Cherry Creek girls basketball beat Horizon 77-55 to advance to the Class 5A Sweet 16.

Valor Christian hockey beat Kent Denver 5-2 to advance to the state quarterfinals.

No. 23 Columbine girls basketball upset No. 10 Fountain-Fort Carson 51-39 on Friday to advance to the 5A Sweet 16.

(Vanessa Vandehey/Vanessa-Photography.net)

Montrose girls basketball, seeded No. 8, beat No. 25 Mesa Ridge in the second round of the Class 4A state tournament on Friday.

Montrose won, 49-43.

“I am extremely happy with a win over a tough Mesa Ridge team who would not quit.” Montrose coach Steve Skiff said. “I could not be happier for all our players and we are excited to move on.”

Montrose got 19 points from Kennadie Minerich, and 17 from Allie Nichols.

“We had several big contributions tonight,” Skiff said “We also had an outstanding defensive effort from Hadley Greiner who was assigned to Mesa Ridge top player and did a great job of making her work had all night.”

Montrose led 19-7 after the first quarter, and 32-19 at half.

“I thought we came out with great energy and got off to a great start and played solid the rest of the game,” Skiff said. “I thought we had some great plays down the stretch and made some big free throws at the end.”

Those free throws helped Montrose secure the game. Mesa Ridge cut the Montrose lead to 41-37 with 2:28 to play. Minerich also hit a 3-pointer which helped spread that lead to 44-37.

“We executed the plan really well and did what we set out to do,” Minerich said. “We had great inside-outside game and had big defensive plays throughout the game.”

Said Hadley Greiner: “It was a great team effort and I thought they all contributed in the win.”

Mesa Ridge was led by Monet Hubbard with 18 points, and Serin Dunne with 11.

The Indians will now face ninth-seeded Mullen in the Sweet 16.

LITTLETON — Columbine guard Jeff Potts had done it before, so draining a key 3-pointer in the final minute Saturday afternoon wasn’t out of the range of possibility.

“He didn’t hesitate and knocked down obviously a huge shot,” Columbine coach Clay Thielking said of Potts sinking a 3-pointer with 50 seconds left in the fourth quarter that gave the Rebels a 55-54 lead over Dakota Ridge. “He is a great shooter and stepped up big for us.”

No. 9-seeded Columbine would add four free throws in the final 31 seconds to hold off No. 41 seed and Class 5A Jeffco League rival Dakota Ridge. The Rebels took a 59-55 home victory to advance to the Sweet 16 of the 5A boys basketball tournament.

“I just felt good and felt like I was in rhythm,” Potts said of the 3-pointer. “I let it fly and it went in.”

Dakota Ridge senior Brayden Rhoades (31) is able to get a shot over the reach of Columbine senior David Hargis (15) on Saturday afternoon. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

Potts nailed a 3-pointer in similar fashion a year ago. It what was actually his first 3-pointer at the varsity level, Potts hit a 3-pointer in the final seconds to lift Columbine to a road victory over Ralston Valley.

“He (Potts) has some guts for sure,” Columbine senior Luke O’Brien said. “It paid off for us. He has hit a couple big ones for us all year.”

O’Brien had the defensive play of the game on the other end following the 3-pointer by Potts. Dakota Ridge junior Taeshaud Jackson Jr. posted up O’Brien on the other end. Jackson Jr. elevated for a shot, but O’Brien was able to block the shot and grab the rebound.

“That was a big play,” Thielking said of O’Brien’s block with the Eagles trailing by 1-point. “Great players make great plays. That was a big play late. That kind of kept Dakota Ridge at bay.”

Columbine fans had to hold its breath if O’Brien would even finish the game. The future University of Colorado hoopster went down hard after a drive to the hoop with 2:22 left in the fourth quarter and the Rebels trailing 54-52.

O’Brien admitted he rolled his ankle three or four times throughout the game, but was right back in the game after the Rebels took a timeout.

“That dude (Jackson Jr.) is an amazing player,” O’Brien said of Jackson Jr. who had a dozen points in the second half. “The fact that I got that block was pretty good. I just had to play my hands straight up.”

Columbine senior Luke O’Brien (0) attempts to spin past Dakota Ridge senior Adam Rodriguez during the third quarter Saturday afternoon. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

Jackson Jr. fouled O’Brien after the block. It was the fifth foul for the promising junior that averaged a double-double this season.

O’Brien made a living at the free-throw line in the second half, going 10-for-11 to help seal Columbine’s first trip to the Sweet 16 since the 2011-12 season.

“Breaking the ice here is really good for us,” O’Brien said. “Whoever we play it doesn’t matter. We’ll just play as hard as we can.”

Columbine (20-4 record) faces the winner of No. 25 ThunderRidge and No. 8 Boulder on Wednesday, March 4. ThunderRidge and Boulder were scheduled for a 6 p.m. game Saturday night.

Dakota Ridge wrapped up a season where it finished 11-14. Coach Sean Kovar graduates just three seniors and showed what the Eagles are capable of with Jackson Jr. and fellow junior Gino Corridori on the court at the same time.

Corridori missed a lot of the season with a wrist injury.

“Sean does a great job with those kids,” Thielking said. “With Gino (Corridori) back that changes everything. It changes match-ups and their rotation. He is a really good player. Dakota Ridge was unbelievable today.”

Corridori finished with nine points in the second half.

“We let them (players) know that our school, our community and coaches are just absolutely so proud of them,” Kovar said of what he told his team after the season-ending loss. “Credit to Columbine. They were better than us today. They made some huge plays late.”

Dakota Ridge and Columbine faced off three times this season. The Rebels came away with wins in all three, but be sure the Eagles will be motivated with a solid returning cast next year.

“I think I go into every year super excited,” Kovar said of looking ahead to next season. “I told them this was a great learning for them. If it doesn’t get them hungry to get better and work hard I don’t know what does.”

Dakota Ridge senior Quincy Alexander, left, handles the ball while being guarded by Columbine junior Tristan Alward (1) during the fourth quarter Saturday afternoon at Columbine High School. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

Elsie Weiss. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

MINTURN — The sibling duo of Elsie and Anders Weiss, both skiing for Aspen, were each crowned champions during the first day of the state skiing championships.

Elsie, a freshman, cruised to a first-place finish in the classic start, winning her race when she finished in 16:56.5. Anders, a sophomore, won his race about 30 minutes later when he finished with a top time of 14:33.6.

Anders Weiss. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

For each, it was the first high school race they’d won all season. Elsie had finished second twice, and third another time, and Anders had multiple top-10 finishes.

Colorado Rocky Mountain School’s Lola Villafranco (17:15.0) was second, Middle Park’s Sylvia Brower (17:35.6) was third, Vail Mountain’s Izzy Glackin was fourth (17:35.6), and Aspen’s Eva McDonough (17:53.0) placed fifth.

Aspen’s girls team had six finishers among the top 11, and three in the top six.

On the boys side, Taiga Moore of Aspen helped the Skiers finish 1-2 when he finished in 14:47.3. Middle Park had Alex Holinka (14:55.5) place third, and Sebastian Brower (15:06.2) place fourth. Ferguson St. John of Eagle Valley (15:09.5) was fifth.

Middle Park had four of the top nine finishers in the race.

The day started with alpine races in giant slalom, and it was a pair of freshman who won the events.

Samantha Edelman. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

In the girls race, Aspen’s Samantha Edelman edged Battle Mountain’s Berit Frischholz for the title with a two-run time of 2:14.56. Frischholz was just 0.41 back with a time of 2:14.97.

Also placing in the top-5 for the girls was Evergreen teammates Jenna Blatchford (2:16.40) and Kylee Ornstein (2:16.48), as well as Stella Sherlock of Aspen (2:17.14).

Aspen also had skiers finish six and eighth, giving them four of the top eight placers.

In the boys race, Durango’s Toby Scarpella won with a two-run time of 2:10.97, giving the Demons their first individual state championship since the program returned three years ago. The program previously went away in the 1980s.

Vail Mountain’s Cole Pattison (2:12.07) placed second, and was followed by Aspen’s Charlie Olsen (2:13.75), Vail Mountain’s Mackay Pattison (2:14.97), and Battle Mountain’s Jakub Pecinka (2:14.99).

Battle Mountain had three finishers place in the top-10 in the GS, while Aspen and Vail Mountain each had two.

The state championships conclude on Friday with the slalom (alpine) and skate (nordic) races. A complete schedule is available here.

In terms of the team race, Aspen leads both the boys and the girls fields, and Battle Mountain sits in second for both. Their girls have totaled 342 points through two events, ahead of Battle Mountain’s 303.5 points. The boys have a 324-311 lead over Battle Mountain.

Toby Scarpella. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

EDWARDS — Complete results from the 2020 state skiing championships are below.

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Girls

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Boys

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

EDWARDS — Discovery Canyon boys basketball was firmly in control of its first-round matchup with Battle Mountain through three quarters, leading by nine points, only to see that lead slip away.

As the fourth quarter opened, the lead went to seven, then five — then two. But Discovery Canyon was unfazed. Thunder coach Paul Campbell opted to not take a timeout, and let his players push through the spurt.

It paid off.

Jaxon Smith hit a layup off a fast-break with about four minutes to play which stopped Battle Mountain’s 7-0 run, and sparked an 8-0 run for Discovery Canyon.

“We had gotten a couple of good looks and just missed them,” Campbell said. “It was just one of those things. At that point, I try to do my best to trust them, and save those timeouts.”

Of the bucket, which pushed Discovery Canyon’s lead to four points, he added: “That was a backdoor cut, we drew that play up. We tried it earlier in the quarter, and we couldn’t get the look because they were playing really good defense on us, and we couldn’t slip that. But that was a really great job by Jaxon, and a good job getting the ball to him.”

The Thunder, seeded No. 36, went on to upset No. 29 Battle Mountain 44-36 in the Class 4A tournament. They advance to play No. 4 Golden on Saturday.

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

On Wednesday, Discovery Canyon and Battle Mountain were tied at 13 after the first quarter. The Thunder adjusted their defensive focus to Battle Mountain star Liam McKenny, and it worked: They held the Huskies to just two points in the second quarter as they grabbed a 24-15 lead.

“We applied a little bit more pressure to them, and we had to double-up (McKenny),” Campbell said. “He’s such a good player. He’s so strong, he’s a big kid. The thing that’s special about him is that he can play with his back to the basket, and he can also face up and go after you. So he’s a hard guy; you want the ball out of his hands.

“That was our biggest adjustment: to get the ball out of his hands. And we limited his possessions in the second quarter.”

The game stayed about that margin with Discovery Canyon holding a 35-26 lead after three quarters.

McKenny broke through for 13 second-half points, and finished with a game-high 20.

But Discovery Canyon’s team defense and balanced offense was the difference. Smith led the Thunder with 19 points, and Ethan Hall had 14 points.

“That’s a good team,” Campbell said. “That’s a really good team. Coach did a good job, and they were really well-prepared. It was back-and-forth. We jumped out on them in the second quarter but, man, they fought back. Two good teams, I think, and they were both well-prepared, and it just happened to go our way.”

(Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

WHEAT RIDGE — Wheat Ridge senior Dominic Bronk played in his 82nd varsity boys basketball game in a Farmers’ uniform Wednesday night.

“Taking this jersey off is going to be the hardest thing possible,” Bronk said about his basketball career nearing its end at Wheat Ridge. “I’m happy I came to Wheat Ridge. It was the best four years I could ask for.”

Wheat Ridge senior Alex Morales pulls up for a baseline jumper during the first quarter Wednesday night. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

Bronk — who is close to averaging a double-double in points and rebounds — will get to play his 83rd game 6 p.m. Saturday when the No. 27-seeded Farmers hit to road to face No. 6 Skyline.

“We like to go on the road and upset somebody,” said Wheat Ridge coach Tommy Dowd, who has some experience during his long tenure at Wheat Ridge on getting road playoff wins.

Wheat Ridge (14-10) got the first-round playoff victory Wednesday night over Canon City. The Farmers got out to a 25-point lead — 58-33 — with 2:52 left in the third quarter. However, Canon City went on a 12-0 run to make things interesting.

“I thought we played a great first half. It was hard to keep them interested in the second half,” Dowd said. “That’s high school basketball. Kids aren’t going to match that same intensity when they think they have it put away. Give it to Canon City. They played hard and didn’t roll over.”

Juniors Josh Rall, Seth Newton and Gavin Garrett combined for 55 points for the No. 38 seed Tigers. Canon City cut Wheat Ridge’s lead to as few as seven points a couple of times in the fourth quarter.

“We were up by like 25 points and then I look up and we’re only up by 9. Where did the lead go,” Wheat Ridge senior Alex Morales said. “We just had to hang on and luckily we did.”

Bronk and Morales — Wheat Ridge’s lone seniors — played what likely will be their final home game. They finished in style. Bronk finished with a game-high 26 points.

Wheat Ridge junior Dominic Cross, left, takes a jumper over Canon City sophomore Garrett Bradley during the second half Wednesday night at Wheat Ridge High School. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

“I don’t know anybody who has more experience,” Dowd said of Bronk. “He is never nervous. In the huddle he is calming everyone down. He is our guy.”

Morales poured in 23 points, including 10 points in the final quarter.

“I think my coach put me in this position for a reason,” Morales said. “I wanted to play my heart out playing my last game in this gym as a senior. I’m glad we got the W.”

Juniors Dominic Cross (11 points) and Wes Miller (10 points) were the other two Farmers to finish in double-digits. Cross went 4-for-4 from the free-throw line in the final minutes to help seal the win.

“All you have to do is get out of here,” Dowd said of the win. “It doesn’t matter what the score is. You just try to get to the next game.”

Wheat Ridge had a historic 2018-19 campaign that yielded a conference title. However, the Farmers had a quick exit from the state tournament. Thomas Jefferson took an overtime victory over Wheat Ridge in the second round after the Farmers drew a first-round bye.

“It just didn’t work out in our favor last year,” Bronk said. “That’s basketball. That’s sports. That’s life. You have to just flush it and go.”

Wheat Ridge junior Wes Miller (3) tries to keep control of the ball as Canon City senior Ranger Bolton (11) goes for the steal during the Class 4A first-round playoff game Wednesday night at Wheat Ridge High School. The Farmers held on for a 76-68 victory. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

Kiowa girls basketball moved on to the Class 1A District 7 semifinal game by beating Deer Trail 55-25 on Wednesday.