CHSAANow

Month: April 2021

  • Photos: No. 13 Fort Collins girls volleyball sweeps Mountain Range

    Three players had at least six kills as Class 5A No. 13 Fort Collins girls volleyball got a 3-0 sweep over Mountain Range.

  • Grandview girls basketball alum Michaela Onyenwere taken sixth in WNBA Draft

    (Paul DiSalvo/PaulDiSalvoPhotography.com)

    One of Grandview’s all-time greats is headed to the professional level. Michaela Onyenwere, a former standout for the Wolves who led them to the 2017 Class 5A girls basketball championship, was selected by the New York Liberty with the sixth overall pick in the WNBA Draft.

    Onyenwere is the 11th Colorado high school product to be selected in the annual draft and the first to ever be taken in the first round.

    Her career is one of the best in Colorado state history. She scored 2,290 points, pulled down 1,061 rebounds and had 357 steals in her four years with Grandview. She was a two-time Gatorade Player of the Year and earned McDonald’s All-American honors after her senior season and before heading to California to play basketball for UCLA.

    Grandview reached the Final 4 in Onyenwere’s junior season, but lost by two points to eventual champion ThunderRidge. The Wolves rebounded a year later, storming their way through the 5A state tournament where they beat Lakewood 61-32 to win their first state championship in program history.

    She showed emotion with her high school career coming to an end, but she still had so much more greatness to give the game.

    While playing for the Bruins, she scored 1,888 and grabbed 885 rebounds. She averaged a career-high 19.1 points this last season, her senior year. If not for a pandemic shortened season, she likely would have surpassed the 2,000 point mark for her collegiate career.

    She’ll join another Colorado standout when joins the Liberty as Mesa Ridge alum Kylee Shook was taken by New York in the second round of last year’s draft. Shook was the highest drafted Colorado player until Thursday night when Onyenwere was taken at No. 6.

  • Coronado hires former Mesa Ridge coach Jeff Beatty to take over girls basketball program

    Mesa Ridge Broomfield girls basketball
    (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)

    A state championship winning coach is heading back to the bench. Coronado has hired Jeff Beatty as its new girls basketball coach. Coronado athletic director Jimmy Porter confirmed the hire to CHSAANow.com on Friday.

    Beatty is best known for his flashy suits and his time at Mesa Ridge where he led the Grizzlies to the 2014 Class 4A girls basketball championship. He coached Mesa Ridge standout Kylee Shook as she played her way to a Division I scholarship at Louisville before getting drafted by the WNBA’s New York Liberty in 2020.

    He led the team back to a couple of Great 8 appearances then made the 4A Final 4 in 2018, his last season as the coach at Mesa Ridge. He has been away from coaching since that season but was enticed by the opening at Coronado.

    “It is with great anticipation that I embark on this opportunity to coach one of the storied basketball programs in the area,” Beatty said. “After taking the last three years off from coaching to start and reinvigorate construction programs in the region, I just could not stay away stay away from coaching any longer. I am excited to dive in to the opportunity to coach at Coronado.”

    The Cougars were hovering around the .500 mark in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons. They went 9-5 in 2021 and finished second in the 5A/4A Colorado Springs Metro South League.

  • Boys soccer regular season extended through Monday

    Because the past days’ weather has impacted the availability of fields and officials, the regular season for boys soccer will be extended through Monday, April 19. As a result, the following adjustments have been made to the postseason calendar.

    • The CHSAA state pairings meeting will take place and postseason brackets will be released on Tuesday, April 20.
    • Classes 3A-5A may play first-round games on either Wednesday, April 21, or Thursday, April 22. Both schools must mutually agree to play on Wednesday, April 21, or the game will default to Thursday, April 22.
    • Classes 2A-5A quarterfinal games will take place on Saturday, April 24. Class 5A may play quarterfinal games on Friday, April 23, if both teams mutually agree on that date. Otherwise, games will default to Saturday, April 24.
    • There will be no changes to the second week of the postseason calendar.

    “Due to the lack of officials and field availability brought on by the unexpected winter storm across the state, the decision was made to extend the regular season for boys soccer to Monday, April 19,” said Justin Saylor, CHSAA assistant commissioner overseeing boys soccer.

    See below for full details on the state tournament schedule.
    April 19 – Regular season games must be completed. Roster/gate lists due to CHSAA.
    April 20 – State tournament pairings posted.
    April 21-22 – Class 3A/4A/5A first-round games (higher seed hosts).
    *Teams must mutually agree on date & time.
    April 23 – Optional 5A quarterfinal games (if both teams mutually agree).
    April 24 – Quarterfinal games for all classes (higher seed hosts).
    April 27 – Semifinals planning meeting.
    April 28 – Semifinal games for all classes.
    April 29 – Finals planning meeting.
    May 1 – State championship games for all classes.

  • Cherry Creek’s Parker Wolfe named boys cross country Gatorade Player of the Year

    (Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)

    A state record has a tendency to attract attention. That was the case for Cherry Creek’s Parker Wolfe as he was named the Colorado boys cross country Gatorade Player of the Year on Thursday.

    This makes it a clean sweep for the Bruins as Riley Stewart earned the honor for the girls last week.

    After battling through COVID-19 last summer, Wolfe was uncertain how his cross country year was going to play out. He put his energy into getting his lungs back into shape and it paid off when he crossed the finish line at Norris-Penrose Event Center with a time of 15 minutes, 10.4 seconds which beat the record of his friend Cole Sprout.

    “Parker has taken about 30 seconds off his 5K time every year because of his constant dedication and focus,” Cherry Creek coach Ethan Dusto said. “He’s amazing at doing all the little things correctly, and does a great job of staying humble and being part of the team.”

    Earlier in the season, Wolfe ran a race in 14:38.4 seconds which is an overall state record. He was hoping to break the 15-minute mark at state, but was just off the mark.

    Wolfe is a member of the DECA club and has maintained a 3.86 GPA in the classroom. He will run for the University of North Carolina.

    He is the 22nd athlete from Cherry Creek to win a Gatorade Player of the Year which is the most for any school in the state.

  • Photos: Soto gives No. 4 Grandview boys soccer a thrilling win over No. 12 Arapahoe

    Jose Soto scored the game’s lone goal in the second half as Class 5A No. 4 Grandview boys soccer beat No. 12 Arapahoe 1-0 on Wednesday.

  • Alamosa boys soccer doesn’t like giving up goals and wants to hold that trend into the playoffs

    (Photo courtesy of Eldin Lopez Photography)

    Sometimes the easiest way to win a game is to keep an opponent from scoring. That seems to be the approach that Alamosa boys soccer has taken this season and so far, it’s been a successful one.

    Quite simply, the Mean Moose just don’t allow goals. It’s a fine balance between the solid play of center backs Trey Crowther and Nephi Rodriguez and keeper Cody Gonzalez’s habit of swatting the ball away from the net. In his 500-plus minutes in net all season, Gonzalez has allowed just two shots to slip by him. Opponents have scored just three goals all season.

    “Our back line, we’re solid back there,” coach Cheyenne Sinn said. “They understand that flat back completely. This year, it’s a brand new formation with a 4-4-2 and they love it with the rotation of having each other’s backs. They know when to step rather than just containing and dropping.”

    Limiting goals is just half the battle though. Games can’t be won without scoring from the front line and the Mean Moose (7-1 overall, 4-0 Class 3A Southwest) have found a great balance in scoring them as well as not allowing them.

    “We work well together in unison,” forward Aidan McComas said. “This year is really different from last year in our ability to communicate on the field and move the ball in one section of the field rather than going across the entire field.”

    (Photo courtesy of Eldin Lopez Photography)

    Junior Isai Lemus leads the team with nine goals while Alex Antonio-Esteban has six and McComas has four. Like the balance between the overall team’s offensive and defensive capabilities, the scoring output has also been balanced through the course of the season.

    In multiple games this year, the Mean Moose have had four players net goals en route to a win.

    They’ve also faced some challenges at times. They battled to a 1-0 win over 2A No. 1 Crested Butte on March 23. Isaac Higareda scored the game’s lone goal and Gonzalez was at his best, turning away all five shots on goal to get the shutout.

    It’s how he’s been playing all year. The lone blemish on Alamosa’s record actually came as a result of Gonzalez getting hurt and having to leave the game against Salida.

    “I had to pull my center-mid (Antonio-Esteban) and put him in goal,” Sinn said. “It threw off the pace of the game for us and we got scored seven minutes later.”

    Antonio-Esteban played admirably in the loss, making 11 saves. And if anything, the Moose were encouraged with the result of the game considering they had lost a potential all-state keeper.

    Salida beat Alamosa 4-0 in the 3A state tournament last year and even those they didn’t get the win, the Mean Moose have much more confidence heading into the start of the playoffs next week.

    “We want to do better than last season,” McComas said. “We want to make it past the first round of the playoffs. We want to go further this year. We would love to make it to the championship. We think we have the ability, we just have to iron out a few things.”

    And, of course, continue to keep their opponents from putting the ball in the net.

    (Photo courtesy of Eldin Lopez Photography)

  • Standley Lake boys soccer clinches first Jeffco League title since 1990

    LAKEWOOD — It has been a long time coming for Standley Lake’s boys soccer program.

    The Gators — No. 10 in the latest CHSAANow.com Class 4A boys soccer rankings — hadn’t won a conference title since 1990. That drought ended Tuesday night at Lakewood Memorial Field.

    “I kind of had a feeling,” Standley Lake coach John Cole said of the Gators’ run to history. “Those guys are the hardest working men in show business right now. I’ve been fortunate to line them up and push them out.”

    Standley Lake senior Kellan Bundgaard (5) makes a run toward the goal Tuesday at Lakewood Memorial Field. Bundgaard scored his 13th goal of the season in the Gators’ 1-0 victory over D’Evelyn. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

    Standley Lake (8-1, 7-0 in 4A Jeffco League) wrapped up the elusive conference title with a 1-0 victory over D’Evelyn. Standley Lake senior Kellan Bundgaard put in the eventual game-winning goal in the 45th minute.

    “There is no winning without believing,” Bundgaard said. “I think every single person on this team contributed. Everyone wanted this.”

    The Gators have one conference game remaining against Alameda International, but there is no possible scenario where Golden or Evergreen could catch Standley Lake.

    “It feels amazing. Everyone on this team feels like my best friend,” Standley Lake senior goalie David Crosbey said moments after the Gators were handed the league championship plaque. “This isn’t just a league title. It’s a league title with the boys.”

    The Gators have reeled off eight straight wins after an opening-season, non-league loss to Arvada West. The condensed season hasn’t effected Standley Lake. In fact, the Gators have won six games in eight days from April 6 to April 13.

    Standley Lake has won four 1-goal games during the 8-game winning streak. D’Evelyn (2-4-2, 2-4-2) wasn’t about to just hand the Gators the league title. The Jaguars have been in every game they have played this season and Tuesday night was the same story.

    The game was scoreless though the first half until Bundgaard found the back of the net five minutes into the second half.

    “Kellan’s goal was huge. It was very big,” Crosbey said. “I expect nothing less from Kellan. He always pulls through, but D’Evelyn brought it to us tonight.”

    Standley Lake junior Seth White set up the game-winning goal making a run deep toward the end-line before slipping a pass to Bundgaard. White was actually taken down hard by D’Evelyn senior Caulin Martinez in the first half. Both Martinez and White received yellow cards for the incident before halftime.

    Standley Lake junior Logan Hushka (9) battles with D’Evelyn senior Caulin Martinez (18) during the first have Tuesday night. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

    “We knew first team to put in a goal was going to win it,” Bundgaard said. “Seth had an interesting first half when it got a little heated. He carried through and put it to me for my 13th on the season, lucky 13.”

    The lone goal was all the Gators needed. Standley Lake’s defense held up and Crosbey managed his sixth shutout victory of the season.

    “My heart was beating,” Crosbey said of the couple of set pieces by the Jaguars that nearly tied the game late. “This was our league title on the line.”

    Cole plans on giving some of his key varsity players some rest heading into the postseason that begins next week. The Gators close out their regular season against Alameda at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 15, at the North Area Athletic Complex.

    “We want to get a good week of rest in before state (tournament),” Cole said. “These guys are very driven to go as far as they can at state. This is the year to do it. It’s a crazy COVID year.”

    The 4A state will be a 16-team tournament. Standley Lake actually had a Cinderella run to the 4A state Final 4 in 2015. The Gators were the No. 11 seed, but knocked off No. 6 Niwot and No. 3 Battle Mountain before losing to No. 2 The Classical Academy in the semifinals.

    “I think our goal is to go all the way,” Crosbey said. “We have a lot of ambitious people on this team. Our goal is to win state.”

    Standley Lake is likely to host a first-round game Wednesday, April 21, at the NAAC if they receive a top-8 seed.

    “We want to finish in a top-8 spot with a home game to start playoffs,” Bundgaard said. “We want to pack the NAAC.”

    Standley Lake’s boys soccer team poses with the Class 4A Jeffco League championship plaque Tuesday night at Lakewood Memorial Field. The Gators defeated D’Evelyn 1-0 to clinch the first boys soccer conference title for the Gators since 1990. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)

  • Photos: Fossil Ridge boys soccer upsets No. 5 Legacy

    A goal in the first half did the trick as Fossil Ridge boys soccer got a 1-0 upset win over Class 5A No. 5 Legacy on Tuesday.

  • Photos: Legend girls volleyball stuns No. 3 Chaparral in three sets

    Rylie Kadel had 24 kills to lead Legend girls volleyball to a 25-23, 23-25, 25-15 win over Class 5A No. 3 Chaparral on Tuesday.