La Veta got a scare in its first set against Springfield. The Class 1A CHSAANow.com No. 8-ranked Longhorns grabbed an impressive 11-point win in that set, apparently setting the tone for the match.
But No. 6 La Veta bounced right back to win the next three and get a 14-25, 25-20, 25-21, 28-26 win.
La Veta moves to 6-0 on the season and look to remain undefeated when it travels to Manzaonla on Friday.
Springfield has another looming top-10 showdown on Tuesday when it heads to Holly.
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Fruita Monument 3, Valor Christian 2
Riley Snyder and Dana Thomson combined for 35 kills as Fruita Monument battled back from a 2-1 deficit to beat Valor Christian in five sets.
Truth Hafey helped set up the offensive attack by totaling 37 assists.
It is the fifth-straight win for the Wildcats and just the second loss on the year for the Eagles.
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Pueblo Central 3, Trinidad 2
Pueblo Central took the first set from Trinidad before dropping the next two. Forced to rally, the Wildcats won the last two tightly contested sets to come away with the match.
Skyview football is off to its best start in six seasons.
The Wolverines beat Weld Central 41-20 on Saturday. It means the team is now 2-0 for the first time since the 2011 season, when they finished 7-3.
Skyview, coming off a playoff appearance in Class 3A, will now seek to improve on its 6-5 campaign from a season ago.
On Saturday, the Wolverines got 192 yards and three rushing touchdowns from senior Deyvon Butler. Quarterback Michael Vigil also threw a touchdown pass to Isaiah Montoya.
Anthony Gonzalez, meanwhile had two interceptions that he returned for touchdowns.
Marcus Kemm, a junior, led the defense with nine tackles.
Weld Central had one of its best seasons in year last season when the Rebels went 8-2 and reached the 2A playoffs. They face Jefferson next week.
West Grand beat South Park 54-12, giving coach Chris Brown his 317th career victory. He is one behind Kent Denver’s Scott Yates for the all-time wins record.
In 8-man, Caliche upset No. 4 Sargent 38-13. The Buffs are now 2-1.
Rock Canyon opened the year at 2-0 following a 41-7 win over Smoky Hill in 5A.
High-scoring game in 8-man, where Gilpin County beat Simla 60-50.
Sierra Grande really got its offense working in an 80-32 win over Mountain Valley in 6-man.
6-man No. 2 Stratton/Liberty cruised to a 59-6 win over Elbert. Phillip Packard, a senior, threw two touchdowns and caught another.
In 1A, Front Range Christian edged Lyons 14-13. CJ Hoff and Jaxon Mahler each had rushing touchdowns for the Falcons.
4A Widefield cruised to a 53-0 win over 3A Mitchell. TJ Davis accounted for five total touchdowns for the Gladiators, including three passing. Davis also had 294 total yards.
And though No. 3 Windsor had its chances deep in Pine Creek territory, the Eagles’ defense held firm. The last big play came with 3:57 remaining when Pine Creek intercepted a pass at its own 6-yard-line.
“Our defense stood the test, and had two great stands inside our 20,” coach Todd Miller told the Colorado Preps Scoreboard Show. “They kind of bowed their necks and were able to dig in. … Right now, we’re living on our defense.”
This matchup marked the fourth time in the past five seasons that the two teams have met, including twice in the postseason. Pine Creek has won all four matchups.
Pine Creek is now 2-0 after beating 5A ThunderRidge last week. The Eagles host Fountain-Fort Carson next week.
Windsor drops to 1-1, and plays at Broomfield next week.
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5A: (9) Mullen at (3) Regis Jesuit
The Mustangs stunned their rival with a comeback that saw Mullen take the lead for the first time with three seconds left in the game.
Regis Jesuit had led the entire game, and the Raiders were up 39-26 with 2:56 remaining, but Mullen recovered a late fumble on the 47-yard-line, scored on a pass play, and then got an onside kick with 50 seconds remaining.
That set up the winning touchdown, with quarterback Dominic Depizzol throwing a 6-yard touchdown to Alonzo Moon on fourth-and-2. The point-after was good, and that gave the Mustangs the win.
Depizzol had six passing touchdowns, four of which went to Wind Henderson.
Regis Jesuit quarterback Justin Lamb threw three touchdowns. Kiahn Martinez had a rushing TD.
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4A/3A: (10) Pueblo West 36, (5) Pueblo East 14
Pueblo West handed Pueblo East its first in-city loss since 2014.
“They’re a quality program. We knew we were going to have to play a good game,” Cyclones coach Monte Pinkerton told the Scoreboard Show. “We were able to finish a little bit stronger than we did last year, and were able to pull it off.”
The Cyclones were led by their defense on Friday night.
“We’ve got a bunch of guys that just like to fly around,” Pinkerton said.
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Notables
In 2A, No. 1 Kent Denver jumped out to a big halftime lead an never looked back in beating No. 7 Faith Christian 52-33. It was win No. 318 for Sun Devils coach Scott Yates, which extends his state record.
2A No. 8 Platte Valley beat No. 10 Eaton, 41-21. “It turned into a track meet,” Broncos coach Troy Hoffman told the Scoreboard Show.
Salida beat rival Buena Vista 55-7. It marked first time Salida has beat BV since 2010. “Our kids were ready tonight. It was fun to watch them play,” Spartans coach Eric Handke told the Scoreboard Show. “Our offense was really clicking tonight.”
In 3A, No. 4 The Classical Academy got a big win over No. 5 Sterling, 24-7.
1A No. 6 Limon shut out No. 7 Crowley County 27-0.
In a game that was delayed two hours by lightning, No. 8 Fleming topped No. 6 Arickaree/Woodlin 38-32.
Fairview beat its rival, Boulder, 57-20.
Hinkley snapped a 13-game losing streak with a 28-18 win over Thornton.
Greeley Central also snapped a 13-game losing streak, topping Northridge 50-21.
5A No. 1 Valor Christian went on the road and beat Greater Atlanta Christian, a state finalists in Georgia last season, 28-22. In his return from an injury, Eagles quarterback Blake Stenstrom threw three touchdowns and ran for another.
Arapahoe beat its rival, Heritage, 28-13. “We were playing pretty inspired,” Arapahoe coach Mike Campbell told CET Sports after the game.
Rocky Mountain took care of crosstown rival Fossil Ridge, 30-0.
Fruita Monument beat rival Grand Junction 30-7. “Our defense played well all night,” Wildcats coach Todd Casebier told the Scoreboard Show. “Our defense kept us in the game.”
3A No. 9 Noah Roper rushed for three touchdowns as Erie beat Eagle Valley 41-6.
Ralston Valley was supposed to play Ferris (Wash.) on Friday, but the game was cancelled due to poor air quality by wild fires in Washington state.
STRASBURG — No. 2 Bennett ripped off big play after big play to take down No. 1 Strasburg in a big Class 1A matchup on Friday night.
“It’s huge. We talked about it all week,” Bennett coach Rick Jacoby said. “The kids were super focused, I haven’t seen them like that in years. They were down to business — not too much in the hype of the game, not engaged in other situations — just down to business and focused. I’m real proud of the boys.”
The Tigers won 37-14, snapping a 14 game winning streak for Strasburg. The streak was tied for the longest in the state.
“Strasburg is a good team,” Jacoby said. “They’re young and trying to fill some spots from last year’s group. They’re a quality program. I’m sure as soon as they work those kinks out, man, it’s going to be a little bit different in November.”
Bennett’s Rocky Lechman kept on the read option and gutted the Strasburg defense for a 68-yard touchdown. A 2-point conversion put the Tigers up 16-0 with the first play of the second quarter.
Lechman was everywhere for No. 2 Bennett on both sides of the ball. He made tackle after tackle for the swarming Tiger defense. He made plays with his legs for the quick-striking offense, including a 20-yard run to put the score at 37-8.
“Our offensive and defensive lines came out and killed it,” Lechman said. “They were the MVP for this game. I couldn’t do anything on offense without our offensive line. Without them, I’m nothing.”
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Jesse Rodriguez got loose on a 78-yard touchdown run to put Bennett up 30-8.
“I call it the three-headed monster back there,” Jacoby said. “I think teams start looking at Jesse (Rodgriguez) and some of the things he can do, and they over prep on him. Not taking anything away from Rocky, he’s an incredible athlete, very smart, but I think teams over-prepare for Jesse and it allows us to do some special things with Rocky with his speed and power.”
Michael Spence looked to be free on a run to the outside, but Lechman caught him from behind to keep the score at 16-0.
“Really, we were just trying to shut their sweep down,” Lechman said. “Last year, they beat us on that a lot. Fly in, fill our holes and make some big hits.
“Our defensive line just forces it in. I flew to where I’m supposed to be and I made plays.”
Strasburg hurt itself with penalties throughout the game. Delay of game penalties stalled the Indians on offense, then a block in the back took away a Strasburg first down in the middle of the first quarter.
The next play, Mason Wakeham broke off a 49-yard touchdown run and gave Bennett an 8-0 lead over Strasburg.
“Gameplan was limit the big play,” Jacoby said. “Look over last couple years, we feel like we’ve done a very good job playing Strasburg up to third down. Third and fourth down was our key. That was our mantra all week, third and fourth down, get them off the field. Limit those big plays on third and fourth down, and we knew we had a good chance.”
Nearing halftime on the opposing 30-yard-line, Strasburg’s Carson Spence looked endzone three plays in a row.
Spence passed just over the hands of his intended receiver. Next play, Spence’s pass just missed again. Facing a 4th & 11 with 1:31 left in the first half, Strasburg elected to go for it.
And the decision paid off.
(Cannon Casey/CHSAANow.com)
Spence found Michael Spence on a wheel route on a completed pass down to the 4-yard-line.
With 18 seconds left, Spence scrambled right and found Jacob Miller in the endzone. Strasburg closed the gap to a one-possession game going into halftime.
“Our leadership stood out. We picked eachother up even in sticky situations that we got into. We were able to build eachother up and get over those. We preach the brotherhood concept, and it really stood out tonight.”
But Bennett kept on the gas and went on to a 30-8 win thanks to touchdowns from Donovan Velasquez Kerns and Rodriguez, and the defense stepping up.
“Our pursuit to the ball on defense was a difference maker,” Jacoby said. “We thought we had a good scheme. It did break down a couple times, and that’s stuff we talked about. We have to go and work on stuff with their two scoring drives.”
On a big fourth down and five with 1:03 in the third quarter, Bennett took over on downs after the pass was broken up.
“We just knew we had to come out and play,” Lechman said. “Coach kept telling us that it’s just another game. Obviously, it’s a big deal to all the people we had out here, but he kept telling us that it’s just a game. Don’t make it too big, don’t freak yourself out. Just play like it’s another game.”
Football is in the blood of the people of these towns. Some fans have been watching Strasburg from the same spot for as they put it, “years.” One couple watched their sons and grandsons go through the program, and they still watch today.
“(The rivalry) means a lot to me,” Lechman, who transferred from Strasburg after freshman year, said. “It means a lot because I know all of these kids. It’s a great game and it’s fun to play in.”
On Friday, Bennett took home the win in the true definition of Friday Night Lights. Fans lined the chain link fence around the field as the town stood still for a few hours on a Friday night.
“Tomorrow morning, the celebration is over,” Lechman said. “It’s time to start preparing and continue on toward that state ring.”
LITTLETON — The Liberty Bell Cross Country Invitational, annually one of the top events of the season, was held on Friday.
Rock Canyon’s Chris Theodore had the fastest boys time of the day — but narrowly. He won the Division 1 race in 15:23, narrowly ahead of Eaglecrest’s Mason Brown and his teammate Easton Allred, who both finished in 15:24.
Legacy’s Brynn Siles was the fastest girls finisher, and won the Division 1 race in 17:29.
LA JUNTA — Jon Nuschy likes to take matters into his own hands. So when La Junta didn’t score on its first drive of the game, he took the ball back to give his Tigers another chance.
He put the team on the board with a 15-yard touchdown run and La Junta held firm on its home field, coming away with a 21-13 win over Alamosa on Friday night.
And just like the bulk of last year, when the Class 2A No. 3-ranked Tigers (2-0 overall) needed offense, it was Nuschy who provided the spark, even if he doesn’t see it that way.
“It’s more of a team effort,” he said. “We play good when we have to and we made it happen.”
The junior quarterback found Riley Remick for a 26-yard pass that eventually set up Nuschy’s first touchdown of the night, a 15-yard scamper around the edge.
The No. 9-ranked Mean Moose (1-1), however, were not without the capabilities of putting together a scoring drive. Quarterback John Lujan found Angelo Ramirez for a 36-yard pass, setting up an eventual two-yard touchdown run for Ramirez to tie the game.
But the Tigers had an answer.
Nuschy connected with a Matthew Espinoza on a 30-yard touchdown pass to regain the lead.
“It’s hard, their corners were good and their safeties were good,” Espinoza said. “It was hard to get open, but when I did, I was able to make plays.”
La Junta took the seven-point cushion into halftime, but sputtered on their first drive of the third quarter. On their first drive of the half, the Moose carved out 52 yards through the air, and grounded out the other 11 to get back the end zone.
But the they couldn’t tie the game as the extra point sailed wide-right. Between Nuschy’s interception that was initially bobbled by an Alamosa receiver, Espinoza’s catch that he was able to haul in and the missed extra point, the bounces just weren’t going the ways of the Moose.
(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
“That’s a tough game and La Junta is a tough opponent,” Alamosa coach Dillon McNamee said. “We’re disappointed because we know we played really well, just a handful of little plays down the stretch, if they go the other way it could’ve been a different outcome.”
Perhaps the biggest play of the night came with 2:55 left in regulation. A penalty left the Tigers with fourth and long and out came the punting unit.
But coach Clint Buderus and Nuschy are of a like mind. They don’t like handing the ball back to their opponent. Nuschy completed a 20-yard pass off a fake punt and Wyatt Buhr ended the drive with a two-yard touchdown run to give the Tigers an eight-point lead.
“(The fake punt call was) mine,” Buderus said. “We give up our up-back guy that send in either a thumbs up or thumbs down and we got the look we wanted, so we did it.”
And it paid off. The defending 2A champions remain undefeated and now hold the state’s longest active winning streak at 15 games.
The Moose, a team that has been bitten by La Junta several times in recent years, didn’t come away with a win, but came away knowing they have the chops to hang with the best the state has to offer.
“(The loss) is only going to make us stronger as a team and as a family,” Ramirez said. “We’ll come together and every team we play, we’ll remember this night and how bad it hurts.”
The Tigers will look to continue their winning streak when they travel to Elizabeth next week and then will meet Kent Denver in a rematch of last year’s state title game.
LAKEWOOD — D’Evelyn senior receiver/defensive back Cullen Flynn was a prime example of how to respond to adversity Friday night at Jeffco Stadium.
Green Mountain’s large homecoming football crowd got fired up early when junior Ryan Burdi intercepted a pass from D’Evelyn quarterback Chad Dines that was intended for Flynn on the third play from scrimmage. The ball hit Flynn directly in the face mask on an out-pattern. Burdi snagged it and returned the pick to the Jaguars’ 3-yard line.
Green Mountain senior Cade Casterline scored on the next play on a 3-yard touchdown run to give the Rams a 7-0 just 75 seconds into the game.
“We always talk about adversity. If we get down, we keep fighting. That is what we did,” Flynn said after the Jaguars rallied for a 21-10 victory. “We had adversity right off the bat.”
Flynn turned things around personally in a hurry. He ended with 10 catches for 112 yards. His 19-yard touchdown catch from Dines in the fourth quarter was the only points put up in the second half and gave D’Evelyn its two-score lead.
D’Evelyn’s John Ochoa (11) takes a hit from Green Mountain’s Quinn Meinert. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“Flynn has so much confidence right now. It started in track when he placed third in the 110 (Class 3A hurdles) at the state track meet,” D’Evelyn coach Jeremy Bennett said. “He is a tremendous athlete. We tell our kids adversity is going to happen. How do you act to it?”
Flynn wrapped up his night in style intercepting Green Mountain sophomore quarterback Trey Towndrow on the final play of the game.
The Jaguars’ high-powered offense had great balance with seniors Cody Bell, John Ochoa and Flynn combining for more than 200 yards receiving. Junior Luca McIntyre contributed 102 yards on 13 carries as the Jaguars bounced back from an opening season loss.
“This is cool. It’s fun for our kids,” Bennett said of playing at Jeffco Stadium. The Jaguars normally play their games at Trailblazer Stadium. “This hasn’t happened for our kids since 2003. It was great atmosphere for a high school football game. This was a lot of fun.”
D’Evelyn’s first-half scoring came from the Dines to Bell connection. The senior quarterback hit Bell for touchdowns of 2 and 48 yards to help the Jaguars to a 14-10 lead at halftime.
Green Mountain kicker Quinn Meinert connected on a 41-yard field goal in the second quarter, but hit the upright on a 27-yard attempt that could have trimmed D’Evelyn’s lead to a single point heading into halftime.
Green Mountain’s Cade Casterline (24) stretches for the end zone. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“Jeremy does a great job,” Green Mountain coach Matt Pees said of D’Evelyn. “They are a really well-coached team. They are disciplined and believe in themselves. We knew it would be a fight to the end.”
Casterline had a solid night on the ground with 21 carries for 84 yards, but wasn’t able to break off any big runs in the second half as D’Evelyn’s defense adjusted.
“Green Mountain was killing us on the outside,” D’Evelyn senior linebacker Peter Flack said. “They were breaking containment. We just widened out a little bit. It was pretty good to shut them down in the second half.”
D’Evelyn (1-1 record) hosts The Classical Academy on Friday night at Trailblazer Stadium in Lakewood. TCA is currently ranked No. 4 in the CHSAANow.com Class 2A football standings.
“(TCA) is going to be a good challenge,” Flack said. “They beat us last year. We’ve just got to prepare right and hopefully get that one too.”
Green Mountain (0-2) hits the road to face Golden (1-1) in the Demons’ homecoming game 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 15. The game will be played at Colorado School of Mines’ football stadium — home of the Orediggers’ Division II football program.
“We just have to clean somethings up and get better each week,” Pees said. “It’s part of the process. Our goals are still ahead of us.”
D’Evelyn senior Cody Bell (6) tries to elude Green Mountain’s Jacob Chavez (2) and Trey Corkin (22). (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
