CHSAANow

Month: October 2017

  • 3A state softball: Eaton avenges last year’s loss to Rocky Ford

    3A State softball
    (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

    AURORA — A year ago, Eaton’s season came to an end at the hands of eventual state champion Rocky Ford.

    This year, the Reds got to return the favor.

    Junior Lauren Frink threw a complete-game shutout and got plenty of run support as Eaton beat the Meloneers 8-0 to advance to the Class 3A softball semifinal. Frink struck out five Rocky Ford hitters through the game.

    “It’s pretty special to know that you can bounce back and beat a team that you have history with,” Frink said. “We still have the confidence in us as a team that we would be able to do that.”

    The Reds got off to a quick start as Remington Ross and Jennifer Jarnigan started the game with back-to-back singles. Ross had stolen second and third, so she came home on Jarnigan’s hit to put Eaton on the scoreboard. Allie Hobbs added one of her own two hitters later then Melanie Frye drove in two to make it a quick 3-0 lead for Eaton.

    “The help of our offense is always a great asset,” Frink said. “It’s so much easier to go out and pitch when your team offensively and defensively have your back.”

    They added three more in the third and two in the fourth to push the lead to 8-0. But the Meloneers weren’t going to let a mercy rule come into play.

    The Eaton side was retired in order in the fifth and sixth innings, but the Meloneers weren’t able to get any runners

    Rocky Ford advanced to the quarters with a 7-6 comeback win over Meeker. The quarterfinal matchup was a rematch of last year semifinal, a game that Rocky Ford won 12-5.

    A win over the Meloneers may have massaged some bruises for the past, but the Reds would much rather focus on the task of moving forward and claiming the school’s first state softball title.

    “We don’t want to get too lost in those kind of thoughts,” coach Dale Hughes said. “We just want to keep our thought process moving forward.”

    So forward they will move as they are set to take on Strasburg. The Indians kept their hopes of returning to the championship game alive with a 2-0 win over La Junta in the quarterfinals.

    The other semifinal game will pit Brush against Faith Christian. The Beetdiggers beat Patriot League rival University 8-4 in the quarterfinals while Faith Christian held off a seventh-inning comeback attempt from Sterling.

    The Eagles came away with a 9-8 win.

  • 5A state softball: Eaglecrest, Fossil Ridge, Legacy, Legend advance

    ARUROA — It’ll be Eaglecrest vs. Fossil Ridge and Legacy vs. Legend in the Class 5A softball semifinals on Saturday.

    The four teams each advanced with two victories during the first day of the 5A state tournament on Friday.

    Semifinal games begin at 10 a.m., with the championship slated for 1:30 p.m.

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    Eaglecrest rolls into semis behind offensive output

    5A state softball
    (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

    Eaglecrest jumped out to a 4-0 lead after the first inning of its quarterfinal game with Pomona and never looked back. The Raptors won 15-1 to advance to the semifinals for the second consecutive season.

    Kailey Wilson hit a two-run home run, and Eaglecrest had consistent scoring outputs in the second (five runs), third (three) and fourth (three) innings.

    “They’re hungry. They want it. And they’re working hard. They’ve worked so hard, and they’ve been so fun this year,” coach Yvette Hendrian said. “If we can keep our bats hot, we’ll be alright.”

    The top-seeded Raptors are now 22-1 this season.

    “We’re in a good spot. It’s not pressure anymore,” Hendrian said. “We know what have. We know what we can do. We’ve played under pressure a couple of times, and we’ve managed to get out of it. We know how to find ways to win. They know that and as long as they believe that and know that, we’re good.”

    To reach the quarterfinals, Eaglecrest beat Rocky Mountain 12-2, and Pomona beat Brighton 7-6 on a walk-off earlier Friday.

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    Fossil Ridge reaches fifth-consecutive semifinal

    5A state softball
    (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

    Fossil Ridge continued its amazing streak of semifinal appearances, reaching the round of four for the fifth consecutive season.

    In the quarterfinals on Friday, the fourth-seeded Sabercats jumped out to a 4-0 lead on Columbine after two innings, and eventually won 4-1 to reach the semis.

    “I’m almost speechless,” coach Dave Philop said after the game. “This group has done it five years in a row. I can’t believe it.”

    Fossil Ridge and Eaglecrest played earlier in the year, with Eaglecrest winning 7-2.

    “We feel a chance to have a rematch with them, we’re looking forward to it,” Philop said. “We’ve played them, and we know how good they are, but we also think that we play in one of the better leagues in the state, and so we feel like we’re battle-tested.”

    To advance to the quarterfinals, Fossil Ridge rallied to beat Grand Junction Central 13-9, and Columbine beat Douglas County 2-1 with a walk-off hit.

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    Legend edges Arvada West to advance

    5A state softball
    (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

    Hailee Swanson hit a two-run home run in the fourth inning, and No. 10 Legend beat No. 2 Arvada West 3-2 in the quarterfinals.

    It gave Legend its first trip to the semifinals since 2013. The team had lost in the first round of the state tournament each of the past three seasons.

    “It’s trying to create a new history for us,” coach Kristen Shirk said.

    Against Arvada West, Legend scored what proved to be the winning run in the fifth inning.

    “We were just going base-by-base, playing as a team, and that’s all we’re looking for,” Shirk said.

    As for the gameplan for the semifinals?

    “Bring the energy, the same energy we did today,” Shirk said, “and keep hitting the crap out of the ball.”

    To advance to the quarterfinals, Legend beat Cherry Creek 16-3, while Arvada West beat Mountain Vista 5-3.

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    Legacy beats Loveland to move on

    5A state softball
    (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

    Legacy’s offense slowly added to its lead as the game went on, and the third-seeded Lightning eventually beat No. 6 Loveland 7-2.

    It is the first time Legacy has advanced to the semifinals since 2013, when they won the 5A title.

    “They have been working towards this since August 25th, when we set our mission statement,” Legacy coach Dawn Gaffin said. “They have just been wanting to get here. It’s been like pulling the reigns back on them.”

    It’ll be another rematch in the semifinals. Legacy beat Legend 8-6 on Sept. 1.

    “That doesn’t mean anything,” Gaffin said. “We’re going to have to come with it.”

    Earlier Friday, Legacy beat ThunderRidge 10-4 in the first round, while Loveland topped Prairie View 3-0.

  • Photos: Cross country regionals in Lyons

    LYONS — Photos from the cross country regional action in Lyons on Thursday.

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  • Littleton boys soccer grabs 1st league title since 1973

    Littleton’s Bryan Sirner, left, and Evergreen’s Connor Bilgrave battle for the ball Wednesday at Lakewood Memorial Field. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

    LAKEWOOD — Littleton’s boys soccer coach Pedja Vajzovic got congratulation handshakes from a trio of Class 4A Jeffco League coaches Wednesday night at Lakewood Memorial Field.

    “The right team won the league I think,” Evergreen coach Ross Fowler said after his Cougars were shutout by the Lions in both teams’ conference finale.

    Fowler, D’Evelyn coach Paul Moline and Standley Lake coach Mike Day all congratulated Vajzovic after Littleton wrapped up the conference title with a 2-0 victory over Evergreen. It’s the first boys soccer conference title for the Lions since 1973.

    “After many years, my gosh. It means a lot to us,” Vajzovic said of capturing that elusive league title for the first time in 44 years. “The Jeffco League is very tough. We got lucky in a couple of close games. We fought hard. I think this year was our year. I’m very happy for the guys.”

    Littleton’s Kevin Guiterez (17) attempts to get space from Evergreen’s Theo Miller. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

    Littleton’s victory took any drama out of the league title race on the final night of conference play. If the Cougars (6-7, 4-3 in league) would have got the win, it would have brought Evergreen, D’Evelyn and Standley Lake all into the picture for the league title.

    Instead, Littleton (13-1-1, 6-1 in league) won the conference title outright.

    “There is our banner in our gymnasium that only has one year (1973) on it,” Littleton senior captain Zach Maguire said. “We worked really hard last year to develop a team. This year we continued to build off of that. We didn’t let down.”

    Littleton went 2-5 in 4A Jeffco last season. Six of the seven games were decided by one goal with the Lions on the short end the majority of the time.

    With the conference title in sight, the Lions got a bit of a break with an own-goal in the 3rd minute against Evergreen to take an early 1-0 lead. From there on out it turned into a defensive battle.

    Evergreen’s best scoring chance came in the 70th minute. Junior Ryan Gutberlet made a strong run, but his shot that could have tied the game just hit the outside of the net. The Cougars didn’t threaten to score in the final minutes as the Lions recored their 10th shutout victory of the season.

    Evergreen’s Nick Graziano (9) dribbles the ball ahead of Littleton’s Omar Serrano. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

    “I didn’t know our defense was going to be that good this year,” Maguire said of the Lions that have allowed just five goals this season. “We don’t have to score a lot of goals. We can defend and shut teams out.”

    Littleton senior Ethan Schwarz sealed the victory with a goal in the 75th minute. Junior Ruben Cervantes had a perfect centering pass to Schwarz when the Lions were just trying to run out the clock.

    “We talked about playing it to the corner to waste time, but a ball came through and I didn’t go to the corner,” Schwarz said. “I just went toward the goal.”

    The 32-team 4A state tournament bracket will be released on CHSAANow.com on Sunday. It’s likely that five Jeffco teams — Littleton, D’Evelyn, Standley Lake, Evergreen and Golden — will all make the field.

    The Cougars looked to be in serious trouble midway through the season, but a 4-game winning streak before the loss to Littleton got Evergreen back in the postseason picture.

    “No one panicked,” Fowler said of the Cougars’ 2-6 start and 0-2 league mark early. “We needed to establish our identity and how we wanted to play. After we did that I think we proved we can compete with anybody.”

    The Class 4A Jeffco League will likely have Littleton, Evergreen, D’Evelyn, Standley Lake and Golden all make the 32-team field for the 4A state tournament. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

  • Field hockey’s state tournament bracket

    The 2017 state tournament bracket for field hockey.

    2017 CHSAA State Field Hockey Championships State Field Hockey

  • Field hockey’s state bracket released; Palmer Ridge is the No. 1 seed

    Palmer Ridge Colorado Academy field hockey
    (Lance Wendt/LanceWendt.com)

    Field hockey’s state tournament bracket was released on Thursday morning, and it’s Palmer Ridge who heads the field.

    The Bears, who finished the regular season at 13-1-1, finished atop the final RPI standings of the regular season. They will face No. 8 Cheyenne Mountain in the first round on Saturday at 11 a.m.

    Palmer Ridge, which has never won a championship, was runner-up last season, as well as 2014 and 2012.

    The state bracket was seeded strictly according to the RPI standings. Find the full bracket here.

    Colorado Academy is the No. 2 seed, and will play No. 7 Mountain Vista.

    Defending champion Kent Denver is No. 3, and faces No. 6 Denver East.

    Regis Jesuit is seeded fourth, and will host No. 5 Cherry Creek in the first round.

    The semifinals will be Oct. 24 at All-City Stadium, with games at 5:30 and 7:15 p.m. Field hockey’s championship is Oct. 26 at 7 p.m., also at All-City.

  • Top-10 football schedule and scoreboard for 2017’s Week 8 games

    A complete schedule and scoreboard for football’s top-10 teams during Week 8 of the 2017 season.

    [divider]

    Class 5A
    1 Valor Christian 8-0
    Friday: W 48-7 at (8) Highlands Ranch
    2 Eaglecrest 8-0
    Thursday: W 41-13 at Castle View
    3 Pomona 6-2
    Friday: W 49-14 vs. Mountain Vista
    4 Regis Jesuit 7-1
    Friday: W 55-0 vs. Aurora Central
    5 Columbine 7-1
    Thursday: W 47-7 at Northglenn
    6 Cherry Creek 6-2
    Friday: W 42-21 at Horizon
    7 Grandview 6-2
    Friday: W 42-2 at Doherty
    8 Highlands Ranch 6-2
    Friday: L 7-48 vs. (1) Valor Christian
    9 Fairview 7-1
    Friday: W 18-16 at (10) Mullen
    10 Mullen 3-5
    Friday: L 16-18 vs. (9) Fairview
    Class 4A
    1 Ponderosa 8-0
    Friday: W 26-7 at Grand Junction Central
    2 Pine Creek 7-1
    Friday: W 56-0 at Air Academy
    3 Chatfield 7-1
    Friday: W 63-7 vs. Gateway
    4 Windsor 7-1
    Thursday: W 44-0 at Greeley Central
    5 Loveland 8-0
    Thursday: W 49-0 at Grand Junction
    6 Fruita Monument 8-0
    Friday: W 42-8 at Standley Lake
    7 Pueblo West 7-1
    Friday: W 47-23 at Mesa Ridge
    8 Monarch 7-1
    Friday: W 35-13 vs. Mountain View
    9 Pueblo South 7-1
    Friday: W 49-14 at Cheyenne Mountain
    10 Skyline 7-1
    Saturday: W 35-28 vs. Fort Collins
    Class 3A
    1 Mead 8-0
    Friday: W 45-0 vs. Holy Family
    2 Palmer Ridge 8-0
    Friday: W 26-6 at Thomas Jefferson
    3 Erie 7-1
    Friday: L 20-22 at (5) Roosevelt
    4 Harrison 8-0
    Friday: W 28-3 vs. Pueblo County
    5 Roosevelt 6-2
    Friday: W 22-20 vs. (3) Erie
    6 Evergreen 7-1
    Friday: W 38-13 vs. Conifer
    7 Longmont 5-3
    Friday: W 54-29 at Northridge
    8 Silver Creek 4-4
    Friday: L 13-16 vs. Centaurus
    9 Canon City 7-1
    Friday: W 41-21 at Discovery Canyon
    10 Skyview 7-1
    Friday: W 52-14 vs. Lutheran
    Class 2A
    1 Kent Denver 8-0
    Friday: W 21-8 at (10) Bishop Machebeuf
    2 Bayfield 8-0
    Friday: W 45-0 vs. Delta
    3 Platte Valley 8-0
    Friday: W 45-14 at Brush
    4 La Junta 7-1
    Friday: W 39-16 vs. (9) Salida
    5 The Classical Academy 7-1
    Friday: W 49-6 vs. Lamar
    6 Sterling 6-2
    Friday: W 42-13 vs. Weld Central
    7 Faith Christian 7-1
    Friday: W 45-0 vs. Denver West
    8 Basalt 7-1
    Friday: W 47-0 at Moffat County
    9 Salida 6-2
    Friday: L 16-39 at (4) La Junta
    10 Bishop Machebeuf 7-1
    Friday: L 8-21 vs. (1) Kent Denver
    Class 1A
    1 Bennett 8-0
    Friday: W 54-16 at Manual
    2 Meeker 8-0
    Friday: W 31-14 at (6) Paonia
    3 Centauri 9-0
    Friday: W 48-0 at Dolores
    4 Strasburg 7-1
    Friday: W 66-28 vs. Cornerstone Christian Academy
    5 Limon 7-1
    Friday: W 31-0 at Yuma
    6 Paonia 6-2
    Friday: L 14-31 vs. (2) Meeker
    7 Crowley County 7-1
    Friday: W 53-0 at Dolores Huerta Prep
    8 Platte Canyon 6-1
    Friday: L 42-62 at Clear Creek
    9 Burlington 6-2
    Friday: W 54-6 vs. Wiggins
    10 Peyton 7-1
    Friday: W 34-28 at Buena Vista
    8-man
    1 Sedgwick County 8-0
    Friday: W 40-8 at Caliche
    2 West Grand 8-0
    Thursday: W 54-0 at Soroco
    3 Hoehne 7-1
    Friday: W 66-6 vs. Simla
    4 Merino 7-1
    Friday: W 14-12 vs. Dayspring Christian Academy
    5 Haxtun 6-2
    Friday: L 34-36 at Akron
    6 Holly 6-1
    Friday: W 22-6 vs. McClave
    7 Fowler 7-1
    Friday: W 46-12 vs. Swink
    8 Gilpin County 7-1
    Friday: W 36-28 at Rangely
    9 Mancos 7-1
    Thursday: W 54-0 at Dove Creek
    10 Sargent 5-3
    Friday: W 26-20 at Sanford
    6-man
    1 Stratton/Liberty 8-0
    Friday: W 58-40 at Flagler
    2 Prairie 8-0
    Friday: W 32-30 at (10) Fleming
    3 Peetz 6-1
    Friday: W 74-27 vs. Weldon Valley
    4 Cheyenne Wells 7-1
    Friday: W 51-12 at Eads
    5 Otis 7-1
    Friday: W 55-23 at Arickaree/Woodlin
    6 Kit Carson 7-1
    Friday: W 68-6 vs. Walsh
    7 La Veta 7-1
    Friday: W 52-19 at Primero
    8 North Park 5-2
    Saturday: W 49-12 at Hanover
    9 Genoa-Hugo 6-2
    Friday: W 66-6 at Elbert
    10 Fleming 3-5
    Friday: L 30-32 vs. (2) Prairie

  • NFHS #MyReasonWhy campaign begins second year

    INDIANAPOLIS — The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) is beginning the second year of the #MyReasonWhy campaign, which is designed to showcase the tremendous value that high school sports and activities offer to students.

    In the first year of the #MyReasonWhy campaign, more than 500 unique stories were submitted through the campaign website from students, coaches and administrators, which re-affirmed that high school students involved in education-based activity programs demonstrate a higher level of academic performance and set themselves up for successful careers following high school graduation.

    The #MyReasonWhy campaign is another effort by the NFHS and its 51 member associations (50 states plus the District of Columbia) to ensure that education-based programs are available for years to come. The goal of this national campaign is to demonstrate why participation in high school sports has increased every year for the past 28 years, and why participation in school-based sports and activities provides students the best opportunities for success.

    With the official launch of the campaign today, the NFHS and its member state associations will begin to distribute key messages about high school sports and activities, namely that they are fun, add value to the participant and help develop the whole individual. This year, these messages also will be directed to students in middle schools to encourage their continued participation in sports and activities in high school. In addition, the values of these programs will be directed to parents, coaches, officials and community members.

    An interactive website has been created at www.MyReasonWhy.com to house all materials related to this year’s campaign, including the stories submitted by students, coaches and administrators last year. The social media campaign will be expanded this year through the Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube platforms and will target middle school parents, administrators and coaches.

    Other components of this year’s campaign include posters to display in classrooms and locker rooms, regular op-ed newspaper articles co-authored by NFHS Executive Director Bob Gardner and the respective state association executive director, and radio public-service announcements.

    The #MyReasonWhy campaign has a fresh look this year, making it easier for students and others to share why sports and activities are important to them. Using the #MyReasonWhy hashtag and by visiting the www.MyReasonWhy.com website, the NFHS anticipates a surge in stories from students across the country who are eager to share their experiences.

    “We are excited to introduce the second year of the #MyReasonWhy campaign,” Gardner said. “This campaign has proved to be yet another avenue to spread the message about the values of these programs to young people. We have enjoyed reading the story submissions of why students, parents, coaches, officials and community members are involved in high school activities, and we are pleased to share those stories across the country via the new campaign website.”

    The launch of the #MyReasonWhy campaign also coincides with National High School Activities Month, which was started in 1980 as National High School Activities Week to increase the public’s awareness of the values and needs of interscholastic activity programs. The foundation for National High School Activities Month is like the principles of the #MyReasonWhy campaign, looking to remind students, parents, coaches, officials and others in our communities about the value of education-based activities in their daily lives.

  • Photos: Monarch’s Charlie Perry wins cross country regional

    BOULDER —  Monarch’s Charlie Perry won the Class 5A Region 3 boys cross country race, hosted at Harlow Platts park.

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  • Ralston Valley boys soccer gets “must-win” against Arvada West

    ARVADA — Arvada West and Ralston Valley boys soccer programs have been here before — head-to-head with the Class 5A Jeffco League title on the line.

    In a must-win situation for Ralston Valley’s postseason and conference championship hopes, the Mustangs came through with a 4-1 victory over rival A-West (10-5, 6-1 in 5A Jeffco) on Tuesday night at the North Area Athletic Complex.

    “It was 100 percent a must-win for us,” Ralston Valley coach Jamie Scarcliff said. “It was a big game for us, but they preformed. We got some awesome goals and they worked really hard together.”

    Ralston Valley’s Nick Walters (7) heads a ball above Arvada West’s Steven Hoffman. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

    If Ralston Valley (6-7, 5-1) defeats Columbine (2-10-2, 1-3-2) in its conference finale Thursday night at Lakewood Memorial Field, the Mustangs will finish tied with A-West for the league title. Ralston Valley will have the head-to-head tiebreak against A-West.

    “We know any team in our league can beat anyone,” Ralston Valley junior Mason Miller said. “Everyone plays everyone hard. We’ll be ready to go on Thursday.”

    The playoff situation is still up in the air for 5A Jeffco teams. The conference receives two automatic bids to the 32-team state tournament. If the Mustangs take care of business against the Rebels, Ralston Valley and A-West will be slotted into automatic berths for the 32-team state tournament. That’s important since going into Tuesday’s game Ralston Valley was No. 35 and A-West was No. 32 in RPI.

    Lakewood (10-3-1, 5-1-1) would finish third, but the Tigers will likely have enough RPI points to make the field. The Tigers were No. 22 in RPI before games Tuesday.

    A loss to Columbine would likely leave Ralston Valley out of the postseason and leave A-West and Lakewood as the lone 5A Jeffco teams to make the tournament.

    “We still have to take care of business on Thursday,” Scarcliff said. “If we don’t show up everything we did tonight kind of sets us back.”

    A win Thursday and Ralston Valley would repeat as 5A Jeffco League champs after a rough start to the season.

    Ralston Valley’s Jason Yevak and Arvada West’s Kyler Tate battle for the ball. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

    “Five losses in the very beginning doesn’t look great, but we have definitely turned it around, Ralston Valley senior Kyle Stern said. “Hopefully we get into the playoffs.”

    Sterns gave the Mustangs a 1-0 lead against A-West at the 11-minute mark in the first half. The Mustangs extended the lead when senior Nick Nowlen knocked in a corner kick in the 35th minute.

    The Mustangs pushed their lead to 3-0 six minutes into the second half when Miller put one into the back of the net.

    “Coming out in the second half with a 2-0 lead we knew the next goal would be a momentum shift,” said Miller, who scored the game-winning goal a year ago against A-West. “We knew we had to get it.”

    Senior Ben Gelman put Ralston Valley up 4-0 in the 77th minute. A-West did prevent the shutout with A-West senior Steven Hoffman scoring in the final minute to make the final score 4-1.

    “It was hard starting off the season the way we did. We rallied as a team knowing at the end of the year we would play our biggest rival A-West,” Miller said. “Wins before this game made it easy to come in here with confidence.”

    Arvada West’s Chris Geissler (15) and Ralston Valley’s Ethan Watne (5) chase down a loose ball. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

    A year ago, Ralston Valley defeated rival A-West 2-1 in the league finale for both teams. The Mustangs’ victory in what was the winner-take-all situation for the conference title prevented the Wildcats from winning their fifth league title in six years.

    It’s been a season of streaks for A-West. The Wildcats opened the season with a 4-game winning streak, but preceded to drop four straight non-league games before getting into conference play. A-West reeled off six consecutive conference wins over the pasts five weeks before losing to Ralston Valley.

    The Wildcats will now wait to see where they are seeded for the state tournament. The state bracket will be released on CHSAANow.com on Sunday.

    After Thursday’s game against Columbine, Ralston Valley wraps up its regular season with a non-league contest against Evergreen (5 p.m. Friday at NAAC).

    “We want to be hitting our peak at the end of the season,” Miller said. “We feel like that is where we are going. That’s what we planned and that’s what working out.”

    Ralston Valley senior Kyle Sterns (3) gets off a shot despite the effort of Arvada West’s Keegan Nelson. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)