Our Championship Database has been updated to include the team champions from the Spring 2018 season.
Month: June 2018
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Spring 2018 Les Schwab Academic Award winners announced
The spring 2018 Les Schwab Academic Award winners have been posted.
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All-state girls lacrosse teams for the 2018 season
Colorado Academy’s Lauren Russell. (Lance Wendt/LanceWendt.com) The 2018 all-state girls lacrosse teams honor the best players in the sport as judged by the leagues and coaches. They are presented by CHSAANow.com, ColoradoPreps.com and MaxPreps.
These teams were created following a lengthy process which included nominations from leagues, and then a vote of head coaches.
Player of the year was also selected by a vote of the coaches. The coach of the year was selected by the coaches association.
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Coach of the year: Dix Baines, Chaparral
Player of the year: Lauren Russell, Colorado Academy
First Team Name School Pos. Year Isabel Anema Cherry Creek M Senior Meg Hanson Arapahoe A Senior Kailee Lammers Dakota Ridge Senior Ella Marks Colorado Academy G Sophomore Kennedy Mealhow Chaparral Senior Hannah Mill Chaparral Senior Sloane Murphy Colorado Academy M Junior Angela Naughton Columbine M Senior Liz Phillips Palmer Ridge M Senior Lauren Russell Colorado Academy M Senior Hali Sibilia Cherry Creek M Senior Sidney Weigand Regis Jesuit A/M Junior Second Team Name School Pos. Year Olivia Baglieri Kent Denver A Senior Reagan Brenenstuhl Air Academy A Junior Ryley Caron Chatfield M Junior Eliza Davis Colorado Academy D Senior Cate Lord Regis Jesuit M Freshman Megan Matthews Grandview M Senior Lucy McHugh Denver East M Sophomore Whitney Moran Air Academy M Senior Lizzie Pierpont Arapahoe M Senior Delaney Pratt Centaurus Senior Josi Robinson Denver East M Junior Lucy Shimek Steamboat Springs M Junior Kylie Thompson Grandview M Senior Addy Tysdal Valor Christian G Junior Honorable mention:
- Avery Ahern, Denver North, Senior
- Faith Barnes, Ralston Valley, D, Senior
- Nicole Beaulieu, Cheyenne Mountain, M, Junior
- Campbell Breithaupt, Centaurus, Senior
- Lauren Brown, ThunderRidge, D, Senior
- Katie Carozza, Grand Junction, Senior
- Maren Clark, Rock Canyon, M, Senior
- Katie Collins, Cherry Creek, M, Junior
- Meghan Gordon, ThunderRidge, M, Senior
- Sara Haefele, Green Mountain, Senior
- Brandi Haller, Fruita Monument, A, Senior
- Riley Hatchell, Pine Creek, M/D/A, Senior
- Lena Heaney, Conifer, A/M, Junior
- Maeve Hungerford, Columbine, M, Senior
- Emerson Johnson, Mullen, M, Junior
- Lucy Johnson, Rampart, A/M, Senior
- Avery Joslin, Cherokee Trail, D, Junior
- Erin Keeney, Eagle Valley, G, Senior
- Anna Manning, Denver South, Senior
- Rylie Maready, Cheyenne Mountain, M, Junior
- Madeleine Mason, Rocky Mountain, M, Senior
- Grace McCabe, Denver East, M, Junior
- Megan Patrick, Cherry Creek, G, Senior
- Elizabeth Posavad, Chaparral, Senior
- Maya Rutherford, Colorado Academy, D, Freshman
- Kate Sawyer, Denver East, M, Senior
- Aleya Speas, Castle View/Douglas County, A/M, Senior
- Sydney Swift, Eaglecrest, A, Senior
- Brittney White, Pine Creek, M/A/D, Junior
- Emma White, Cherry Creek, D, Junior
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Castle View’s Madison Hema named to New Zealand’s U17 women’s basketball team
(Jeffrey Tucker/MaxPreps) Madison Hema, who will be a senior at Castle View this fall, has made New Zealand’s under-17 women’s basketball national team, and will participate with the squad in the U17 World Cup next month.
Hema is a dual citizen of both New Zealand and the U.S. Her father, Matt, who is also Castle View’s head coach, is from New Zealand. He moved to the U.S. in the 1990s.
Last season as a junior, Hema averaged 8.6 points and 7.8 rebounds per game, along with 3.6 blocks. The 6-foot-2 Hema plays in the post.
New Zealand’s U17 women’s team was unveiled last week following a tryout. The team will face Argentina, Hungary and Spain in the group stage, which begins on July 21 in Belarus.
It is the first time New Zealand will appear in the event, and it also marks the country’s first time participating at a World Championship age-group event put on by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA).
Regis Jesuit’s Fran Belibi will also be participating in the U17 World Cup. She made the United States’ U17 national team in late May.
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Jeffco Athletics HOF inducts five new members
Kent Waryan, Laura Probst, Chris Peterson, Liz Armbrustmacher and Kevin Williams (not pictured) were inducted into the Jeffco Athletic Hall of Fame on Thursday at the Arvada Center. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics) ARVADA — Laura Probst never won a state championship.
The 2002 graduate of Arvada West High School finished runner-up 11 times in state cross country and track individual races. However, 16 years after leaving Jeffco and after a stellar soccer career at Texas A&M University, Probst was inducted into the Jeffco Athletic Hall of Fame on Thursday afternoon at the Arvada Center — along with Chris Peterson, Liz Armbrustmacher, Kevin Williams and Kent Waryan.
“It’s incredibly special. Part of the reason it was so unexpected,” said Probst, who is now a primary care doctor at a Veterans Hospital in Albuquerque, NM. “Being a student-athlete in Colorado and Jefferson County was such an important time in my life, but it seem so far in the past.”
Despite all the second-place finishes, Probst’s attitude was always positive.
“I think you have to remember why you are doing it and what it is all about,” said Probst, who won the coveted Freddie Joe Steinmark Award in 2002. “For me I was competing against myself. As long as I knew I gave my best and left it all out on the track I was satisfied.”
Chris Peterson
The Jefferson High School graduate might have been a little ahead of his time. The sharp-shooting basketball guard led the state in scoring his senior year in guiding the Saints to an appearance in the Final 4 of the state tournament.
Peterson’s youngest son —Lakewood High School graduate Kolton Peterson — broke the all-time Class 5A 3-point record just a few years ago. All the scoring Chris Peterson did in his time in the mid-1970s came without the 3-point line in existence.
“I thought it was going to be a roast at first,” Peterson said during his speech. “My boys were all sitting around last tonight and said I would probably be the first basketball player to go into the (Jeffco) Hall of Fame who never made a 3-point shot.”
Peterson went on to coach softball at Green Mountain, along with boys basketball at Arvada West.
Liz Armbrustmacher
This Evergreen High School graduate was apart of the volleyball juggernaut the Cougars build under coach Lo Hunter in the 1980s, which included a 182-match winning streak.
Armbrustmacher went on to play Indiana University before returning to Jeffco. She led Lakewood High School to a remarkable run starting in the late 1990s.
“All of us in this room understand the impact of sports and activities,” said Armbrustmacher, who is still a teacher at Lakewood. “The lessons learned and taught on the field, the court, the pitch, the diamond and the track that those lessons learned expand far more than the game.”
Kevin Williams
Williams was a seven-time state champion in cross country and track at D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School. He still holds the Class 4A state record in the 3,200-meter run that he set his senior year in 2008 with a time of 9:06.27.
“Looking back at my athlete career a feel very lucky to have attended Jefferson County and D’Evelyn,” Williams wrote in a statement read by his high school track coach Micah Porter. “When I arrived at D’Evelyn in 7th-grade and I no idea I would become a distance runner and how big of a role that would play in my life.”
Williams went on to run at the University of Oklahoma from 2008-13 where he had three consecutive top-10 finishes at the NCAA Cross Country National Championships. He is currently the head cross country coach at North Texas University and assistant track coach for the Mean Green.
Kent Waryan
Waryan came to Jeffco in the mid-1970s. He was a teacher, coach and administrator at a number of schools before retiring a handful of years ago from the district. He spent his final years at Jeffco at the athletic director at Wheat Ridge and Lakewood before sharing duties with Kevin Land as the Executive Director of Athletics and Activities in Jeffco.
Jim Thyfault, current Executive Director of Athletics and Activities, said that Waryan served as a mentor to so many current athletic directors in Jeffco.
“The scoreboard is not the most important thing and communication,” Waryan said of the two valuable things his wife has taught him over the years.
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Pomona graduate Ryan Marquez, middle, stands with family members after receiving the 5A Jeffco Male Athlete of the Year and Freddie Joe Steinmark Award at the 32nd Annual Jeffco Athletics Hall of Fame Banquet on Thursday. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics) Jeffco Athletics 2017-18 Awards
Athletes of the Year
Jeffco 5A Male: Ryan Marquez, Pomona
Jeffco 5A Female: Camilla Emsbo, Lakewood
Jeffco 4A Male: Adam Thistlewood, Golden
Jeffco 4A Female: Kristina Schreiber, EvergreenCoaches of the Year
Jeffco 5A Coach of Male Sports: Jay Madden, Pomona
Jeffco 5A Coach of Female Sports: Tracey Boychuk, Pomona
Jeffco 4A Coach of Male Sports: Brian Kula, Valor Christian
Jeffco 4A Coach of Female Sports: Amy Bahl, EvergreenAssistant Coaches of the Year
Jeffco 5A Asst. of Male Sports: Shane Fugita, Dakota Ridge
Jeffco 5A Asst. of Female Sports: Steve Hadley, Lakewood
Jeffco 4A Asst. of Male Sports: Brian Zehnder, Standley Lake
Jeffco 4A Asst. of Female Sports: Ali Meyers, EvergreenFred Steinmark Team Award
Jeffco 5A: Ralston Valley
Jeffco 4A: D’EvelynPaul Davis Sportsmanship Award
Jeffco 5A: Bear Creek
Jeffco 4A: Golden -
Chris Noll accepts job as District 11 athletic director; Stephanie Leasure assumes Doherty job
(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com) COLORADO SPRINGS — Chris Noll will have a larger roll in the athletic world of Colorado Springs School District 11.
Noll confirmed to CHSAANow.com that he has been named the new district athletic director, taking over for the retiring Dave Eichman.
Noll has led Doherty’s athletic department for the last 13 years and thought he could serve the student-athletes of D-11 on a larger scale by taking over as the district activities and athletic director. He will also serve as the physical education content facilitator.
For Noll, the appeal of the job was the ability to widen the impact he has had at Doherty to the other schools in the district.
“At the end of the day, it’s about the impact on kids,” Noll said. “I have the ability in this new role to impact more kids. And one of my favorite things in the world to do is work with kids and impact kids through athletics and work with coaches. I am super excited to work with more kids and I am super excited to work with more coaches and I’m really excited to mentor athletic directors.”
To fill the void for the Spartans principal Kevin Gardner turned to a familiar face in the Doherty athletic world. Stephanie Leasure has been named as the new athletic director.
The name should ring a bell for those familiar with the Spartans.
Leasure was on the 1995 Class 5A state championship team for Doherty. She was also on the all-state team that year and would go on to play college basketball at New Mexico State and the University of Colorado – Colorado Springs. She was inducted into the UCCS hall of fame in 2014.
Leasure has coached at Doherty and served time as an assistant principal, first at Harrison before coming back to her alma mater in 2016.
In the last two years, she has had a chance to see the culture that Noll has built with the Spartans and knows that keeping the program moving forward will be no easy task.
Stephanie Leasure (Photo courtesy of Doherty High School) “I’m going to have to put in the work because he’s done an excellent job making sure that Doherty athletics is on the forefront and branded well and that kids and parents have high expectations coming into the program,” Leasure said.
Her experience as a player, coach and administrator gives her the needed makeup to fill the role. It was something that Gardner saw in from the moment he started the process of filling the vacant AD job.
“What I said to people was that we were hiring an AD, not replacing Chris Noll because you can’t do that,” he said. “(I love) the idea that you have someone who is a legacy and has been a part of that culture of every level and knowing that tradition that is Sparta. One of my responsibilities is making sure I do take care of that legacy and tradition of that entire place and the role it plays in Colorado Springs.”
As Leasure begins her work building on top of the foundation that Noll has constructed over the last 13 years, the newly named district AD will begin the task of widening his impact through the rest of the district, which includes schools such as Coronado, Palmer and Mitchell, and follow the model that Eichman built in his time in the role.
Noll worked with Eichman when both were at Wasson High School. In his role as a basketball coach and the athletic director at Doherty, Noll came to understand and respect how Eichman was was able to lead athletics from an administration standpoint.
“When I was the head basketball coach at Wasson, Dave was the athletic director,” Noll said. “I’ve known Dave Eichman for 18 years. Dave has such a calm about him and he is so meticulous in the way he goes about business that I still to this day I continue to learn from him and the way he goes about business. Sometimes you need to slow down rather than go fast. And Dave has a passion for doing business the right way.”
And that’s the way Noll hopes to keep things running. Doherty isn’t necessarily losing the man that has ran the athletic department in the last 13 years, it just has to share him. But Gardner knows it won’t quite be the same without him in the building on a daily basis.
“He’s all about kids and he gets them excited,” Gardner said. “He motivates and inspires and we’re going to miss that piece.”
The benefit for the Spartans is that Leasure has what Noll refers to as a “passion for improvement.”
So while he’s doing what he can to impact more kids in Colorado Springs, he has no doubt that Leasure will make Doherty athletics a better place than she found it.
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Several high school players and more alums taken on final day of MLB draft
(Ryan Szepan/Flickr) The St. Louis Cardinals were the first team to dip into the Colorado talent pool on the final day of the 2018 MLB Draft.
The Cardinals looked west and grabbed Colorado Mesa pitcher Kyle Leahy with the 513th overall pick.
Leahy had a career 1.22 ERA with the Tigers and totaled 15 wins and 172 strikeouts. Opposing hitters had just a .174 batting average against him.
He went 7-2 at Colorado Mesa this last season.
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Cherry Creek’s Milligan goes to Red Sox
Lane Milligan, a 2013 graduate from Cherry Creek, was taken by the Boston Red Sox with the 520th pick.
In two years at Oklahoma City University, Milligan batted .441 with 20 home runs while driving in 117 runs.
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Pueblo West’s Dabovich heads to the Royals
RJ Dabovich became the first Pueblo West alum to go in the MLB draft. The former Cyclones pitcher was taken by the Kansas City Royals with the 542nd overall pick.
In two years with the Cyclones, Dabovich won seven games and held an ERA of 0.80 over 69.2 innings.
He started 13 games at Central Arizona, going 9-3 with a 1.81 ERA and 63 strikeouts. He also recorded one save.
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Standley Lake’s Martin becomes first high school senior drafted in 2018
It took until the 22nd round, but a Colorado high school senior was drafted on Wednesday. Standley Lake’s Garrett Martin was selected by the Baltimore Orioles with the 655th overall selection. He was taken as a third baseman.
Martin batted .453 in 106 at-bats in his career with the Gators. He is committed to play collegiately at McClennan Junior College in Texas.
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Legend alum Michael Baird to join Leahy in St. Louis
Six rounds after selecting Leahy, the St. Louis Cardinals grabbed more Colorado talent, taking Legend alum Michael Baird.
Baird went 5-5 with a 3.16 ERA this season at Southern Illinois.
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Rockies take 2014 Regis Jesuit grad
Reagan Todd gets to stay home. The 2014 Regis Jesuit graduate was taken by the Colorado Rockies with the 966th overall pick in the draft.
Todd originally went to Arizona State to play in college but ended up transferring to Colorado Mesa in Grand Junction. The Rockies rookie ball is also located in Grand Junction.
Todd went 5-2 and struck out 85 hitters for the Mavericks in 2018.
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Heritage’s Egloff taken by Marlins
(Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com) The Miami Marlins looked to the Class 5A state runner-up to bolster its pitching. Heritage’s Riley Egloff was selected with the 1,077th overall pick.
Egloff has committed to Yavapai to play junior college ball. He and the Eagles advanced to the state championship game this spring.
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Rockies draft Rock Canyon shortstop
The Colorado Rockies ended up looking within the state’s talent pool twice on Wednesday. After taking Todd in the 32nd round, the Rockies looked to Highlands Ranch for a shortstop.
They found Rock Canyon’s Cayden Zimmerman. The recent graduate has committed to play baseball at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.
He batted .371 this year for the Jaguars.
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Detroit drafts former Chatfield outfielder
The Detroit Tigers added depth in their outfield by drafting a former Chatfield Charger. They selected Matthew Jarecki with the 1,095th pick.
Jarecki played his college ball at Benedictine and was a career .500 hitter at Chatfield.
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Colorado prospects taken on Day 2 of Major League Baseball draft
(Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics) Grant Witherspoon, the former two-sport star at D’Evelyn, was taken in the fourth round of the 2018 Major League Baseball Draft.
He is the 120th overall pick.
According the CHSAA database, he is the first player from D’Evelyn to be selected in the MLB Draft.
In his senior year with the Jags, Witherspoon earned All-Jeffco player of the year honors while batting .364, blasting three home runs and racking up 23 RBIs. He also went 7-1 on the mound that year with a 1.19 ERA.
He was a late college commitment, choosing Tulane in July of 2015, more than a month after he graduated high school.
Witherspoon was also a standout basketball player for the Jags.
He was taken by the Rays as a centerfielder. This last year at Tulane, he batted .330 and hit 12 home runs.
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White Sox take 2015 Fossil Ridge grad
The Chicago White Sox selected 2015 Fossil Ridge graduate Code Heuer in the sixth round of the draft. Heuer was taken with the 168th overall pick.
The White Sox selected Heuer as a pitcher.
Heuer went 10-6 in 21 career appearances with the SaberCats. He is the second player from Fossil Ridge to be drafted.
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Holy Family alum goes to the Red Sox
Holy Family’s Devlin Granberg was taken by the Boston Red Sox with the 190th overall pick by the Boston Red Sox.
Granberg graduated from Holy Family in 2014 and played his last two years of college ball at Dallas Baptist. He previously played at Creighton and Cisco College.
He batted .443 for the Patriots in 2018.
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Dakota Ridge alum heads to Padres organization
Steven Wilson, a 2012 graduate of Dakota Ridge, was taken by the San Diego Padres with the 231st pick of the draft.
He is the second Colorado pitcher taken this year following the selection of Heuer in the sixth round.
Wilson was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies following his senior year, but opted to head to college rather than sign with the team.
He appeared in 54 games for Santa Clara, going 13-13 with four saves. His career ERA was 3.88.
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List of Colorado products selected in 2018 MLB Draft
(Eric Drost/Flickr) The 2018 MLB Draft is June 4-6. Below is a list of Colorado products selected.
Last season, 14 players who played high school baseball in Colorado were taken.
For a list of all previous Colorado players drafted, browse our historical MLB Draft database.
Coverage:
- Day 2: Grant Witherspoon leads crop of Colorado high alums taken on Day 2
- Day 3: Several high school players, more alums taken on draft’s final day
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Local selections in the 2018 MLB Draft
Alumni RD OVR Team Name POS High School Grad College 4 120 Tampa Bay Rays Grant Witherspoon CF D’Evelyn 2015 Tulane 6 168 Chicago White Sox Codi Heuer RHP Fossil Ridge 2015 Wichita State 6 190 Boston Red Sox Devlin Granberg OF Holy Family 2014 Dallas Baptist 8 231 San Diego Padres Steven Wilson P Dakota Ridge 2012 Santa Clara 17 513 St. Louis Cardinals Kyle Leahy RHP Erie 2015 Colorado Mesa University 17 520 Boston Red Sox Lane Milligan CF Cherry Creek 2013 Oklahoma City University 18 542 Kansas City Royals RJ Dabovich RHP Pueblo West 2017 Central Arizona College 23 693 St. Louis Cardinals Michael Baird P Legend 2014 Southern Illinois 32 966 Colorado Rockies Reagan Todd P Regis Jesuit 2014 Colorado Mesa University 37 1095 Detroit Tigers Matthew Jarecki LF Chatfield 2014 Benedictine College 2018 graduates RD OVR Team Name POS High School Commit 22 655 Baltimore Orioles Garrett Martin 3B Standley Lake McClennan JC 36 1077 Miami Marlins Riley Egloff P Heritage Yavapai JC 36 1086 Colorado Rockies Cayden Zimmerman SS Rock Canyon Air Force -
Valor Christian football’s Luke McCaffrey commits to Nebraska
(Marlee Smith/CHSAANow.com) Luke McCaffrey has committed to play football at the University of Nebraska.
McCaffrey, who will be a senior this fall, announced his decision on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/mccaffrey_luke/status/1003741606250405896
McCaffery, who is likely to start at quarterback for Valor Christian this fall, threw for 878 yards and six touchdowns last season while splitting time with CU recruit Blake Stenstrom. McCaffrey also played wide receiver and running back, and rushed for 548 yards and nine touchdowns, while also catching 19 passes for 147 yards and a score.
After the season, he was named first-team all-state in Class 5A.
Listed at 6-foot-3 and 180 pounds, McCaffrey is a four-star prospect according to 247sports.com and ESPN. He also had offers from Colorado, Colorado State, Duke, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio State, Mississippi, Virginia, Western Kentucky and UCLA.
His older brothers, Max (Duke), Christian (Stanford) and Dylan (Michigan), have all played or are currently playing college football. Max and Christian are now in the NFL.
McCaffrey will be making a transition to a new coach this fall — his father, Ed, the former Broncos standout, is now heading the Eagles’ program.
McCaffrey has also played basketball and lacrosse, and run track, during his high school career.