assistant commissioner Jenn Roberts-Uhlig, who administers track.
Any decision made by the committee will be posted as soon as that meeting ends Thursday morning on CHSAANow.com. The state track meet is scheduled to run Thursday through Saturday at Jeffco Stadium.
The games committee, CHSAA officials and site officials met at Jeffco Stadium on Wednesday to discuss options, and continued to formulate contingencies for bad weather.
Additionally, the games committee ruled that hats and gloves will be allowed on Thursday and Friday, though relay teams may not wear gloves by rule. All uniform rules will be enforced as they have been throughout the season.
AURORA — The storm expected to hit the state later this week could potentially change the schedule to this week’s state baseball tournaments.
Forecasts show bad weather rolling into the metro area, as well as the Greeley and Niwot areas, starting on Wednesday evening. The storm is expected to bring rain through Thursday, and snow on Friday, as well as temperatures in the 30s. In Pueblo, the storm is expected to last all day on Thursday.
That’s an issue, obviously, with the 1A baseball championship slated for Thursday in Lakewood, and the 2A (Pueblo), 3A (Greeley/Niwot), 4A (Lakewood/Denver), and 5A (Denver) tournaments all set to start on Friday.
Aside from the immediate issue of moisture, the fields may not be ready to play even if the storm moves out early. As such, schedule changes may be announced in the coming days.
“We are keeping a close eye on the impending storm,” said CHSAA assistant commissioner Bert Borgmann, who administers baseball. “Know that it has the potential to wipe out Friday’s games, as well as potentially Saturday’s games if the fields can’t recover.
“At this point, we are looking at all options and discussing all conflicts with sites and schools to see what an alternate schedule might look like,” he added.
A decision on the 1A title game will be made by Wednesday morning, and one on the 2A-5A games will be made by Thursday.
CHSAA’s inclement weather plan for the spring indicated that any postponed events would be moved to the next available day, and includes the use of Sunday as an option for play.
AURORA — The state track and field meet cannot change its schedule in advance of the the event on Thursday, and, although poor weather is predicted, has no option but to move ahead as planned.
The meet is scheduled to start on Thursday and conclude Saturday. Forecasts for the metro area show a storm rolling in on Wednesday night and lasting through Friday. It is expected to bring a mixture of rain and snow.
The size of the event — five classifications, more 250 schools, more 5,000 athletes — makes any pre-postponement unworkable. It is the largest state championship CHSAA has.
“The only feasible way to deal with this number of schools and kids is to say, ‘You’re here, and you’re going to get in as much as you can while you can.’ And then we will continue as soon as the next availability allows,” said CHSAA commissioner Paul Angelico. “This is an attempt to be consistent in how we deal with this across the board.”
Plus, Angelico added, any decision to delay or postpone the meet is “better made on site at the time of the event by the officials, site director and games committee. We have to be there in order to make the decision.”
“We don’t have an other viable options than to move ahead as planned,” Angelico said. “We have to get as many events in as we can, when we can. We don’t want teams spending a week in Denver trying to get this done. We understand there are lots of year-end activities, as well as finals, that schools will be experiencing. CHSAA policy is that we always play on the next available date.
“We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause schools, but with more than 200 schools participating, there’s no way to avoid conflicts.”
Should any additional day be needed to complete the meet, “we will always continue to play the next available day or time,” Angelico said. In this case, that may push the meet into Sunday.
Any potential delays or changes will be communicated on Twitter and CHSAANow.com.
Directions: Use the North Gate, exit 156 off I-25. All spectators will be subject to a bag search. A list of prohibited items has been sent to schools. Tickets are cash only at the door.
AURORA — The Class 1A baseball championship game has been postponed in order to avoid an impending storm forecast for Thursday.
The title game, originally scheduled for 11 a.m. on Thursday at All-Star Park in Lakewood, will now be played on Saturday at Metro State. The start time is yet to be determined, and will depend on whether or not the 5A tournament is playing at the field that same day. It will be announced on Friday.
The 5A event may be postponed if the natural grass at All-City Field in Denver is unable to recover from rain and snow on Thursday and Friday. Metro State has an artificial surface.
No. 1 Holly and No. 7 Nucla will play for the 1A championship after winning in the semifinals last weekend.
A variety of options were considered for the game, but ultimately the decision to move it was made in order to stay off of Thursday, where there is a 90 percent chance of rain and temperatures expected to range from the 30s to 40s.
The artificial surface at Metro is more resilient than a typical natural grass and dirt field, and there is only a 10 percent chance of rain on Saturday, with forecasts calling for temperatures in the mid-50s.
AURORA — As the spring sports world eyes the weather, the CHSAA office communicated a contingency plan to schools participating in the state baseball tournaments on Tuesday.
Forecasts show a high chance of rain on Thursday and Friday, which could lead to unplayable fields at some state tournament sites. Further details on the plan are available below via a memo sent by CHSAA assistant commissioner Bert Borgmann, who oversees baseball.
Note that no final decision on the schedule will be made until Thursday in 2A-5A. Additionally, if one site in a classification is postponed, the entire classification will be postponed.
We have been weather-watching for the last several days like everyone else. As we look to the State Baseball Championship Series for all classifications, CHSAA will not make determination on any site or games until Thursday afternoon.
We will let you know via email at that time where we stand on Friday’s games. Northern Colorado weather looks to be wet through Friday and then cool through Sunday. Monday has a threat of thunderstorms, so Tuesday looks to be a strong window of opportunity.
2A – Pueblo Weather looks like the games can be held, so no changes.
3A, 4A, 5A – A decision will be made late Thursday to determine if they can be played on a regular schedule. If any single field is unplayable in these classifications, the entire classification will be postponed. For example, if All-City Field is unavailable due to poor field conditions, all 5A would be postponed.
Please note that we have field availability issues on Sunday for some classifications, so early next week looms as an alternative.
Due to pitch counts and the need for arm safety, we will look to the first available day that looks viable to start and complete the two days needed for Games 1-11 on the schedule. We will make sure that there is appropriate rest for pitchers between Week 1 and Week 2.
The general thought is that with the expected moisture, five of the six fields may be unplayable until Monday at the earliest. We would look at Tuesday and Wednesday (23, 24), followed by Tuesday and Wednesday the next week (30, 31) to complete the tournament. Please make sure that your coaches, players and fans are aware of this possibility.
You will receive additional information as it becomes available.
Evergreen senior Natalie Holley, 4-time state qualifier, has accepted an appointment to the Air Force Academy. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
ARVADA — Two of the top girl golfers in Jeffco will play in their final state tournament May 22 and 23 at Colorado National Golf Course in Erie before heading in different directions.
Class 4A Jeffco League medalist champion and 4-time state qualifier Sydney Prey is planning on playing on the women’s basketball and golf teams at Colorado Mesa University after she graduates from Golden High School. While Evergreen senior Natalie Holley leaves June 28 for Colorado Springs where she has accepted an appointment to the Air Force Academy.
“That’s sad,” Prey said after maybe playing a final competitive round with Holley on May 11 at the Class 4A Region 3 tournament at Indian Tree Golf Course in Arvada. “We’ve probably been paired together for every tournament over the past two years. It’s crazy how fast time flies by.”
Prey finished tied for 2nd in the regional with a round of 83 to qualify for her second straight 4A state tournament. The senior played in the 5A state tournament as a freshman and sophomore when she was at Ralston Valley High School.
Holley placed 7th in the regional with a 87. While the future cadet knows she could have played better in the wet conditions, her focus was on what the Cougars accomplished as a team. Teammates Brianna Bond (92) and Madeline Gatt (101) shot low enough to join Holley at state.
Natalie Holley hopes her putter heats up at Colorado National Golf Course for the 4A state tournament. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“I’m really excited because our team is going this year, which is a first in my four years,” said Holley, who tied for 26th last year at state.
It was fitting that Holley had her final regional tournament at Indian Tree. As a freshman she was able to par her final hole to make the state field.
Holley’s next step in life took time to evolve. She began the application process of going into the military nearly a year-and-a-half ago. Last summer Holley went on camps for those interested in the U.S. Naval Academy and U.S. Air Force Academy.
“I’m very excited. It was a tough decision. I knew that service was my path that I wanted to go,” said Holley, who also had a full-ride offer to the University of San Diego through the NORTC (Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps). “The Air Force offered so many great opportunities. I knew I wanted to serve in the military.”
Colorado congressman Jared Polis nominated Holley to both the Naval and Air Force academies. One disappointment for Holley is the Air Force doesn’t have a women’s golf team. They do have a club women’s golf team that she plans to get involved with.
“I know it’s going to be tough, but I know it’s going to make me a better person and stronger,” Holley said of joining the military.
Golden senior Sydney Prey has a chance to close her prep career with a state title. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
Prey recently committed to Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction where she will continue to be a multi-sport athlete.
“I’m going to try it out the first year and see how it goes,” said Prey of playing basketball and golfing. “If it’s too hard they are totally OK with me picking one over the other. We’ll see how it goes.”
Before heading to Grand Junction, Prey well aim to improve on her top-10 finish at the state tournament last year. She finished tied for 7th last year at Pueblo Country Club.
“My goal is to win it for sure, but the way I’ve been swinging it and playing my main goal is a top-3 finish,” Prey said. “If I can win it, I want to win it.”
Heading to state with Sydney will be her two younger sisters. Junior Makena Prey and freshman Haley Prey will join their older sister for one final prep event. The three were all starters on Golden’s girls basketball team that won the 4A Jeffco League title for the first time since 2008 and helped the Demons win the 4A Jeffco League girls golf team title this spring.
Sydney Prey will be joined by her younger sisters — Makena and Haley — at the Class 4A girls golf state tournament May 22 and 23. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
The number next to a team is not a seed. It is a team number. The matchups are predetermined based upon the Region each team won. See page 32 in the baseball bulletin for more information.
The site director will flip a coin for home team in all games.
The loser of Game 11 (L11) and winner of Game 11 (W11) may change places so that previous opponents are not matched. This spot is marked by an asterisk (*) on the bracket.
If three teams remain after Game 13, the winner of Game 11 (W11) draws a bye to Game 15. If W11 loses Game 12, there will be three teams left and W11 earns the bye. W12 then plays W13 to reach finals. This spot is marked by a caret (^) on the bracket.
